For anyone whose Woolwich home is held on a long lease, the message is clear – if nothing is done, your property will eventually revert to the freeholder, leaving you empty-handed. The shorter the lease the less it is worth and the more it will cost to procure a lease extension.
Leasehold residencies in Woolwich with over 100 years outstanding on the lease are sometimes regarded as a ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your home. In such circumstances there is often little upside in purchasing the reversionary interest unless savings on ground rent and maintenance charges warrant it.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Barnsley Building Society | |
| Birmingham Midshires | |
| Chelsea Building Society | |
| Godiva Mortgages | |
| Nationwide Building Society |
Engaging our service will provide you increased control over the value of your Woolwich leasehold, as your property will be more valuable and marketable in terms of lease length should you decide to sell. The conveyancers that we work with are well versed in the legislation handling many hundreds of lease extensions or freehold purchase transactions.
In recent months Cameron, started to get near to the eighty-year mark with the lease on his one bedroom flat in Woolwich. In buying his flat 19 years previously, the lease term was of no significance. Fortunately, he became aware that he would imminently be paying way over the odds for a lease extension. Cameron was able to extend his lease just ahead of time last January. Cameron and the landlord subsequently agreed on the final figure of £5,000 . If the lease had dipped below eighty years, the premium would have become more costly by a minimum £1,050.
Mrs Kelsey Ricardo acquired a garden apartment in Woolwich in February 2007. We are asked if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) premium would likely be for a ninety year extension to my lease. Comparable residencies in Woolwich with an extended lease were in the region of £174,200. The average ground rent payable was £55 collected quarterly. The lease concluded in 2077. Taking into account 51 years outstanding we estimated the premium to the landlord for the lease extension to be between £31,400 and £36,200 not including professional charges.
An example of a Lease Extension matter before the tribunal for a Woolwich premises is 46 Credon Road in January 2014. On 11 September 2013 Deputy District Judge Price sitting at the Bow County Court made a vesting order that the freeholder surrender his lease and be granted a new lease of the Premises on such terms as may be determined by the First Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber).The appropriate sum as concluded by the Tribunal was £7225 This case related to 1 flat. The unexpired residue of the current lease was 69.77 years.