Owning a flat usually means owning a lease of the property, which has a set term of years. This lease will usually be granted for a prescribed period of time , ordinarily 99 or 125 years, although we have witnessed longer and shorter terms in Thornhill. Clearly, the length of lease remaining reduces over time. This may slip by relatively unnoticed when the property has to be sold or re-mortgaged. The shorter the lease the lower the value of the property and the more it will cost to obtain a lease extension. Qualifying leaseholders in Thornhill have the right to extend the lease for a further 90 years in accordance with legislation. You should give careful consideration before putting off your Thornhill lease extension. Holding off the cost now simply increases the price you will ultimately have to pay for a lease extension
It is generally considered that a property with over 100 years remaining is worth approximately the same as a freehold. Where an further ninety years added to any lease with more than 35 years unexpired, the premises 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. |
| TSB | Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption. |
| Royal Bank of Scotland | Mortgage term plus 30 years. |
| Virgin | 85 years at the time of completion. If it's less, we require it to be extended on or before completion. |
Using our service will provide you better control over the value of your Thornhill leasehold, as your property will be more valuable and saleable in terms of lease length should you want to sell. The lawyers that we work with are well versed in the legislation handling many hundreds of lease extensions or freehold purchase transactions.
Ali owned a high value flat in Thornhill being marketed with a lease of a little over sixty years unexpired. Ali informally approached his landlord being a well known Manchester-based freehold company and enquired on a premium to extend the lease. The freeholder indicated a willingness to extend the lease to 125 years subject to a new rent at the outset set at £200 per annum and increase every 25 years thereafter. Ordinarily, ground rent would not be payable on a lease extension were Ali to invoke his statutory right. Ali obtained expert advice and was able to make an informed judgement and deal with the matter and sell the flat.
In 2013 we were contacted by Mr and Mrs. M Lambert who, having acquired a basement apartment in Thornhill in April 2011. The question was if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) price would likely be for a 90 year lease extension. Comparative properties in Thornhill with 100 year plus lease were worth £267,600. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £65 invoiced per annum. The lease ended in 2093. Having 67 years unexpired we calculated the compensation to the landlord to extend the lease to be within £14,300 and £16,400 not including professional charges.
Last Spring we were called by Ms Paige Torres , who bought a basement flat in Thornhill in August 2007. We are asked if we could estimate the premium would likely be for a 90 year extension to my lease. Identical flats in Thornhill with an extended lease were valued around £201,200. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £55 collected every twelve months. The lease ran out in 2082. Given that there were 56 years left we estimated the premium to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £31,400 and £36,200 exclusive of costs.