Extending your lease

Why should I extend my lease?

Extending a short lease to a decent length can add thousands to your property’s value. Generally, the shorter the lease, the lower the value.

Full leaseholders (not shared owners) have a statutory right to a lease extension. However, we encourage leaseholders to follow the informal route as it’s much quicker and cheaper.

If you’d like to go down the formal route, you should seek independent advice. See the Leasehold Advisory Service’s website for more details.

When does a lease become ‘short’?

Once the remaining time on your lease drops below 80 years, it makes it more difficult for you to sell or remortgage.

When’s the best time to extend my lease?

If you extend your lease when it gets to around 83 - 85 years, you’ll save a lot of money.

After your lease drops to 80 years or less, you’ll have to pay 50% of the flat’s ‘marriage value’ on top of the usual lease extension price.

What’s the ‘marriage value’?

It’s the amount of extra value a lease extension would add to your property.
 

How long can I extend my lease by?

We’ll look to extend your lease by 990 years (where the lease allows).

How much will it cost me to extend my lease?

To start the process: 

• VALUATION FEE – costs vary, but expect to pay at least £350. The valuation must be done by a Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) accredited surveyor.
• OUR ADMIN FEE – £300 plus VAT. 

Upon completion of the transaction:

• PREMIUM – the total of: The estimated financial loss to the landlord (Southern Housing) resulting from the loss of reversion of the property (entitlement to the property at the end of the existing lease)
  • 50% of the marriage value (if the lease has 80 years or less remaining)
  • Any compensation payable in relation to any other loss or damage arising from the lease extension.
• YOUR SOLICITOR’S FEES – you’ll need a solicitor to act on your behalf. Get a few quotes from reputable solicitors experienced in dealing with lease extensions. You could use one of our approved solicitors.  
• OUR LEGAL FEES – around £650 ex VAT.
  
  You may also have to pay:
  • Stamp Duty (if the extension price is more than £125,000)
  • Freeholder’s valuation, legal, and admin fees (if Southern Housing isn’t the freeholder).

Is there any reason you wouldn’t let me extend my lease?

If you’re in breach of your lease (e.g. for arrears, anti-social behaviour, or serious disrepair issues): We’ll discuss the circumstances with you, but we may not agree to the lease extension while you’re still in breach of your lease.

If we’re not the freeholder of your home: It’ll depend on the terms and length of our head lease. We may need to agree an extension with the freeholder; your costs will be higher if this is the case.

I’m a shared owner. Can I extend my lease?

Yes. We’ll base the premium on 100% of your home’s value; not just the share you own.

What do I do now?

There are two routes to extending your lease:

1. Formal Process: for Leaseholders who have owned 100% of their home for at least two years.  They can apply formally by serving a notice in accordance with the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993. This route can sometimes be more costly since you are required to instruct a solicitor from the beginning of the process.

2. Informal Process; for both 100% leaseholders and Shared Owners. They can apply directly through us, this way both owner groups benefit from:

• A simpler process in comparison to the formal route, the associated costs are usually less as you are not required to instruct a solicitor before the fee to extend has been agreed.
• You only pay for one valuation.  Under the formal route, you are required to pay for the freeholder’s valuation fee as well as your own independent valuation. 
• Our aim is to be flexible when agreeing a new lease term. For example where the Head-Lease does not allow for a full 990 year extension, we may agree a lower term.

Please submit your details below to receive an information guide which outlines the process in detail and includes the form you will need to complete to being the process.