Extending Lease to Sell Shared Ownership

Blondetotty

I've been dealing with a similar HA on my property for a lease extension and I know that there is no right for a statutory lease extension on a shared ownership property so you're at the HA mercy of whether their policy is to grant a reduction on the percentage owned or whether you will need to pay the full 100% premium. With mine, it's the full 100% but fortunately I'm above 80 years so don't have to take marriage value into consideration as well.


Hyde (my HA) have a guide on their website with all the costs (estimated in some parts) that need to be paid. Before I even get to the premium, I've got £1000 worth of their legal fees, plus a RICS surveyor estimated at approx. £500, plus my legal fees, plus other bits and pieces.


Obviously when you sell they get the benefit of their 50% ownership with an extended lease though

mkgirlchick

Jules0606 wrote: »

Hi,

I'm so sorry, I can't find a way to reply to your message, it says you don't allow private messages.

So far, our Lease extension with Guinness started on 06/01/19. They's taken over a month to find a RICS valuer and I still haven't been given a time for the valuation yet!! But we have been charged £600 at the end of Jan so far to cover the fee, which I wasn't made aware of.

So far Guinness have quoted potentially £6000 for the premium, but I've also been told £3000 by another employee, so I'm completely at their mercy at the moment.
I started the sale on 16/01, and for the money they've charged us, they still haven't looked for a buyer. I get to list the house with an estate agent from 28/02.

If you want any updates, let me know, but good luck. I'm mortified that a charity is allowed to act this way.

Take care

Jules

Hello have PM you, please reply if you can, really love to discuss this!

mkgirlchick

Google Abolish Leasehold Petition and sign.. reform is needed! urgently!

even as shared owners, this will apply to you, reform is needed for us as we are treated like 100% leaseholders having to pay 100% with the massive disadvantage of not owning 100% (with lease extensions the fees are crippling to your %) contact your MPs, sign the petition, a overal leasehold reform IS required and IS needed.
Please check you messages Jules, i am really keen to hear from you (same situation,same provider)

mkgirlchick

Jules, i have PM'd you please take time to read and reply! thank you!

mkgirlchick

Jules0606 wrote: »

Hi,

I'm so sorry, I can't find a way to reply to your message, it says you don't allow private messages.

So far, our Lease extension with Guinness started on 06/01/19. They's taken over a month to find a RICS valuer and I still haven't been given a time for the valuation yet!! But we have been charged £600 at the end of Jan so far to cover the fee, which I wasn't made aware of.

So far Guinness have quoted potentially £6000 for the premium, but I've also been told £3000 by another employee, so I'm completely at their mercy at the moment.
I started the sale on 16/01, and for the money they've charged us, they still haven't looked for a buyer. I get to list the house with an estate agent from 28/02.

If you want any updates, let me know, but good luck. I'm mortified that a charity is allowed to act this way.

Take care

Jules

Hi Jules, this is my new username here - please can you look at your Private Messages and reply to me if you see this.! i really need some help/insight from this H/A

Jules0606

Hi,
Sorry I haven’t been on site since my last post.

Guinness Legal Service advised us to run the extension (advised by their Homeowner Legal Dept as 8-10 weeks) and sale concurrently. Naturally, as they had far greater experience, we complied.

At the beginning of April Guinness accepted an offer from a buyer for the property and I looked for and offered on my onward purchase. All the time, chasing for the extension (now overdue by Guinness Legal Dept advice).

My buyer was looking to move early July and my onward purchase limited to completion by the Vendor to end of July.

Despite informing Guinness of this, it was impossible to move the Lease between solicitors in time, as Guinness and their representatives presented delay after delay, outsourcing blame, and refusing responsibility for advice given, even when evidence was provided to dispute their claims.
I registered a complaint using their online form on 01-03 (which did not receive a complaint reference CCF number from Guinness, meaning I could not use it as proof of when the complaint was filed to the Ombudsman), and was advised to complain via my own email address to provide evidence of receipt, which I did on 23rd May, ensuring that I received a Complaint Reference number from Guinness this time.

