About to place a bid on a leasehold apartment in Ossett. The selling agents assure me that it is normal for flats in Ossett to have less than 75 years left on the lease. I am taking out a mortgage with The Mortgage Works. Will the property be mortgageable given that the lease has 70 years remaining.
Most leasehold conveyancing experts should be able to deal with a lease extension. if you are securing a mortgage then your lender may insist that the lease be extended before competition. The Mortgage Works have specific requirements as set out in the UK Finance Lenders’ Handbook in relation to minimum unexpired lease terms. As of 4/11/2024 the requirements read as follows :
Where the unexpired lease term is different to that recorded on the mortgage offer, the following clarifies if we need to be informed:
Second hand property:
- If the unexpired lease term on the offer is 85 years or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 85 years
- if the unexpired lease term on the offer is less than 85 years – advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported
- For equity share applications - advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer
New build property:
- If the unexpired lease term stated on the offer is 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house) or more - only advise us if the actual lease term is less than 125 years (flat) / 250 years (house)
- For equity share applications - always advise us if the actual lease term is different than reported on the offer
Lease terms such as ground rent and event fees must be reasonable at all times during the term of the lease and adhere to our requirements below. If you’re unsure as to whether the terms of a lease are unreasonable or onerous, please refer the details to us in plain English for Valuer consideration. If the potentially onerous terms are in relation to the ground rent please include the current ground rent figure per annum, how often it will be reviewed and the price structure it will be reviewed against. See the guidance below.
SECOND HAND PROPERTIES
Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (Will be declined):
- Unexpired lease term less than 70 years
- Less than 30 years remaining at the end of the mortgage term
- Ground Rent greater than 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent doubles less than every 20 years (e.g. doubles every 5, 10 or 15 years) - acceptable if doubles every 20 years or more
- Ground Rent is compounded RPI
- Ground Rent review period less than or equal to 5 years
Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Unexpired lease term is 70 to 85 years
- Ground Rent greater than 0.1% and less than or equal to 0.5% of the property value
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to any indices greater than RPI
- Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building*
- Ground Rent review period is greater than 5 and less than 10 years
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1.0% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything that appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary
Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than 85 years
- Ground Rent less than or equal to 0.1% of the property value
- Ground Rent review period greater than or equal to 10 years
- Ground Rent escalation less than or equal to RPI
NEW BUILD PROPERTIES (includes office conversions)
Unacceptable - advise Issuing Office (will be declined):
- Unexpired lease term less than 125 years on a new build flat or less than 250 years on a new build house
- Any lease which is subject to a ground rent (or annual rent) being charged which is more than on a peppercorn basis
- Any lease which is subject to a ground rent (or annual rent) being reviewed and altered on any review basis or methodology
Refer to Issuing Office (Valuer will consider any impact on valuation figure and marketability):
- Event clauses exist for normal use e.g. changing the carpet, installing a TV aerial etc
- Estate Rent Charges greater than £500 p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Service Charges greater than 1.0% of property value p/a (please provide details of what the charges cover)
- Anything else appears onerous, unusual or out of the ordinary
Acceptable (no requirement to advise Issuing Office):
- Unexpired lease term greater than or equal to 125 years on a new build flat or greater than or equal to 250 years on a new build house
- A lease subject to a peppercorn ground rent (annual rent) charges
For the avoidance of doubt, any new build properties completed but not sold pre 30 June 2022 will only be acceptable if the lease conforms to the above guidance
* Where the Ground Rent escalation is linked to the value of the building, please provide the following:
- How is the value of the block/unit currently calculated and if the assessment relates to the block(s), how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned per property?
- The current valuation and Ground Rent for each unit
- What is the mechanism for future valuations of the block and how is the Ground Rent calculated/apportioned?
- What is the right of appeal? And is this a documented process within the lease?
- Who bears the cost of the valuation (and appeal) process?
- Confirmation the review period is not less than twenty years
LEASE EXTENSIONS
We require all lease extensions to be completed under the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 and to meet the above criteria as a minimum. Where you become aware that it does not meet these requirements, please refer to the Issuing Office
Can I be sure that the Ossett conveyancing solicitor on the Coventry BS panel is any good?
