Stop! Your Lease Extension in Sedbergh Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Sedbergh 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 Sedbergh 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 Sedbergh lease extension


Main reasons to commence your Sedbergh lease extension today:

Increase your lease and increase your Sedbergh property value

The nearer a residential lease in Sedbergh gets to zero years unexpired, the more it reduces the value of the property. If the lease has, over one hundred years to run then this decrease may be fractional however there will become a point in time when a lease has under than eighty years remaining as part of the premium you will incur is what is known as a marriage value. This could increase sharply the cost. It is the primary reason why you should extend the lease sooner as opposed to later. Most flat owners in Sedbergh will meet the qualifying criteria; nevertheless a conveyancing solicitor can confirm whether you qualify to extend your lease. In limited situations you may not qualify, the most common reason being that you have owned the property for less than two years.

Sedbergh property with a lease extension is almost 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 premises will be equivalent in value to a freehold for decades to come.

Banks and Building Societies may decide not to grant a mortgage on a short lease

Almost all mortgage companies will not lend on a lease with less than seventy years remaining - although this varies between mortgage companies. A purchaser will likely find it difficult in obtaining a mortgage and this will result in your Sedbergh property being difficult to sell or to obtain finance on.

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.
Birmingham Midshires Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
Chelsea 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.
Lloyds TSB Scotland Minimum 70 years from the date 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.

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

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

Sedbergh Lease Extension Example Cases:

Sophie, Sedbergh, Cumbria,

In the wake of 9 months of protracted discussions with the landlord of her leasehold apartment in Sedbergh, Sophie initiated the lease extension process as the 80 year deadline was swiftly coming. The transaction was concluded in June 2007. The freeholder’s fees were negotiated to slightly above 700 pounds.

Sedbergh case:

Dr Thomas Mason moved into a first floor apartment in Sedbergh in July 2004. We are asked if we could estimate the price would be to extend the lease by a further 90 years. Comparative residencies in Sedbergh with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £242,600. The mid-range ground rent payable was £45 invoiced every twelve months. The lease lapsed on 10 August 2093. Considering the 67 years outstanding we estimated the compensation to the landlord to extend the lease to be within £11,400 and £13,200 plus costs.

Sedbergh case:

Dr M Lewis owned a purpose-built flat in Sedbergh in May 2008. The question was if we could approximate the premium could be to extend the lease by an additional years. Identical premises in Sedbergh with an extended lease were in the region of £280,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £55 invoiced annually. The lease ran out on 5 September 2104. Having 78 years remaining we approximated the compensation to the freeholder for the lease extension to be between £13,300 and £15,400 plus expenses.