Owning a apartment usually means owning a lease of the property, which has a set term of years. your lease will usually be granted for a set period of time , usually 99 or 125 years, although we have come across longer and shorter terms in The Borough. Inevitably, the period of lease left shortens over time. This may slip by relatively unnoticed when the property needs to be disposed of or re-mortgaged. The fewer the years remaining the lower the value of the property and the more it will cost to procure a lease extension. Qualifying long lease owners in The Borough have the right to extend the lease for an additional ninety years under the 1993 Leasehold Reform Act. Please give due consideration before putting off your The Borough lease extension. Holding off the cost now likely increases the price you will ultimately have to pay to extend your lease
It is generally accepted that a residential leasehold with in excess of 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 30 years left, the premises will be equivalent in value to a freehold for decades to come.
| 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. |
| Coventry Building Society | A minimum of 70 years unexpired lease at completion for all scheme types apart from Lifetime Mortgages (Equity Release), which require a minimum unexpired term of 80 years at completion. |
| 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. |
| Royal Bank of Scotland | Mortgage term plus 30 years. |
| 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. |
Irrespective of whether you are a tenant or a landlord in The Borough,the lease extension lawyers that we work with will always be happy to discuss any residential leasehold matters and offer you the benefit of their experience and the close ties they enjoy with The Borough valuers.
Subsequent to protracted negotiations with the freeholder of her one bedroom flat in The Borough, Sophia commenced the lease extension process just as her lease was coming close to the all-important eighty-year deadline. The transaction completed in May 2006. The freeholder’s fees were restricted to under 650 pounds.
In 2012 we were contacted by Mr and Mrs. E Wilson who, having took over the lease of a recently refurbished apartment in The Borough in November 2008. The question was if we could estimate the compensation to the landlord could be for a 90 year extension to my lease. Comparable premises in The Borough with a long lease were worth £176,200. The mid-range ground rent payable was £65 collected per annum. The lease terminated on 12 August 2082. Having 56 years as a residual term we estimated the premium to the freeholder to extend the lease to be between £29,500 and £34,000 exclusive of fees.
In 2012 we were approached by Mr Charlie Simon who, having owned a studio apartment in The Borough in April 2002. The dilemma was if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) premium could be to extend the lease by 90 years. Comparative flats in The Borough with 100 year plus lease were valued around £237,600. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £45 collected monthly. The lease lapsed on 17 August 2093. Taking into account 67 years as a residual term we approximated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be within £11,400 and £13,200 plus professional charges.