When it comes to conveyancing in Ossett getting recommendations is a good starting point. Before you go ahead, check if they offer a no sale no fee offer. Also, you often get what you pay for - a firm which quotes more, will often provide a better service than one which is cheap as chips. We would always advocate that you speak with the lawyer carrying out your conveyancing.
I am expecting a OIP from Bank of Ireland this week so we know how much we could potentially offer as otherwise we are dependent on web based calculators (which aren't taking into account credit checks etc). Do Bank of Ireland recommend any Ossett solicitors on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel, or is it better to go independently?
You will need to appoint Ossett solicitors independently although you'll need to choose one on the Bank of Ireland conveyancing panel. The solicitor represents both you and Bank of Ireland through the process.
After much negotiation I have agreed a price on an apartment in Ossett. My financial adviser pressured me to appoint their solicitor. I paid an upfront payment of £175. Soon after, the conveyancer called me embarrassingly acknowledging that they were not on the Coventry BS conveyancing panel. Am I right in thinking that I should be due a refund?
You should be able to recover this from the law firm if they were not on the Coventry BS panel. They should have asked at the outset which lender you were obtaining a mortgage with. An important lesson to readers of this site is to check that the lawyers are on the appropriate lender panel.
I am purchasing my first flat in Ossett benefiting from help to buy. The sellers would not reduce the amount so I negotiated £7000 of additionals instead. The property agent suggested that I not disclose to my lawyer about the extras as it will impact my loan with the bank. Should I keep quiet?.
All lenders require a Disclosure of Incentives Form from the builder of any new build, converted or renovated property, It is available online from the Lenders’ Handbook page on the CML website. CML form is completed and handed to the lender's surveyor when the inspection is done.
Lenders have different policies on incentives. Some accept none at all, cash or physical, while others will accept cash incentives up to 5%.
Hard to understand why the representative of a builder would be suggesting you withold information from a solicitor when all this will be clearly visible on forms the builder has to supply to its solicitor, the buyer's solicitor and the surveyor.
Given that I am about to part with £400,000 on a garden flat in Ossett I would like to have a conversation with the solicitor regarding theconveyancing before appointing the firm. Is this something that you can arrange?
This is something that we recommend - it is our preference to talk to you we do not take any clients on without you liaising with the conveyancer due to be conducting your conveyancing in Ossett.There is no ‘factory style conveyancing’ - every client is an important individual, not a file number. The practices that we put you in touch with believe that the fees you are calculated and presented to you for residential conveyancing in Ossett should be the amount on the final invoice that you end up paying.
I am on look out for some leasehold conveyancing in Ossett. Before diving in I want to be sure as to the remaining lease term.
Assuming the lease is recorded at the land registry - and almost all are in Ossett - then the leasehold title will always include the short particulars of the lease, namely the date; the term; and the original parties. From a conveyancing perspective such details then enable any prospective buyer and lender to confirm that any lease they are looking at is the one relevant to that title. For any other purpose, such as confirming how long the term was granted for and calculating what is left, then the register should be sufficient on it's own.
Ossett Leasehold Conveyancing - Sample of Queries Prior to Purchasing
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On the whole the cost for major works are not built into the maintenance charges, albeit that a few managing agents in Ossett require tenants to contribute towards a reserve fund created for the specific purpose of building a fund for larger repairs or maintenance. If a Ossett lease has less than eighty years it will impact the marketability of the property. It is worth checking with your mortgage company that they are content with residual term of the lease. A short lease means that you will most likely have to extend the lease sooner rather than later and you need to have some idea of what this will be. Remember, in most cases you would be required to have been the owner of the premises for a couple of years before you are eligible to extend the lease. It would be sensible to discover as much as possible regarding the company managing the block as they will either make your living at the property much simpler or a lot more difficult. Being a leasehold owner you will be at the mercy of the managing agents from a financial perspective and when it comes to practical issues like the cleanliness of the common parts. Enquire of other people what they think of them. In conclusion, be sure you discover the dates that the service charges are due to the appropriate party and precisely what it includes.