Why you should start your Wandsworth lease extension

Main reasons to start your Wandsworth lease extension today:

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

Owning a flat usually means owning a lease of the property, which has a set term of years. This lease will normally be granted for a prescribed period of time , usually 99 or 125 years, although we have seen longer and shorter terms in Wandsworth. Clearly, the term of lease remaining reduces as time goes by. This may pass by relatively unnoticed when the property needs to be disposed of or re-mortgaged. The shorter the lease the less it is worth and the more expensive it will be to procure a lease extension. Eligible long lease owners in Wandsworth have the right to extend the lease for an additional ninety years under the 1993 Leasehold Reform Act. Please give careful consideration before delaying your Wandsworth lease extension. Putting off the cost now likely increases the price you will ultimately incur for a lease extension

An extended lease has roughly the same value as a freehold

Leasehold properties in Wandsworth with more than 100 years left on the lease are often referred to as ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your property. In such circumstances there is often little to be gained by purchasing the freehold unless savings on ground rent and maintenance charges justify it.

Lenders will not finance a property with a short lease

Lenders do not like short residential leases. You are likely to experience problems if you need to sell your flat in Wandsworth if the remaining lease term is under the criteria set by most mortgage companies. Different lenders have different criteria but in the main theyrequire a minimum remaining lease term of seventy years.

Get in touch with one of our Wandsworth lease extension solicitors or enfranchisement solicitors

Regardless of whether you are a tenant or a freeholder in Wandsworth,the lease extension experts 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 Wandsworth valuers.

Wandsworth Lease Extension Example Cases:

Isaac, Wandsworth, South West London,

Isaac owned a studio apartment in Wandsworth on the market with a lease of a few days over sixty years unexpired. Isaac informally spoke with his landlord a well known local-based freehold company for a lease extension. The landlord was prepared to grant an extension on non-statutory terms taking the lease to 125 years on the basis of a rise in the rent to £125 yearly. Ordinarily, ground rent would not be payable on a lease extension were Isaac to invoke his statutory right. Isaac obtained expert advice and was able to make a more informed judgement and handle with the matter and ending up with a market value flat.

Wandsworth case:

Mr P Howard was assigned a lease of a purpose-built apartment in Wandsworth in February 2007. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) price could be for a ninety year extension to my lease. Comparable homes in Wandsworth with a long lease were valued about £270,000. The mid-range ground rent payable was £55 collected monthly. The lease termination date was in 2101. Having 75 years left we estimated the compensation to the freeholder for the lease extension to be within £9,500 and £11,000 not including fees.