Buying a leasehold property means at some stage you may be faced with needing to extend your lease.
The longer you own a leasehold property, the shorter the lease becomes and this can affect your property’s value as well as your ability to sell it in the future.
What is a lease extension?
A lease extension is a process of adding years back onto a lease and extending the time you have before the property reverts back into the ownership of the freeholder.
Owning a leasehold property means you own the right to live in a property for a set period rather than own the land it stands on. The land is owned by a freeholder or landlord who will charge a ground rent.
In most cases, leasehold properties are flats, where the overall building and land is owned by a freeholder.
Can I extend my lease?
Under statutory law, you can extend the lease on a flat by 90 years if you’ve owned it for more than two years and there were at least 21 years remaining on the lease when you bought it.
When should I extend my lease?
Generally, people extend their lease between 80 and 90 years. Usually, because they may be looking to sell in the future and want to make sure the property is mortgageable.
What are the consequences of failing to extend your lease?
If any lease on a long leasehold residential property is not extended, it simply expires and runs out.
That could mean you have to leave your home and will certainly mean that you will no longer have any legal rights to any financial investment you have made.
If you want to discuss a lease extension on your property, our specialist team of solicitors are happy to help. Please contact us on 01753 486777