Short Lease

elyanne

Hi,

I am looking to buy a property with only 59 years left on the lease. The property is advertised for £140.000 and the lease renewal today is between 16000 and 22000.
I don't know yet if I must wait 2 years before I can renew the lease. Last time the property was sold was in 2013 for £113000.

What would be a reasonable offer?

sal_III

Sold price from 2013 is irrelevant.

How much is the sold price of comparable properties with long leases in the area from the last 6-12m?

Offer as much -£25k for the lease extension + hassle and demands that the vendor initiates the process of extending the lease before the sale you can pick it up immediately instead of waiting for 2 years.

elyanne

Thank you for your reply, there is no data on how long lease other similar properties have. Similar properties were sold between 150K and 162 K in 2018

sal_III

elyanne wrote: »

Thank you for your reply, there is no data on how long lease other similar properties have. Similar properties were sold between 150K and 162 K in 2018

Doesn't really matter if they were short or long leases with these numbers.

If they are short leases as well, you are getting a bargain at 10-22k lower asking price.

If they are for long lease properties (most likely), the £140 asking already factors in the £16-22k cost of lease extension, but there might be room for negotiation, depending on how desperate the vendor is.

AdrianC

I presume you don't need a mortgage to buy it...?

Tom99

If you pick your most comparable sale and download the title for £3 you can find out what the lease term remaining was on that property.
As said above if you have the extra money for a lease extension now then get the seller to serve a section 42 notice and assign it to you.
If you go that route make sure you have a solicitor familiar with these notices to check it is valid and is served on the right freeholder at the right address as you will not get a 2nd chance. If you get it wrong you will then have to wait 2yrs.

eddddy

elyanne wrote: »

I am looking to buy a property with only 59 years left on the lease.

Are you hoping to buy with a mortgage? If so, a 59 year lease is likely to be a problem with most lenders.

Here's what the lenders say: https://www.cml.org.uk/lenders-handbook/englandandwales/question-list/1846/

The seller serving a section 42 notice won't solve that problem. Getting a lease extension on completion would solve it, but that's unlikely to be straightforward.