Stop! Your Lease Extension in Meir Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Meir are unaware that their original lawyer had a duty to warn them about future mortgageability and saleability issues. Before you pay thousands to your freeholder, let us audit your purchase history. You might have a claim that pays for your lease extension in full

If you are facing a significant premium because your lease in Meir has dropped toward the 80-year mark, your previous lawyer may be at fault. Our panel of experts specialise in recovering lease extension costs from negligent firms who failed to protect your investment.

Why you should start your Meir lease extension


Why you should start your Meir lease extension today:

A Meir lease depreciates with the years remaining on the lease.

Unfortunately that a Meir residential lease is a wasting asset. As the lease term reduces so does the value of the property. The extent of this is not fully appreciated in the first few years due to the depreciation being disguised by increases in the Meir property market.Once your lease gets to 85ish years, you should start thinking about a lease extension. If lease term drops under eighty years, you will end up paying 50% of the property's 'marriage value' in addition to the usual cost of the lease extension to the landlord. The marriage fee is the amount of additional value that a lease extension will add the property Most leasehold owners in Meir will be able to extend under the legislation; however a lawyer will be able to clarify if you are eligibility. In some cases you may not qualify. There are also strict timeframes and procedures to follow once the process has commenced and you will need to be guided by your conveyancer for the duration of the process.

Meir property with a lease extension is almost the same value as a freehold

Leasehold premises in Meir with in excess of one hundred years outstanding on the lease are sometimes referred to as ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your home. In such circumstances there is often little to be gained by purchasing the freehold unless savings on ground rent and service charges justify it.

Lenders may decide not to grant a mortgage with a short lease

The propensity since 2008 has been for lenders to tighten lending criteria generally - this has extended to the types of security over which the home loan is to be granted. This has resulted in the minimum number of years remaining under the lease required by mortgage companies has increased. Historically mortgage companies would grant a mortgage on a lease with 25 years plus the term of the loan - routinely fifty year leases but those requirements have been chipped away by the requirement for longer and longer leases - many use a minimum term of 75 years as standard.

Lender Requirement
Barclays plc Leases with less than 70 years at the commencement of the mortgage are not acceptable.

Leases with fewer than 70 years should only be referred to the issuing office where the following scenario applies, as discretion may be applied subject to bank approval:

• Property is located in any of the following prestigious developments: Cadogan, Crown, Grosvenor, Howard de Walden, Portman or Wellcome Trust Estates in Central London AND
• The value of the property subject to the short remaining term is £500,000 or more AND
• The loan to value does not exceed 90% for purchases, 90% like for like re-mortgages, 80% for re-mortgages with any element of capital raising and 80% for existing Barclays mortgage borrowers applying for additional borrowing;
Leeds Building Society 85 years remaining from the start of the mortgage.
Skipton Building Society 85 years from the date of completion of the mortgage

For Buy to Let cases:
- lettings must not breach any of the lessee’s covenants; and
- consent of the lessor to lettings must be obtained if necessary
Virgin 85 years at the time of completion. If it's less, we require it to be extended on or before completion.
Yorkshire Building Society 85 years from the date of completion of the mortgage. Please ensure that you explain the implications of a short term lease to the borrower.

Why use us for your lease extension in Meir?

Regardless of whether you are a tenant or a freeholder in Meir,the lease extension experts that we work with will always be prepared to discuss any residential leasehold matters and offer you the benefit of their in-depth market knowledge and the close ties they enjoy with Meir valuers.

Meir Lease Extension Case Summaries:

Joshua, Meir, Staffordshire

In recent months Joshua, came seriously near to the eighty-year mark with the lease on his basement flat in Meir. In buying his flat two decades ago, the lease term was of no importance. Fortunately, it dawned on him that he would soon be paying way over the odds for Extending the lease. Joshua was able to extend his lease just ahead of time last July. Joshua and the landlord who owned the flat above in the end settled on the final figure of £5,000 . If the lease had dropped below eighty years, the sum would have increased by a minimum £975.

Meir case:

Last Summer we were contacted by Mr K Morgan , who purchased a studio flat in Meir in January 1996. We are asked if we could approximate the compensation to the landlord would likely be to extend the lease by an additional years. Identical flats in Meir with an extended lease were valued around £275,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £55 invoiced quarterly. The lease finished in 2102. Considering the 76 years outstanding we estimated the premium to the freeholder for the lease extension to be within £9,500 and £11,000 exclusive of expenses.

Meir case:

In 2012 we were phoned by Mrs Kate Hernández who, having bought a one bedroom apartment in Meir in January 2007. The dilemma was if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) compensation to the landlord could be for a 90 year lease extension. Similar residencies in Meir with 100 year plus lease were valued about £176,200. The average ground rent payable was £65 invoiced per annum. The lease terminated in 2082. Considering the 56 years left we approximated the premium to the freeholder to extend the lease to be within £29,500 and £34,000 not including expenses.