Thames View leases on residential properties are gradually decreasing in value. The shorter the remaining lease term becomes, the less it is worth – and as a result any extension of the lease gets more expensive. Legislation has been in place for sometime now allowing qualifying Thames View residential leaseholders to extend the terms of long leases. If you are a leasehold owner in Thames View you must see if your lease has between seventy and ninety years remaining. There are good reasons why a Thames View flat owner with a lease having around eighty years left should take steps to make sure that a lease extension is actioned without delay
It is generally accepted that a property with over 100 years unexpired lease term is worth approximately the same as a freehold. Where an additional 90 years added to any lease with more than 45 years remaining, the property will be worth the same as a freehold for decades to come.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Bank of Scotland | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| 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. |
| TSB | Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption. |
| Yorkshire 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. |
The lawyers that we work with procure Thames View lease extensions and help protect your position. A lease extension can be arranged to be completed to coincide with a change of ownership so the costs of the lease extension are paid for using part of the sale proceeds. You really do need expert legal advice in this difficult and technical area of law. The conveyancer we work with provide it.
Stanley was the the leasehold proprietor of a 2 bedroom flat in Thames View being marketed with a lease of fraction over 61 years remaining. Stanley on an informal basis contacted his freeholder being a well known Bristol-based freehold company for a lease extension. The landlord 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 £50 per annum. No ground rent would be payable on a lease extension were Stanley to invoke his statutory right. Stanley procured expert legal guidance and secured satisfactory resolution without resorting to tribunal and sell the property.
In 2011 we were contacted by Dr Victoria Reed who, having was assigned a lease of a one bedroom apartment in Thames View in September 2009. We are asked if we could approximate the compensation to the landlord could be for a 90 year extension to my lease. Comparable residencies in Thames View with 100 year plus lease were valued about £290,000. The average amount of ground rent was £45 invoiced every twelve months. The lease expired on 4 November 2098. Considering the 72 years unexpired we calculated the compensation to the freeholder for the lease extension to be within £11,400 and £13,200 exclusive of expenses.
An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Thames View property is 49 Aldborough Road South in July 2012. The Tribunal decided that the premium payable for the grant of the new lease was £13,925 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired residue of the current lease was 61.36 years.