Stop! Your Lease Extension in South Norwood Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in South Norwood 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 South Norwood 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.

Top reasons for South Norwood lease extension


Why you should start your South Norwood lease extension today:

Increase your lease and increase your South Norwood property value

The re-sale value of a leasehold property in South Norwood is impacted by how long the lease has left to run. If it is close to or fewer than 80 years you should expect problems on re-sale, so it is recommended to arrange for the lease to be extended prior to buying. It is ideal to start the process of extending the lease is when a lease still has 82 years to run so that formalities can be concluded ahead of the eighty year cut off point. Leasehold Reform legislation entitles South Norwood qualifying lessees to a 90 year extension added to their unexpired lease term (ie if your lease has 50 years left the statutory lease extension will provide a new term of 140 years). The reason of the valuation is to arrive at an opinion of the amount payable by the lessee to the freeholder for the purchase of the lease extension.

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

Leasehold residencies in South Norwood with over one hundred years outstanding on the lease are often referred to as ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease value the same as a freehold interest in your premises. In such situations there is often little to be gained by purchasing the reversionary interest unless savings on ground rent and service charges warrant it.

Lending institutions may not loan monies on a short lease

Whether or not the lease is be regarded as a short lease depends on the specific mortgage company, yet mortgage lenders start to get concerned at around 75 years. This will be problematic when you need to dispose of or remortgage your property as it will be effectively unmortgageable. Even though you may not have an immediate desire to sell but when you do your buyer will have to hold off for a couple of years before they can commence the legal procedures for a lease extension.

Lender Requirement
Accord Mortgages 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.
Bank of Scotland Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
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.
TSB Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption.
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.

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

Lease extensions in South Norwood can be a difficult process. We recommend you secure professional help from a conveyancing solicitor and surveyor well versed in the legislation and lease extension process.

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 in-depth market knowledge procuring South Norwood lease extensions and further afield, as well as any potential issues which may arise as well as problems with the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal.

South Norwood Lease Extension Example Cases:

Dylan, South Norwood, South London

Twenty four months ago Dylan, started to get close to the 80-year mark with the lease on his garden flat in South Norwood. Having purchased his home two decades ago, the lease term was of minimal relevance. As luck would have it, he recognised he would imminently be paying an inflated amount for Extending the lease. Dylan arranged for a lease extension just ahead of time last May. Dylan and the landlord in the end settled on the final figure of £6,000 . If he failed to meet the deadline, the premium would have become more costly by a minimum £975.

South Norwood case:

Ms A Baker purchased a garden apartment in South Norwood in January 1996. The question was if we could estimate the compensation to the landlord would likely be to extend the lease by a further 90 years. Comparative homes in South Norwood with a long lease were in the region of £250,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £50 collected every twelve months. The lease ran out on 6 November 2096. Given that there were 70 years left we approximated the compensation to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £9,500 and £11,000 exclusive of expenses.

Decision in Bromley

An example of a Lease Extension case for a South Norwood property is Flats 55, 67 & 70 Melbourne Court Anerley Road in July 2013. The tribunal calculated that the premium for the extended lease at £48,366.00 for at 55, and £88,329.00 for ats 67 and 70 combined. This case related to 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 26.38 years.