With a long leasehold premises in Sawston, you are actually purchasing a right to live in a property for a set period of time. In recent years flat leases typically tend to be for 99 years or 125. Even though this may appear like a long period of time, you should think about extending the lease sooner rather than later. Accepted thinking is that the shorter the lease is the cost of extending the lease becomes disproportionately more expensive especially once there are fewer than eighty years left. Anyone in Sawston with a lease nearing 81 years unexpired should seriously think of extending it as soon as possible. When the lease term has fewer than eighty years remaining, under the relevant statute the landlord is entitled to calculate and levy a greater amount, assessed on a technical calculation, known as “marriage value” which is payable.
It is generally considered that a residential leasehold with more than one hundred years unexpired lease term is worth roughly the same as a freehold. Where an further ninety years added to any lease with more than 35 years unexpired, the residence will be worth the same as a freehold for many years in the future.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Accord Mortgages | 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. |
| 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. |
| Halifax | Minimum 70 years from the date of the mortgage. |
| 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. |
Irrespective of whether you are a tenant or a landlord in Sawston,the lease extension solicitors that we work with will always be willing to discuss any residential leasehold matters and offer you the benefit of their in-depth market knowledge and the close ties they enjoy with Sawston valuers.
Following unsuccessful discussions with the freeholder of her garden flat in Sawston, Kayleigh commenced the lease extension process as the 80 year deadline was rapidly coming. The lease extension was concluded in June 2012. The freeholder’s fees were kept to an absolute minimum.
Last Spring we were called by Mr G Nguyen , who was assigned a lease of a studio flat in Sawston in June 2012. We are asked if we could estimate the compensation to the landlord would likely be to extend the lease by 90 years. Similar residencies in Sawston with an extended lease were worth £250,000. The average amount of ground rent was £50 invoiced monthly. The lease ran out in 2093. Given that there were 69 years remaining we approximated the compensation to the landlord to extend the lease to be between £9,500 and £11,000 exclusive of costs.
In 2014 we were approached by Ms M Bernard who, having took over the lease of a purpose-built apartment in Sawston in October 1999. The question was if we could shed any light on how much (roughly) compensation to the landlord would likely be to prolong the lease by ninety years. Comparative residencies in Sawston with an extended lease were worth £285,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £55 collected monthly. The lease elapsed in 2104. Having 80 years outstanding we estimated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be within £12,400 and £14,200 plus legals.