Owning a apartment usually means owning a lease of the property, which has a set term of years. This lease will usually be granted for a prescribed period of time , usually 99 or 125 years, although we have seen longer and shorter terms in Seaford. Clearly, the length of lease left shortens as time goes by. This is often overlooked and only raises itself as an issue when the property has to be disposed of or re-mortgaged. The shorter the lease the lower the value of the property and the more it will cost to obtain a lease extension. Eligible long lease owners in Seaford have the right to extend the lease for a further 90 years under legislation. Do give due consideration before delaying your Seaford lease extension. Putting off that expense now only increases the price you will eventually have to pay for a lease extension
It is conventional wisdom that a residential leasehold with in excess of one hundred years unexpired lease term is worth roughly the equivalent as a freehold. Where an additional ninety years added to any lease with more than 35 years left, the residence will be equivalent in value to a freehold for many years ahead.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Barnsley Building Society | 60 years from the date of the mortgage application subject to 35 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term. |
| 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. |
| Nationwide Building Society | - Our minimum unexpired lease term is 55 years, except where lending is over 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat, in which case our minimum unexpired term is 90 years. - There must be at least 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term (regardless of the length of lease at the start). Where the unexpired lease term is different to that recorded on the mortgage offer, the following clarifies if we need to be informed: Second hand property: - If the unexpired lease term on the offer is 85 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 85 years - if the unexpired lease term on the offer is less than 85 years – advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported - For equity share applications - advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer - Where lending is over 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat and the unexpired lease term on the offer is 90 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 90 years. New build property: - If the unexpired lease term stated on the offer is 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house) or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house) - For equity share applications - always advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer Lease terms such as ground rent and event fees must be reasonable at all times during the term of the lease and adhere to our requirements below. If you’re unsure as to whether the terms of a lease are unreasonable or onerous, please refer the details to us in plain English for Valuer consideration. If the potentially onerous terms are in relation to the ground rent please include the current ground rent figure per annum, how often it will be reviewed and the price structure it will be reviewed against. See the guidance below. SECOND HAND PROPERTIES Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (Will be declined): - Unexpired lease term less than 55 years - Unexpired lease term less than 90 years where we are lending more than 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat - Less than 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term - Ground Rent greater than 0.5% of the property value - Ground Rent doubles less than every 20 years (e.g. doubles every 5, 10 or 15 years) - acceptable if doubles every 20 years or more - Ground Rent is compounded RPI - Ground Rent review period is less than or equal to 5 years Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability): - Unexpired lease term is 55 to 85 years - Ground Rent greater than 0.1% and less than or equal to 0.5% of the property value - Ground Rent escalation is linked to any indices greater than RPI - Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building* - Ground Rent review period is greater than 5 and less than 10 years - Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial, etc - Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover) - Service Charges greater than 1% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover) - Anything that appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office): - Unexpired lease term greater than 85 years (Minimum 90 years where we are lending more than 85% of the purchase price/valuation on a second hand flat) - Ground Rent less than or equal to 0.1% of the property value - Ground Rent review period greater than or equal to 10 years - Ground Rent escalation less than or equal to RPI NEW BUILD PROPERTIES (includes office conversions) Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (Will be declined) - Unexpired lease term less than 125 years on a new build flat or less than 250 years on a new build house (does not apply to Shared Ownership) - Any lease which is subject to a Ground Rent (or Annual Rent) being charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis - Any lease which is subject to a Ground Rent (or Annual Rent) being charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability): - Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial etc - Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover) - Service Charges greater than 1% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover) - Anything else appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office): - Unexpired lease term greater than or equal to 125 years on a new build flat or greater than or equal to 250 years on a new build house - A lease subject to a peppercorn Ground Rent (Annual Rent) charges For the avoidance of doubt, any New Build properties completed but not sold pre-30 June 2022 will only be acceptable if the Lease conforms to the above guidance. * Where the Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building, please provide the following: - How is the value of the block/unit currently calculated and if the assessment relates to the block(s), how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned per property? - The current valuation and Ground Rent for each unit - What is the mechanism for future valuations of the block and how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned? - What is the right of appeal? And is this a documented process within the lease? - Who bears the cost of the valuation (and appeal) process? - Confirmation the review period is not less than twenty years. Lease Extensions We require all Lease Extensions to be completed under the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 and to meet the above criteria as a minimum. Where you become aware that it does not meet these requirements, please refer to Issuing Office. |
| TSB | Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption. |
Retaining our service will provide you better control over the value of your Seaford leasehold, as your property will be more valuable and saleable in terms of lease length should you want to sell. The conveyancing solicitors that we work with are well versed in the legislation handling many hundreds of lease extensions or freehold purchase transactions.
Trailing unsuccessful discussions with the freeholder of her purpose-built flat in Seaford, Jessica initiated the lease extension process as the 80 year deadline was quickly approaching. The transaction completed in January 2005. The freeholder’s costs were negotiated to a tad over 450 pounds.
Mr I Torres completed a purpose-built flat in Seaford in July 2011. The dilemma was if we could approximate the compensation to the landlord could be for a ninety year extension to my lease. Identical homes in Seaford with 100 year plus lease were in the region of £216,000. The mid-range amount of ground rent was £60 billed annually. The lease expired in 2083. Having 58 years unexpired we estimated the compensation to the freeholder for the lease extension to be between £28,500 and £33,000 exclusive of fees.
Mr and Mrs. E Mason bought a studio apartment in Seaford in April 2010. We are asked if we could approximate the price could be to prolong the lease by an additional years. Comparable properties in Seaford with a long lease were in the region of £205,000. The average ground rent payable was £50 collected monthly. The lease came to a finish on 13 October 2103. Considering the 78 years unexpired we approximated the compensation to the freeholder for the lease extension to be between £8,600 and £9,800 not including expenses.