Chislehurst leases on residential properties are gradually decreasing in value. The shorter the remaining lease term becomes, the less it is worth – and as a result any extension of your lease gets more expensive. Legislation has been in place for sometime now which permits qualifying Chislehurst residential leaseholders to extend the terms of long leases. If you are a leasehold owner in Chislehurst you should see if your lease has between 70 and ninety years left. There are good reasons why a Chislehurst flat owner with a lease having around eighty years left should take steps to ensure that a lease extension is effected without delay
Leasehold premises in Chislehurst with over one hundred years outstanding on the lease are sometimes referred to as ‘virtual freehold’. This is where the lease is worth the same as a freehold interest in your home. In such situations there is often little to be gained by purchasing the reversionary interest unless savings on ground rent and service charges warrant it.
| 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. |
| 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. |
| Leeds Building Society | 85 years remaining from the start of the mortgage. |
| 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. |
Lease extensions in Chislehurst can be a difficult process. We recommend you secure professional help from a lawyer and surveyor with experience in lease extensions.
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 in-depth market knowledge procuring Chislehurst lease extensions and further afield, as well as any potential issues which may arise as well as problems with the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal.
Harry was the the leasehold owner of a conversion apartment in Chislehurst on the market with a lease of a few days over fifty eight years left. Harry informally spoke with his freeholder a well known Bristol-based freehold company and enquired on a premium to extend the lease. The freeholder indicated a willingness to extend the lease to 125 years on the basis of a rise in the rent to £125 per annum. No ground rent would be payable on a lease extension were Harry to exercise his statutory right. Harry obtained expert advice and secured satisfactory deal informally and ending up with a market value flat.
In 2014 we were called by Mr and Mrs. U Watson who, having owned a garden apartment in Chislehurst in August 1997. The dilemma was if we could approximate the premium would likely be for a 90 year lease extension. Comparable properties in Chislehurst with an extended lease were worth £205,000. The average amount of ground rent was £50 collected per annum. The lease terminated on 14 July 2104. Considering the 79 years left we estimated the compensation to the freeholder to extend the lease to be within £8,600 and £9,800 exclusive of expenses.
An example of a Lease Extension decision for a Chislehurst residence is 70 Andace Park Gardens 133-149 Widmore Road in November 2013. Tribunal determined that the premium payable for the lease extension was £10,052 This case was in relation to 1 flat. The remaining number of years on the lease was 72 years.