There is no doubt about it a leasehold flat or house in Waltham Abbey is a wasting asset as a result of the shortening lease. If the lease has, beyond 100 years to run then this decrease may be of little impact however there will become a stage when a lease has less than eighty years unexpired as part of the premium you will incur is what is known as a marriage value. This could increase markedly the cost. It is the primary reason why you should extend the lease without delay. Many flat owners in Waltham Abbey will qualify for this right; however a conveyancer can advise if you qualify to extend your lease. In limited situations you may not qualify, the most frequent reason being that you have owned the property for under two years.
It is conventional wisdom that a residential leasehold with more than one hundred years unexpired lease term is worth approximately the same as a freehold. Where an further 90 years added to all but the shortest lease, the property will be worth the same as a freehold for decades to come.
| Lender | Requirement |
|---|---|
| Bank of Scotland | 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. |
| Santander | You must report the unexpired lease term to us and await our instructions if: 1. the unexpired term assumed by our valuer is between 55 and 82 years, but the actual unexpired term differs by more than one year (whether longer or shorter); or 2. the unexpired term assumed by our valuer is more than 82 years but the actual unexpired term is less than 82 years; or 3. no valuation report is provided However, we will not accept a lease where on expiry of the mortgage: (i) less than 50 years remain and all or part of the loan is repaid on an interest-only basis: or (ii) less than 30 years remain and the loan is repaid on a capital and interest basis We will accept a lease that has been extended under the provisions of the Leasehold Reform Act 1993 provided statutory compensation would be available to the leaseholder. |
| TSB | Minimum of 70 years at mortgage commencement, with 30 years remaining at mortgage redemption. |
| 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. |
The lawyers that we work with undertake Waltham Abbey lease extensions and help protect your position. A lease extension can be arranged to be completed to coincide with a change of ownership so the costs of the lease extension are paid for using part of the sale proceeds. You really do need expert legal advice in this difficult and technical area of law. The lawyer we work with provide it.
After protracted correspondence with the freeholder of her one bedroom flat in Waltham Abbey, Louise initiated the lease extension process as the 80 year mark was quickly advancing. The transaction completed in January 2014. The landlord’s fees were kept to an absolute minimum.
In 2013 we were called by Dr Louise Lefèvre who, having was assigned a lease of a garden flat in Waltham Abbey in June 2001. The question was if we could shed any light on how much (approximately) premium could be to extend the lease by ninety years. Similar premises in Waltham Abbey with a long lease were in the region of £181,600. The average amount of ground rent was £55 billed every twelve months. The lease lapsed on 13 July 2078. Taking into account 52 years unexpired we approximated the compensation to the freeholder for the lease extension to be between £30,400 and £35,200 exclusive of legals.
An example of a Freehold Enfranchisement case for a Waltham Abbey premises is 201 & 201a St. Barnabas Road in October 2013. The Tribunal decided that the price to be paid by the Applicants for the freehold interest is £20,071. This case affected 2 flats. The remaining number of years on the lease was 69.26 years.