Stop! Your Lease Extension in Tilbury Could Be FREE

Many leaseholders in Tilbury 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 Tilbury 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.

Why you should start your Tilbury lease extension


Top reasons for lease extension now:

A Tilbury leasehold property depreciates with the years remaining on the lease.

Tilbury leases on domestic properties are gradually losing value. if your lease has in the region of ninety years left, you should start considering the need for a lease extension. It is important to recognise that it is that it is desirable for your lease extension to be in place before the term of the current lease dips below eighty years - otherwise a higher amount will be payable. Leasehold owners in Tilbury will mostly qualify for a lease extension; however It would be wise to check with a conveyancer to confirm if you qualify. In some cases you may not be entitled. There are prescribed deadlines and procedures to follow once the process is initiated so it’s sensible to be guided by a conveyancing solicitor during the process.

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

It is generally considered that a property with more than 100 years remaining is worth approximately the equivalent as a freehold. Where an additional ninety years added to all but the shortest lease, the residence will be worth the same as a freehold for many years ahead.

Mortgage lenders may not lend on a short lease

Mortgage lenders have set criteria when loaning funds charged on leasehold property. Many will simply refuse lend at all once an unexpired lease term slips lower than a certain unexpired lease term. Many Banks and Building Societies will not regard property with an unexpired below 75 years as acceptable security. As well as this being important when selling, it is also relevant where you are wanting to refinance your Tilbury home.

Lender Requirement
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.
Halifax Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage.
Nationwide Building Society - Our minimum unexpired lease term is 55 years, except where lending is over 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat, in which case our minimum unexpired term is 90 years.
- There must be at least 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term (regardless of the length of lease at the start).

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
- Where lending is over 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat and the unexpired lease term on the offer is 90 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 90 years.

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 55 years
- Unexpired lease term less than 90 years where we are lending more than 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat
- 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 is 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 55 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% 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 (Minimum 90 years where we are lending more than 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat)
- 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 (does not apply to Shared Ownership)
- 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 charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis

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% 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 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.
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.

Why use us for your lease extension in Tilbury?

The conveyancing solicitors that we work with handle Tilbury 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.

Tilbury Lease Extension Example Cases:

Rebecca, Tilbury, Essex,

Off the back of protracted negotiations with the landlord of her basement flat in Tilbury, Rebecca started the lease extension process just as the lease was nearing the all-important eighty-year deadline. The legal work was concluded in February 2015. The landlord’s costs were restricted to about 550 GBP.

Tilbury case:

Last Summer we were called by Ms I Sánchez , who bought a garden apartment in Tilbury in January 2006. The dilemma was if we could approximate the compensation to the landlord could be to prolong the lease by a further 90 years. Similar properties in Tilbury with 100 year plus lease were valued around £240,600. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £65 collected quarterly. The lease lapsed on 11 January 2088. Considering the 62 years remaining we calculated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be within £21,900 and £25,200 exclusive of legals.

Tilbury case:

Last year we were contacted by Ms Natalie Petit , who took over the lease of a garden apartment in Tilbury in February 2003. We are asked if we could approximate the price would likely be to extend the lease by a further 90 years. Comparative homes in Tilbury with a long lease were worth £179,200. The average ground rent payable was £55 billed per annum. The lease lapsed on 24 February 2077. Considering the 51 years left we approximated the compensation to the landlord to extend the lease to be between £31,400 and £36,200 exclusive of expenses.