Monday, 18th January 07:23am If you currently own a flat built during the 1960,s, 1970’s or 1980’s, with a 99 year lease, you may experience difficulty in selling or mortgaging.  This is due to the fact that, in the current climate, leases under 70 years can be particularly difficult to sell, and your property ...

Monday, 9th November 07:04pm As of last Wednesday, £ signs must have been flashing before the eyes for UK freeholders. One of the UK’s largest mortgage lenders, Alliance & Leicester, announced a radical change to their requirements for lending on residential leasehold properties with short lease terms.Lik...

Thursday, 22nd October 10:21pm Just to clarify the terminology here, the reference to collective enfranchisement means the ability to purchase the freehold off your landlord. I have recently read a comment by a specialist in enfranchisement and lease extensions who actively promotes the virtues of purchasing your freehold as aga...

Wednesday, 21st October 01:54pm London estate agency Douglas & Gordon were recently quoted in the Metro newspaper as having a significant proportion of properties on their books with less than 80 years to run.  According to their records up to 40 per cent of properties for sale under £500,000 have less than 80 years...

Monday, 21st September 12:08pm In the last couple of days Bank of Ireland have updated their legal requirements to conveyancing lawyers via the CML Lenders Handbook in relation to a minimum number of terms remaining on leasehold properties. Bank of Ireland have changed their minimum term requirement from 70 years to 65 years.&nbs...

Tuesday, 11th August 11:15pm

How C&G have created a need for lease extensions

Wednesday, 15th July 03:35am

You would be forgiven for feeling baffled by the law of lease extensions as it so complex and quirky as to baffle more than a few conveyancing solicitors.

Monday, 13th July 08:23pm The Enfranchisement Awards 2009 were held at a Central London on 18th May 2009.  The Awards celebrated excellence in the UK leasehold enfranchisement and lease extensions. The Awards were sponsored by Langley Taylor ( http://www.langleytaylor.co.uk/ ), Pemberton Greenish, Wallace LLP, Tanfield...

Friday, 10th July 06:15am It is somewhat of a paradox that if you have more than 80 years remaining on your lease you are unlikely to feel the need for a lease extension. Indeed may lenders and conveyancing solicitors alike are happy with leases of 70 years plus.   That being said the best time for lease extension...

Thursday, 9th July 12:52am Can you just leave things as they are? You can if you wish, but they will invariably get worse. The shorter a lease term becomes, the more costly it is to rectify the problem later with a lease extension . We have heard of examples of lease extension costs at least doubling within a few years, part...

Sunday, 5th July 01:28pm The most common dispute in both collective enfranchisement claims and lease extension claims pursuant to the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 is the dispute over the premium to be paid. There is also, however, often some confusion about when all the terms of acquisition are ...

After a lease drops below 80 years, the cost of a lease extension escalates dramatically . A short lease can also make a property hard to sell as lenders typically lend only on properties with at least 55 years on the lease. There is no clear agreement ( even amongst lenders ) as to what constitutes...

The lease which was the subject of the lease extension related to a property known as 296 The Ridgeway. The lease was for a term of 99 years running from 25th December 1959 at a ground rent of £15 per annum payable for the whole of the term.The leasehold owners and the freeholder were in agree...

The leasehold owners hold the premises pursuant to a lease dated 26h July 1991, which granted them a term of 99 years from 1st January 1990. By a lease extension notice dated 19th October 2005 the leasehold owners served on the landlord a notice seeking a lease extension pursuant to Part II of the L...

Recession hits leasehold valuation caseloads precisely at the time when people should be increasing lease extensions.  The President of the Leasehold Advisory Service (LEASE) has recently advised at the annual conference that the recession has had an impact on the number of enfranchisement appl...

Leasehold Valuation Tribunals, known for dealing with lease extensions,  are organised by Rent Assessment Panels under the auspices of the Residential Property Tribunal Service (RPTS) in England and the Welsh Assembly in Wales. Leasehold Valuation Tribunals are independent and impartial bodies....

On hearing the application made under Section 48 of the Act for a determination of the price payable under a claim for a lease extension in relation to the flat at 12 Windcott Court, Draycourt Avenue, Middlesex the Leasehold ValuationLeasehold Valuation Tribunal  decides that the Leasehold Owne...

On the 5th April 2005 the initial lease enfranchisement  notice was served and a counter-notice was  served dated 10th June 2005 accepting the leaseholder’s right to enfranchise but  disputing the price and seeking an indemnity in the Transfer to observe and perform the landlord...

296 The Ridgeway St Albans, Hertfordshire was subject to a lease for a term of 99 years running from 256' December 1959 at a ground rent of £15 per annum payable for the whole of the term. Event though the matter of the cost of the lease extension had come before the Leasehold Valuation Tribu...

This lease extension case was heard by the  Leasehold Valuation Leasehold Valuation Tribunal Pursuant to application under section 48 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 for the determination of theprice to be paid in respect of a lease extension for the property 89C...

In April 2006 The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal  was asked to determine an application under Section 48 of the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 (hereinafter called "the 1993 Act") for the determination of a lease extension for  Flat 7, and Basement Lock-up Store ...

This matter arises from an application made by Leaseholders who sought a lease extension in respect of their flat in Douglas Avenue, Exmouth, Devon, EX8 .The Leasehold Valuation Tribunal to determine was therefore the price payable by the tenants for the lease extension, and the percentage uplift ap...

On 3 December 2008 Willesden County Court in London transferred freehold via a vesting order for property in Craven Park, London NW10 8SU  under section 26 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 ("the Act") vesting the freehold in the Nominee Purchaser, in the belief th...

One of the facts that you will be most  interested to know when you are purchasing a residential leasehold property is how many years the lease has remaining.   The number of leasehold properties have increased considerably since the 1950’s and 1960’s.  Areas of great...

What happens if you wish to purchase your freehold and you have absentee freeholder or missing landlord ? Clearly in such curcumstances an Initial Notice exersing your statotory enfranchsement rights cannot be served on an absentee freeholder. This situation used to mean that a leasehold own...

The information below is intended as a general guide only and is not a substitute for legal advice. It has been produced jointly by the Association of Residential Managing Agents (ARMA), the Association of Retirement Housing Managers (ARHM), the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG)...

You may be thinking of selling or refinancing your leasehold flat and trying to work out when it is the right time to start the lease extension procedure. Here are a few tips.

Advice on lease extension premiums in light of recent case law

Follow this list of do's and don'ts when extending your lease