Consent to Let and Leasehold Consent

belfastguy30

I currently own a leasehold apartment which I am planning to rent out and buy a new property to live in. I had spoken to my current lender and they told me about needing to apply for consent to let and they have sent me out the necessary application form to return along with the £100 admin fee. I have just been reading the conditions though and have a couple of queries. My first query relates to one of the conditions says:

"each and every tenancy agreement relating to the property must be for between 6-12 months without any right to extend or option to renew"
Does this mean that I would only be allowed to rent out for a maximum 12 months and if so what does that mean at the end of 12 months?

My second query relates to the condition that says:
"if the Property is Leasehold, you will obtain the consent of the Landlord and any superior landlord as necessary"
My apartment block is run by a management company. Are they the people that I need to check with in the first instance?
I also pay a ground rent fee twice a year to a property development company. Would they be the superior landlord or are they altogether separate?

There are a number of other apartments rented out in the building so I'm hoping that getting consent shouldn't be too much of a problem, assuming that the other ones have all done it through the proper channels too!
Thanks for any advice.

Yorkie1

1. The clause is standard and doesn't mean that you have to kick a T out after 12 months. It just means that the fixed term can't be longer than 12 months at a time, and that you haven't signed away your right to evict the T at the end of it.

2. You need to look at your lease to find out who your own freeholder / LL is. But you also need to check for any clause which says that the property can't be sublet, parted with possession of, etc without the permission of the LL / freeholder. If such a clause is there then you need to get their (written) consent. If there is no such clause, then there's no need to get the consent and #2 from your lender does not apply.

olly300

A few lenders now ask for leaseholders to get written consent from their freeholder/management company even though they are allowed to sublet their property in their lease.

belfastguy30

Thanks for the advice! Will check out the lease agreement...when I find my copy of it!

Werdnal

Consent to let is considered a short-term remedy for people who need to relocated and cannot/do not want to sell, so aswell as the 12 month limit for tenancy agreements, you may find they will review the consent annually and reserve the right to withdraw it at any time.

If you are relocating for the long-term, you may be forced to change to a BTL loan in future.

As your property is leasehold, you also need to ensure any specific clauses in your lease are included in full in the tenancy agreement you give your tenant, as any breaches will have the freeholder/management company chasing you, and you could jeopardise your lease if breach is serious or repetitive!

belfastguy30

Thanks Werdnal, those are useful points for me to take on board too!

kingstreet

Do you have sufficient funds for the deposit on your next home. Many lenders reduce their maximum loan for the purchase of a second property. Nationwide, for example has an 85% maximum, leaving you needing a 15% deposit, or more.

belfastguy30

Yeah I encountered that problem with the Nationwide as the maximum I could do would be 10% but fingers crossed im in the process of getting a 10% deposit deal with another provider!