Lease extension during flat sale - questions

playing_with_fire

Hello,

We are seriously thinking about putting in an offer on a flat we viewed recently. It is on for £119,995 as the vendor is an old lady who has just gone into a residential home and wants a quick sale. The flat needs some modernisation and there will be some work to do as the flat has some adaptations for her disability. The lease left on the flat is 79 years and from looking at the lease advice website and on here, that it would probably be best to ask the vendor to extend the lease before/during the sale.
I was going to offer around £115,000 because the flat has been decently priced to sell and looking at zoopla etc this seems a fair price for the flat in this condition.

Do I offer the full asking price on the flat if they extend the lease before completion. I should pay for the extension as if they could they probably would have extended it and got a better price for the flat. I know it will be extra because it is less than 80 years but I guess I want to know if that seems a fair price.

The concerns I have are that the lady seems to be quite unwell and I don't know what would happen if in the worst case scenario the vendor died during the process.

Also I know that another flat in the building has a lease of 69 years and the freeholder offered 10k to take it back to 99 years. Now from my understanding (I may be wrong) once you have owned the flat for 2 years you are entitled to extend the lease by 90 years. Does 10k to go back to 99 seem strange to anyone else. I was thinking that maybe the estate agent got it wrong and meant 10k to extend by 99 years.

Sorry I know this isn't very coherent, jsut typing this quickly at work...I just need to confirm that if I can get the vendor to extend the 79 year lease it would be extended by 90 years and not just 20 to take it back to 99. I think the extension would take the price of the flat to 135 - 140k so would 5 - 7 k be a good estimation of how much it might cost. Sorry I just want to have all this clear in my mind before we decide what to do next.

Fire_Fox

You will often get a different price for extending the lease and different offers in terms of numbers of years depending on whether you apply directly to the freeholder (who may take advantage of your inexperience) or via LEASE or a solicitor (who know the legal position).

Cna you get a mortgage on the flat with the lease at 79 years? If so you may be best to ask the current leaseholder to start the ball rolling, but complete on the sale as fast as possible and extend the lease at your leisure.

playing_with_fire

Hello

I can get a mortgage on the flat, thanks for the advice. I thought the vendor had to start and finish the process, I didn't realise that they could get the ball rolling and then I could take over.

I don't want the freeholder to think they can take advantage, especially as I know it must look as though they can - young female first time buyer. I want as much knowledge of the subject behind me as possible.

Richard_Webster

The seller can serve the formal notice using his 2 year qualification and then transfer the benefit of the notice to you, but you are left with all the costs of the negotiations with the landlord (and possibly the costs of a hearing before the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal if nothing can be agreed) and you do not know what figure the landlord will come up with.

In the present market much better to tell seller to obtain terms from landlord and arrange extension to be completed back to back with you purchase - you pay price for flat and seller passes on part of that money to freeholder for lease extension.

silvercar

In my experience the advice to get the lease extended at time of purchase is good. If you don't it could take you time and money to sort it all out. By buying with the lease extension, you know exactly what you are paying.

These lease extensions can extend the time to purchase by weeks or months, so be prepared that this will not be a quick purchase.