Highgate leases on residential properties are gradually losing value. if your lease has in the region of 90 years left, you should start considering the need for a lease extension. Eighty years is a significant number: when the unexpired term of a lease drops below this level then you begin incurring an additional element called marriage value. Leasehold owners in Highgate will usually qualify for a lease extension; however a solicitor will confirm if you qualify. In certain cases you may not be entitled. There are also strict timetables and formalities to follow once the process has commenced so it’s sensible to be guided by a conveyancer during the process.
It is generally accepted that a property with more than one hundred 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 residence will be worth the same as a freehold for decades to come.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| National Westminster Bank | Mortgage term plus 30 years. |
| 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. |
| Skipton Building Society | 85 years from the date of completion of the mortgage For Buy to Let cases: - lettings must not breach any of the lessee’s covenants; and - consent of the lessor to lettings must be obtained if necessary |
| 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. |
Regardless of whether you are a tenant or a landlord in Highgate,the lease extension experts that we work with will always be prepared to discuss any residential leasehold matters and offer you the benefit of their experience and the close ties they enjoy with Highgate valuers.
Off the back of lengthy discussions with the freeholder of her basement apartment in Highgate, Sophia commenced the lease extension process just as her lease was nearing the critical eighty-year mark. The legal work completed in April 2014. The freeholder’s charges were kept to an absolute minimum.
In 2014 we were approached by Mr and Mrs. H Parker who, having bought a first floor flat in Highgate in August 2007. The dilemma was if we could approximate the price would be for a 90 year extension to my lease. Comparable homes in Highgate with a long lease were worth £254,200. The mid-range ground rent payable was £60 invoiced per annum. The lease concluded in 2076. Taking into account 51 years unexpired we approximated the premium to the landlord to extend the lease to be between £43,700 and £50,600 exclusive of expenses.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Highgate flat is Flat 2A 19 Shepherds Hill in June 2014. The tribunal concluded in accordance with section 48 and schedule 13 of the Leasehold Reform,Housing and Urban Development Act (the 1993 Act) that the premium payable in respect of the grant of a new lease for the Flat be £24,303 (twenty four thousand three hundred and three pounds) This case was in relation to 1 flat. The unexpired residue of the current lease was 67.85 years.