For anyone whose Haddenham home is held on a long lease, the message is clear – if you ignore the situation, the property will eventually revert to your landlord, leaving you empty-handed. The shorter the lease the lower the value of the property and the more it will cost to extend the lease.
Leasehold residencies in Haddenham with more than 100 years outstanding on the lease are sometimes regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease value the same as a freehold interest in your property. In such situations there is often little upside in buying the freehold unless savings on ground rent and estate charges warrant it.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Godiva Mortgages | 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. |
| Lloyds TSB Scotland | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| Santander | You must report the unexpired lease term to us and await our instructions if: 1. the unexpired term assumed by our valuer is between 55 and 82 years, but the actual unexpired term differs by more than one year (whether longer or shorter); or 2. the unexpired term assumed by our valuer is more than 82 years but the actual unexpired term is less than 82 years; or 3. no valuation report is provided However, we will not accept a lease where on expiry of the mortgage: (i) less than 50 years remain and all or part of the loan is repaid on an interest-only basis: or (ii) less than 30 years remain and the loan is repaid on a capital and interest basis We will accept a lease that has been extended under the provisions of the Leasehold Reform Act 1993 provided statutory compensation would be available to the leaseholder. |
| 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. |
The lawyers that we work with handle Haddenham 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.
Following lengthy discussions with the landlord of her one bedroom apartment in Haddenham, Catherine initiated the lease extension process as the 80 year mark was rapidly approaching. The legal work was concluded in February 2006. The landlord’s costs were restricted to under 550 GBP.
In 2012 we were called by Mr and Mrs. A Hernández who, having took over the lease of a ground floor flat in Haddenham in February 2010. The question was if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) price would likely be for a 90 year extension to my lease. Comparable homes in Haddenham with a long lease were worth £275,000. The average ground rent payable was £65 collected quarterly. The lease came to a finish on 2 May 2093. Taking into account 68 years left we approximated the compensation to the freeholder for the lease extension to be between £12,400 and £14,200 not including fees.
Last Autumn we were contacted by Dr Lucas Flores , who completed a one bedroom apartment in Haddenham in August 1995. The dilemma was if we could estimate the compensation to the landlord could be to extend the lease by ninety years. Comparative residencies in Haddenham with a long lease were worth £208,600. The average amount of ground rent was £60 collected quarterly. The lease ended on 3 January 2082. Considering the 57 years remaining we approximated the compensation to the freeholder for the lease extension to be within £30,400 and £35,200 plus legals.