Guinness response to my this complaint was that my solicitor was to blame for delays, which my solicitor provided evidence to the contrary. I asked them to add the valuation fee to their website tab that provides fee information, to ensure that other customers weren’t left looking for cash after signing to pay Guinness whether the Lease extension is accepted or not. They responded that ‘it would be unrealistic for us to absorb the costs of the valuation as it is for the benefit of the sale of your home’. I’ve since re-read the agreement that I signed for the lease extension which states that: The Application for Lease Extension states that ‘The valuation fee of the Guinness Partnership valuer will not be refunded to me if the Lease extension does not complete’.

I was encouraged to progress the complaint to stage 2, and the Complaints department passed me to the manager of Legal Services to deal with. She emailed to say that she would contact me with an outcome by 20/06, I emailed on 24/06 asking why she had not met her deadline for a response but received nothing until I contacted my Local MP Office who contacted her on my behalf. She responded the same day.

The response stated that:

• The delay in providing a valuer was unavoidable, they knew about it but did not inform me before the extension commenced (I would obviously have paused the sale of the house to avoid conveyancing and brokerage costs for my onward purchase), despite insisting that they did inform me.

• They are limited by the information that they can present on their website as each lease extension is different (my understanding is that the majority will require their survey fee, which we only found out about after we signed to promise payment whatever the outcome).

• That once their preferred solicitor was appointed, that they have little to do with the process. I not only had to chase Guinness to chase their solicitor, but source their email address myself to email them myself, when they would not respond to recurrent emails and voice mails left by my solicitor requesting information.

• Guinness will not cover the costs of my onward purchase if I lose it based on their original advice and delays, as they ‘do not believe that they have caused the delays’.

• That the timescales that they quote ‘is a guideline and not a service promise). 8-10 weeks becoming 26.

The response was littered with apologies followed by assertion that ‘I do not believe that there were delays later down the line’.

I have requested escalation to level 3 in order to exhaust the process and look for external intervention.

We finally completed our Lease extension (paying 100% of the Premium for the property value despite our 50% share) with Guinness on 28/06 after months of active chasing by me, my solicitor, the Ombudsman and local MP office, but it wasn’t over. Our buyers (understandably) would not Exchange until the Lease had been registered at Land registry. My own onward purchase required Exchange & Completion no later than end of July.

We informed Guinness, asking them to send the completed Lease through to enable it to be expedited to meet the timeframe. It took 4 days, recurrent emails and voicemails from my solicitor to theirs, the MP’s office and myself to receive the Lease. In the end I emailed Guiness’ solicitor myself, they responded through my solicitor to remind me, that (despite their fee being paid by me) I should not make contact with them – however the Lease was finally transmitted electronically with the original promised by post the next day.

It’s a harrowing time, waiting to find out if the Lease will be registered successfully at Land Revenue before my onward purchase falls through. My daughters and I have all worked very hard and made some real sacrifices for 3 years to raise savings for conveyancing, mortgage brokerage and associated costs. We naively offered on our dream home. If my purchase does fall through, in the next 3 weeks, we have to start the fund-raising process again from scratch from some other form of accommodation, rented or caravan. If my buyer pulls out due to the delay, we’re left trapped with Guinness. It’s hard not to sound self-piteous, but we’re exhausted, frightened and heartbroken.

Tom99

Give them a break, they have to screw someone for the money in order to pay their chief executive over a quarter of a million pounds a year.

Jules0606

I know, I did feel really bad when I found their solicitors email address, and deliberated whether to send them an email directly, but after he responded to my solicitor telling them to tell me that I'm not allowed, my trench humour kicked in and I thought....... He didn't reply to emails and calls for 4 days from my solicitor, who is allowed to contact him!!!

He could have been lying dead in his office being eaten by cats, he should have been delighted that I'd emailed to check in on his heatlh and wellbeing, that enables him to spend the fee he received from my bank account.

I kept wondering how I'm not in a lunatic asylum, after his response, I realised that I probably am.

soffie

https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/261118
really worth signing guys. we need something done!

Kelrey

Hi thereI am in the same boat. Fixed 50% shared ownership with Guinness. Only just recently made aware of implications of lease. Was never advised when I ‘bought’ the share 11 years ago, either by the HA or my solicitor. Lease now at 67 years and I can’t sell unless I extend. About to consider the process but fees are huge and premium likely to be in the tens of thousands. Just don’t have the money. I would be interested to speak to anyone in the same boat with Guinness. Or going through the lease extension process. It’s making me ill with worry.....
Thank you