Stop! Your Lease Extension in Pevensey Bay Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Pevensey Bay 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 Pevensey Bay 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 Pevensey Bay lease extension


Why you should commence your Pevensey Bay lease extension today:

A Pevensey Bay lease depreciates with the years remaining on the lease.

As the length of the unexpired term of a Pevensey Bay domestic lease lessens so does its value and therefore the value of your property. If the lease has, more than 100 years to run then this decrease may be fractional nevertheless there will become a stage when a lease has less than 80 years left as part of the premium you will incur is what is termed as a marriage value. This could be significant. It is the main rational as to why you should extend the lease without delay. The majority of flat owners in Pevensey Bay will qualify for this right; however a conveyancer will be able to confirm if you are eligible for a lease extension. In limited situations you may not qualify, the most frequent reason being that you have owned the property for under two years.

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

It is conventional wisdom that a property with over 100 years unexpired lease term is worth approximately the equivalent as a freehold. Where an further ninety years added to all but the shortest lease, the residence will be equivalent in value to a freehold for many years in the future.

Mortgage lenders may decide not to loan monies on a short lease

The propensity since 2008 has been for mortgage companies to tighten lending requirements generally - this has extended to the types of security over which the mortgage is to be charged. This has meant the unexpired lease term required by mortgage companies has increased. Historically banks were content with 25 years plus the term of the loan - typically 50 year leases but those requirements are being increasingly undermined by the requirement for longer and longer leases - many now have a minimum term of 75 years as standard.

Lender Requirement
Bank of Scotland Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
Leeds Building Society 85 years remaining from the start of the mortgage.
Nationwide Building Society - Our minimum unexpired lease term is 55 years, except where lending is over 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat, in which case our minimum unexpired term is 90 years.
- There must be at least 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term (regardless of the length of lease at the start).

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
- Where lending is over 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat and the unexpired lease term on the offer is 90 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 90 years.

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 55 years
- Unexpired lease term less than 90 years where we are lending more than 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat
- 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 is 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 55 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% 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 (Minimum 90 years where we are lending more than 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat)
- 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 (does not apply to Shared Ownership)
- 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 charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis

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% 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 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.
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
TSB Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption.

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

Lease extensions in Pevensey Bay can be a difficult process. We recommend you obtain professional help from a conveyancer and surveyor with experience in this area.

We provide you with an expert from a selection of lease extension solicitors, which ensures a targeted and efficient service as you have a dedicated port of call with an individual lawyer. Our lease extension solicitors have a wealth of experience procuring Pevensey Bay lease extensions and further afield, as well as any potential issues which may arise as well as problems with the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal.

Pevensey Bay Lease Extension Example Cases:

Tommy, Pevensey Bay, East Sussex,

Tommy was the the leasehold proprietor of a high value flat in Pevensey Bay being sold with a lease of a little over 72 years left. Tommy informally approached his freeholder being a well known Bristol-based freehold company for a lease extension. The freeholder was prepared to give an extension on non-statutory terms taking the lease to 125 years on the basis of a rise in the rent to £200 annually. Ordinarily, ground rent would not be due on a lease extension were Tommy to invoke his statutory right. Tommy obtained expert legal guidance and secured an acceptable deal informally and ending up with a market value flat.

Pevensey Bay case:

Mr and Mrs. I Gómez bought a garden apartment in Pevensey Bay in February 1997. We are asked if we could approximate the premium would likely be for a 90 year lease extension. Identical properties in Pevensey Bay with a long lease were valued around £250,000. The mid-range ground rent payable was £50 billed every twelve months. The lease ran out in 2095. Given that there were 69 years left we calculated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be between £9,500 and £11,000 plus expenses.

Pevensey Bay case:

Dr A Cooper completed a basement flat in Pevensey Bay in March 1995. The dilemma was if we could approximate the price could be to prolong the lease by an additional years. Similar homes in Pevensey Bay with an extended lease were worth £290,000. The average ground rent payable was £60 invoiced monthly. The lease terminated in 2106. Having 80 years left we estimated the premium to the freeholder to extend the lease to be between £13,300 and £15,400 not including professional charges.