Owning a apartment usually means owning a lease of the property, which has a finite term of years. The lease will usually be granted for a fixed period of time , ordinarily 99 or 125 years, although we have come across longer and shorter terms in Mill Hill. Inevitably, the period of lease remaining reduces as time goes by. This may slip by relatively unnoticed when the flat or house needs to be sold or refinanced. The shorter the lease the less it is worth and the more it will cost to obtain a lease extension. Eligible long lease owners in Mill Hill have the legal entitlement to extend the lease for an additional 90 years under Leasehold Reform legislation. Please give careful attention before delaying your Mill Hill lease extension. Holding off that expense now only increases the price you will ultimately have to pay to extend your lease
It is conventional wisdom that a property with over one hundred years unexpired lease term is worth roughly the equivalent as a freehold. Where an additional 90 years added to any lease with more than 35 years left, the property will be worth the same as a freehold for decades to come.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Birmingham Midshires | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| Chelsea 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. |
| 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. |
| Lloyds TSB Scotland | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| National Westminster Bank | Mortgage term plus 30 years. For Shared Ownership, the remaining term of the lease must also be not less than 75 years at the outset of the mortgage. |
Lease extensions in Mill Hill can be a difficult process. We recommend you secure guidance from a conveyancer and valuer well versed in the legislation and lease extension process.
We provide you with an expert from a selection of lease extension solicitors, which ensures a targeted and efficient service as you have a dedicated port of call with an individual lawyer. Our lease extension solicitors have a wealth of experience dealing with Mill Hill lease extensions and further afield, as well as any potential issues which may arise as well as problems with the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal.
Oscar was the the leasehold proprietor of a high value flat in Mill Hill being sold with a lease of just over 59 years left. Oscar on an informal basis contacted his freeholder being a well known London-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 an increased rent to £50 annually. No ground rent would be payable on a lease extension were Oscar to exercise his statutory right. Oscar procured expert legal guidance and secured an acceptable deal without going to tribunal and sell the property.
Dr H Robinson purchased a ground floor apartment in Mill Hill in August 2004. We are asked if we could approximate the price would be for a 90 year lease extension. Identical flats in Mill Hill with a long lease were valued around £295,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £50 invoiced monthly. The lease elapsed on 2 July 2100. Taking into account 75 years unexpired we approximated the compensation to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £8,600 and £9,800 not including fees.
An example of a Lease Extension case for a Mill Hill premises is Ground Floor Maisonette 17 Milton Road in January 2014. The Tribunal determined the premium payable by the Applicant to the should be £13,299 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired lease term was 71.73 years.