Stop! Your Lease Extension in Morriston Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Morriston 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 Morriston 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.

Main reasons to start your Morriston lease extension


Top reasons for lease extension now:

Increase your lease and increase your Morriston property value

Morriston leases on residential properties are gradually losing value. if your lease has approximately ninety years unexpired, you should start thinking about a lease extension. If lease term is under 80 years, you will then have to pay 50% of the property's 'marriage value' in addition to the usual cost of the lease extension to your landlord. Marriage value is the amount of additional value that a lease extension will add to the property. Leasehold owners in Morriston will usually be legally entitled to a lease extension; however it’s a good idea to check with a lawyer to confirm your eligibility. In some situations you may not qualify. There are also strict deadlines and procedures to comply with once the process has commenced so it’s sensible to be guided by a conveyancer during the process.

Morriston property with a lease extension has roughly the same value as a freehold

It is conventional wisdom that a property with over one hundred years unexpired lease term is worth approximately the equivalent as a freehold. Where an further 90 years added to all but the shortest lease, the residence will be worth the same as a freehold for decades to come.

Mortgage lenders will not loan monies on a short lease

Lenders do not like short residential leases. You are likely to encounter difficulties where you want to sell your flat in Morriston if the unexpired term of your lease is less than the criteria set by the majority of mortgage companies. Different mortgage companies have varying criteria but generally theyrequire an unexpired term of at least seventy years.

Lender Requirement
Barnsley Building Society 60 years from the date of the mortgage application subject to 35 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term.
National Westminster Bank Mortgage term plus 30 years.

For Shared Ownership, the remaining term of the lease must be at least 75 years plus the term of the mortgage at the outset 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
The Mortgage Works Minimum unexpired lease term is 70 years with 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term.
Where the unexpired lease term is different to that recorded on the mortgage offer, the following clarifies if we need to be informed:

Second hand property:
- If the unexpired lease term on the offer is 85 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 85 years
- if the unexpired lease term on the offer is less than 85 years – advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported
- For equity share applications - advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer

New build property:
- If the unexpired lease term stated on the offer is 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house) or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house)
- For equity share applications - always advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer

Lease terms such as ground rent and event fees must be reasonable at all times during the term of the lease and adhere to our requirements below. If you’re unsure as to whether the terms of a lease are unreasonable or onerous, please refer the details to us in plain English for Valuer consideration. If the potentially onerous terms are in relation to the ground rent please include the current ground rent figure per annum, how often it will be reviewed and the price structure it will be reviewed against. See the guidance below.

SECOND HAND PROPERTIES

Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (Will be declined):
- Unexpired lease term less than 70 years
- Less than 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term
- Ground Rent greater than 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent doubles less than every 20 years (e.g. doubles every 5, 10 or 15 years) - acceptable if doubles every 20 years or more
- Ground Rent is compounded RPI
- Ground Rent review period less than or equal to 5 years

Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Unexpired lease term is 70 to 85 years
- Ground Rent greater than 0.1% and less than or equal to 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to any indices greater than RPI
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building*
- Ground Rent review period is greater than 5 and less than 10 years
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1.0% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything that appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary

Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than 85 years
- Ground Rent less than or equal to 0.1% of the property value
- Ground Rent review period greater than or equal to 10 years
- Ground Rent escalation less than or equal to RPI

NEW BUILD PROPERTIES (includes office conversions)

Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (will be declined):
- Unexpired lease term less than 125 years on a new build flat or less than 250 years on a new build house
- Any lease which is subject to a ground rent (or annual rent) being charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis
- Any lease which is subject to a ground rent (or annual rent) being reviewed and altered on any review basis or methodology

Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1.0% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything else appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary

Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than or equal to 125 years on a new build flat or greater than or equal to 250 years on a new build house
- A lease subject to a peppercorn ground rent (annual rent) charges

For the avoidance of doubt, any new build properties completed but not sold pre 30 June 2022 will only be acceptable if the lease conforms to the above guidance

* Where the Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building, please provide the following:
- How is the value of the block/unit currently calculated and if the assessment relates to the block(s), how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned per property?
- The current valuation and Ground Rent for each unit
- What is the mechanism for future valuations of the block and how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned?
- What is the right of appeal? And is this a documented process within the lease?
- Who bears the cost of the valuation (and appeal) process?
- Confirmation the review period is not less than twenty years

LEASE EXTENSIONS

We require all lease extensions to be completed under the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 and to meet the above criteria as a minimum. Where you become aware that it does not meet these requirements, please refer to the Issuing Office

Please ensure that all lender enquiries are submitted (with full documentation/requirements) at least 2 weeks prior to exchange to allow sufficient time for review and decisioning.
Royal Bank of Scotland Mortgage term plus 30 years.

Get in touch with one of our Morriston lease extension solicitors or enfranchisement solicitors

Using our service will provide you enhanced control over the value of your Morriston leasehold, as your property will be more valuable and marketable in terms of lease length should you want to sell. The conveyancers that we work with have a wealth of experience of handling many hundreds of lease extensions or freehold purchase transactions.

Morriston Lease Extension Example Cases:

Evan, Morriston, Swansea,

Evan owned a studio apartment in Morriston being marketed with a lease of a little over fifty eight years left. Evan on an informal basis contacted his landlord being a well known Manchester-based freehold company for a lease extension. The landlord was prepared to agree an extension on non-statutory terms taking the lease to 125 years on the basis of a new rent to start with set at £100 per annum and doubled every 25 years thereafter. Ordinarily, ground rent would not be due on a lease extension were Evan to invoke his statutory right. Evan procured expert advice and secured an acceptable resolution informally and ending up with a market value flat.

Morriston case:

Last Winter we were approach by Ms H González , who bought a one bedroom flat in Morriston in April 2003. The dilemma was if we could estimate the compensation to the landlord would be to extend the lease by a further 90 years. Comparative residencies in Morriston with an extended lease were valued around £183,600. The mid-range ground rent payable was £65 invoiced monthly. The lease lapsed on 8 October 2083. Having 57 years unexpired we approximated the compensation to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £28,500 and £33,000 not including fees.

Morriston case:

Last month we were approach by Mr and Mrs. O Alexander , who owned a first floor flat in Morriston in April 2011. We are asked if we could approximate the premium could be for a 90 year extension to my lease. Comparable premises in Morriston with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £245,000. The average ground rent payable was £50 collected per annum. The lease elapsed in 2094. Considering the 68 years unexpired we approximated the compensation to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 plus professional charges.