Main reasons to start your St John's Wood lease extension

Main reasons to commence your St John's Wood lease extension today:

A St John's Wood leasehold property depreciates with the years remaining on the lease.

It’s an underpublicised truth that a St John's Wood residential lease is a wasting asset. As the lease term reduces so does the value of the property. The extent of this is taken for granted in the first few years due to the reduction being disguised by increases in the St John's Wood property market.Once your lease nears 85ish years, you need to start thinking about a lease extension. If the number of years remaining drops below eighty years, you will then be required to pay 50% of the property's 'marriage value' on top of the usual cost of the lease extension to the landlord. The marriage fee is the amount of extra value that a lease extension will add the property Most leasehold owners in St John's Wood will be able to extend under the legislation; however a conveyancer will be able to clarify if you qualify for an extension. In some situations 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 from beginning to end of the process.

An extended lease is almost the same value as a freehold

It is conventional wisdom that a residential leasehold with more than 100 years unexpired lease term is worth roughly the same as a freehold. Where an further 90 years added to any lease with more than 45 years remaining, the residence will be worth the same as a freehold for decades to come.

Mortgage lenders may not lend with a short lease

Mortgage Lenders are distinct in their lending criteria. Some draw the line at seventy five years remaining on the lease; others may be content with anything in excess 70 years. With less than sixty years, it may be challenging to get a mortgage at all.

Get in touch with one of our St John's Wood lease extension solicitors or enfranchisement solicitors

Irrespective of whether you are a tenant or a landlord in St John's Wood,the lease extension experts that we work with will always be willing to discuss any residential leasehold matters and offer you the benefit of their in-depth market knowledge and the close ties they enjoy with St John's Wood valuers.

St John's Wood Lease Extension Example Cases:

Joseph, St John's Wood, London,

Joseph was the the leasehold proprietor of a conversion flat in St John's Wood on the market with a lease of just over 72 years left. Joseph on an informal basis spoke with his landlord being a well known local-based freehold company for a lease extension. The freeholder was keen to grant an extension on non-statutory terms taking the lease to 125 years on the basis of a new rent to start with set at £150 per annum and doubled every 25 years thereafter. No ground rent would be due on a lease extension were Joseph to exercise his statutory right. Joseph procured expert legal guidance and secured satisfactory deal without going to tribunal and readily saleable.

St John's Wood case:

In 2011 we were phoned by Mrs Bethan Flores who, having acquired a garden apartment in St John's Wood in September 1996. The question was if we could approximate the price would be for a ninety year lease extension. Comparable flats in St John's Wood with 100 year plus lease were valued around £208,200. The average ground rent payable was £65 collected per annum. The lease elapsed on 14 September 2086. Taking into account 61 years left we estimated the premium to the landlord for the lease extension to be within £20,000 and £23,000 plus expenses.