lease extn to 99 years or add 99 years

geet

hello all, my brother has a flat with 60 years left on lease - the value of it with the present lease will be 220,000. he was told he will have to pay 25 K for an extension. after negotiations, he has brought down the figure to 20 K. he asked me if it is ok to agree but i see a problem. the lease extension will take the lease to 99 years which means in effect he is getting only 39 years added to present lease. i think the 99 years should be added to the 60 taking it to 159 years. can someone help with some advice please as he seems to think this is fine. thanks, g.

since i posted above in lease extension thread (but got no reply), i have found out that freeholders will give you an extension that adds 99 years with no increase in ground rent only after a notice is served to them. my brother worries that the 20 K (for taking it to 99 years and with increased ground rent) will revert to 25 K or more if we want to add 99 years with no ground rent and that anyway he is not capable of long drawn legal disputes. pls can someone give their thoughts on this.

thanks, g

loubel

If he wants a statutory extension then he will need to follow the statutory procedure.

As he is negotiating the extension privately then they can agree whatever they want. The key question is whether he is happy with the deal he has made. Has he had a professional valuation carried out?

Tumtitums

im not sure i understand the question but i have a few points, a 60 year lease is very offputting, a 99 year one is better but i doubt if anyone would be put off by 159 years so id go for that if he can afford it

geet

Thanks Loubel, he has talked to two soliciters and they seemed to tell him the amount was not too off the mark. And they did not seem to think much of the adding 99 years and totalling to 99 years issue telling him what does it matter to him, though I personally feel that the freeholder is gaining a lot by agreeing to 20 K as they are offering only a 99 years lease and increasing ground rent periodically.

Thanks Tumtitums, I think the question is really this - i have checked lease extension calculators and the approximate price for extending lease for a 60 year lease left on property valued at £220,000 is £25,000.

My question is if that if we accept £25,000 is ok for adding 99 years with no ground rent increase (which is what the legal route may tell him), then should he negotiate the 20 K figure further down as he is now offered only a lease totaling 99 years with periodic increase in ground rent.

Hope that is clear!