Buying the leasehold from Shenstone Properties

Ageing_Stick_Insect

Hi,

My 3 bed semi was built in 1960 and has a 99 year lease. I pay a ground rent of £8 annually to Shenstone Properties.

I am considering buying the lease from them but have no idea how to proceed. I suppose the first step is to contact them and ask how much it would cost.

Having searched for their company name they appear to be "ground rent grazers" so I'm concerned they may ask some silly price.

I won't be around when the lease expires in 2059 but I'd like to keep things straight-forward for my next-of-kin. Appreciate any advice on how best to play this - thanks.

Ageing_Stick_Insect

I decided to call them and a polite lady said it was a 999 year lease. I'm not entirely sure that's right but they're sending me some details on the purchase.

She suggested it would cost around £1500 to buy. Doesn't seem too unreasonable but I'd still appreciate hearing other people's experience and advice.

patricia..xx

If its 999 years then if all you're worried about is the expiry, I really wouldn't. If the ground rent or any other lease terms are proving to be a pain then that's a different matter.

Do you have a copy of the lease to check the dates and whether the ground rent increases at certain points?

Ageing_Stick_Insect

Hi Patricia,

I don't have a copy of the lease unfortunately. Once they send the details it should confirm the duration.

I have paid £8 annually since I moved into the house in 1974 so I'd be surprised if any increases were imminent.

How easy is it to find out from the deeds what the period is? My mortgage is paid off but I have paid a one-off sum to Santander to retain them. I guess there would be an administration fee but I guess I can trust Shenstone to give me the correct period.

I tend to agree that buying out a 999 year lease is not really necessary. The house will be demolished long before then!

propertyman

You already own the lease to the house, they own the freehold, which you are seeking to buy. HM Land registry online ( tick for leasehold premises) will give you the length of the lease and you can get a copy of the lease from them to.

This guide will help you on price http://www.lease-advice.org/publications/documents/document.asp?item=15

Ageing_Stick_Insect

Thanks propertyman for clarifying my situation. I see it will cost £14.95 to receive this info from HMLR. I'm not ruling it out but I'll hold off until I receive the documents from Shenstone. The lady did seem quite certain it was a 999 year lease and judging from the amount it would cost to buy it that seems correct.

Ageing_Stick_Insect

I received the letter from Shenstone and they confirm it is a 999 year lease. It will cost £1450 to buy it out but considering its length there's no advantage to me to do so.

The house will be dust by the time the lease expires. I'll leave it to my executors to decide what to do.

cattie

Very wise as a 999yr lease is considered virtual freehold, so no need for any of your kin to worry about things for some generations to come yet!

How thoughtful of you to be concerned about wanting to ensure everything is as straightforward as possible for your beneficiaries when you do finally pop off.

Richard_Webster

Thanks propertyman for clarifying my situation. I see it will cost £14.95 to receive this info from HMLR.

No way! You've been scammed by one of those sites that pretends that they are the Land Registry. The charge more for "helping you" get the documents from the Land Registry which you could directly yourself.

Only deal with Landregistry.gov.uk!

You should find that the title register (which will tell you the length of the lease) should cost £3.

You are not buying the lease - you already own it - you are buying the freehold.

The cost for a 999 year lease would be around £200-£250 but there would be the freeholder's legal costs and your own solicitor's costs so the total might come to somewhere around £1,000. Not critical to buy in this case unless the lease has nasty clauses in it but will make house easier to sell in t he future as many buyers are suspicious of leaseholds.

If it is 99 years from 1964 then the house could not be sold now to anyone wanting a mortgage and I would suspect the cost of buying the freehold could well be in 5 figures.

Ageing_Stick_Insect

cattie wrote: »

Very wise as a 999yr lease is considered virtual freehold, so no need for any of your kin to worry about things for some generations to come yet!

How thoughtful of you to be concerned about wanting to ensure everything is as straightforward as possible for your beneficiaries when you do finally pop off.

Thanks Cattie. I have an organised mind so want to make things as straight-forward as possible when the day comes. No point spending for no gain.

Ageing_Stick_Insect

Richard_Webster wrote: »

No way! You've been scammed by one of those sites that pretends that they are the Land Registry. The charge more for "helping you" get the documents from the Land Registry which you could directly yourself.

Only deal with Landregistry.gov.uk!

You should find that the title register (which will tell you the length of the lease) should cost £3.

You are not buying the lease - you already own it - you are buying the freehold.

The cost for a 999 year lease would be around £200-£250 but there would be the freeholder's legal costs and your own solicitor's costs so the total might come to somewhere around £1,000. Not critical to buy in this case unless the lease has nasty clauses in it but will make house easier to sell in t he future as many buyers are suspicious of leaseholds.

If it is 99 years from 1964 then the house could not be sold now to anyone wanting a mortgage and I would suspect the cost of buying the freehold could well be in 5 figures.

Richard, I appreciate the guidance but if you had read the entire thread you would have seen it's a 999 year lease so I don't propose buying it out.