Leasehold to buy in November

JohnBravo

Hi All,

 My situation is as follows. I have been renting this apartment for over 6 years.

The landlord is not in UK, live in West Coast, US.

Recently (mid September) I have been asked by the landlord to let the surveyor in to see the property for the purpose of remortgaging.

After couple of weeks the landlord messaged me that he tried different ways but because he is an expat he is unable to get equity out of the property (sitting on a lot) unless he triples his interest rate which is no good so he wants to sell the place. I don't know how he wants to carry this out remotely from West Coast, US anyway.

He offered me to buy the place but I will not be able to finance this myself. I would need to get a mortgage, put a deposit.

We talk about 300k for 1-bed, Zone 2, good location near Canary Wharf in London, E14 8 but not the by the river apartment buildings.

Technically speaking the location is good and important to me and will be for the next 3-5 years.

Considering I was a very good tenant for this long tenancy, paying on time, the landlord was saving money on repairs for all this time, I preferred to fix things myself rather than wait for his "handyman". It may look like an opportunity but at the same time a bit unfair that I have a week not just to decide but act on it considering he knew all of this for months and I don't buy the "expat cannot get a mortgage surprise" story. I am sure he knew what was coming since there is a number of up to 4 years old articles about this new challenge for the expats. He is instrumental to people.

The lease is 85 years left, building is from 1950, 2 storeys and in good standard, open deck access with intercom, a council building part of One Housing mostly with quiet elders. The flat needs a refurbishment in the next couple of years. He refurbished the place some time before I moved in but this could be like 8 years ago.

Big developers are erecting 2 high (20+ storeys high) apartment buildings in close vicinity which could drive the prices down.

Does this look feasible to you? From what I see he needs to sell it ASAP, repeats CASH, but getting money from a mortgage can take 1-2 months, right?
On top of that he wants to save on taxes looking to transfer ownership with some cryptocurrencies.
This looks like he is looking for a wealthy investor e.g. from China who can throw a lump sum of cash or some bitcoins within days rather than waiting for someone to sort out the mortgage.

Should I spend my time on this or move out?

I can finance this but what is your gut feeling?

Thanks

HampshireH

JohnBravo said:

Hi All,

 My situation is as follows. I have been renting this apartment for over 6 years.

The landlord is not in UK, live in West Coast, US.

Recently (mid September) I have been asked by the landlord to let the surveyor in to see the property for the purpose of remortgaging.

After couple of weeks the landlord messaged me that he tried different ways but because he is an expat he is unable to get equity out of the property (sitting on a lot) unless he triples his interest rate which is no good so he wants to sell the place. I don't know how he wants to carry this out remotely from West Coast, US anyway.

He offered me to buy the place but I will not be able to finance this myself. I would need to get a mortgage, put a deposit.

We talk about 300k for 1-bed, Zone 2, good location near Canary Wharf in London, E14 8 but not the by the river apartment buildings.

Technically speaking the location is good and important to me and will be for the next 3-5 years.

Considering I was a very good tenant for this long tenancy, paying on time, the landlord was saving money on repairs for all this time, I preferred to fix things myself rather than wait for his "handyman". It may look like an opportunity but at the same time a bit unfair that I have a week not just to decide but act on it considering he knew all of this for months and I don't buy the "expat cannot get a mortgage surprise" story. I am sure he knew what was coming since there is a number of up to 4 years old articles about this new challenge for the expats. He is instrumental to people.

The lease is 85 years left, building is from 1950, 2 storeys and in good standard, open deck access with intercom, a council building part of One Housing mostly with quiet elders. The flat needs a refurbishment in the next couple of years. He refurbished the place some time before I moved in but this could be like 8 years ago.

Big developers are erecting 2 high (20+ storeys high) apartment buildings in close vicinity which could drive the prices down.

Does this look feasible to you? From what I see he needs to sell it ASAP, repeats CASH, but getting money from a mortgage can take 1-2 months, right?
On top of that he wants to save on taxes looking to transfer ownership with some cryptocurrencies.
This looks like he is looking for a wealthy investor e.g. from China who can throw a lump sum of cash or some bitcoins within days rather than waiting for someone to sort out the mortgage.

Should I spend my time on this or move out?

I can finance this but what is your gut feeling?

Thanks

Which bit sounds like a good deal?

I think I'm missing it

Short lease

Dodgy landlord wanting to evade tax

Can't afford it

Needs refurbishment

Major redevelopment over the road

Only planning on staying 3-5 years

........

user1977

Assuming you can afford to buy now - is this the property you'd want to buy? Obviously it would avoid the hassle/risk/cost of moving - but is that enough to tip the balance?

JohnBravo

HampshireH said:

JohnBravo said:

Hi All,

 My situation is as follows. I have been renting this apartment for over 6 years.

The landlord is not in UK, live in West Coast, US.

Recently (mid September) I have been asked by the landlord to let the surveyor in to see the property for the purpose of remortgaging.

After couple of weeks the landlord messaged me that he tried different ways but because he is an expat he is unable to get equity out of the property (sitting on a lot) unless he triples his interest rate which is no good so he wants to sell the place. I don't know how he wants to carry this out remotely from West Coast, US anyway.

He offered me to buy the place but I will not be able to finance this myself. I would need to get a mortgage, put a deposit.

We talk about 300k for 1-bed, Zone 2, good location near Canary Wharf in London, E14 8 but not the by the river apartment buildings.

Technically speaking the location is good and important to me and will be for the next 3-5 years.

Considering I was a very good tenant for this long tenancy, paying on time, the landlord was saving money on repairs for all this time, I preferred to fix things myself rather than wait for his "handyman". It may look like an opportunity but at the same time a bit unfair that I have a week not just to decide but act on it considering he knew all of this for months and I don't buy the "expat cannot get a mortgage surprise" story. I am sure he knew what was coming since there is a number of up to 4 years old articles about this new challenge for the expats. He is instrumental to people.

The lease is 85 years left, building is from 1950, 2 storeys and in good standard, open deck access with intercom, a council building part of One Housing mostly with quiet elders. The flat needs a refurbishment in the next couple of years. He refurbished the place some time before I moved in but this could be like 8 years ago.

Big developers are erecting 2 high (20+ storeys high) apartment buildings in close vicinity which could drive the prices down.

Does this look feasible to you? From what I see he needs to sell it ASAP, repeats CASH, but getting money from a mortgage can take 1-2 months, right?
On top of that he wants to save on taxes looking to transfer ownership with some cryptocurrencies.
This looks like he is looking for a wealthy investor e.g. from China who can throw a lump sum of cash or some bitcoins within days rather than waiting for someone to sort out the mortgage.

Should I spend my time on this or move out?

I can finance this but what is your gut feeling?

Thanks

Which bit sounds like a good deal?

I think I'm missing it

Short lease

Dodgy landlord wanting to evade tax

Can't afford it

Needs refurbishment

Major redevelopment over the road

Only planning on staying 3-5 years

........

I mean refurbished properties go for about 330-350k in the close vicinity. In sky-high new developments or by the river pretty new developments for 1-bed they ask 370k-400k.

In terms of the constructions going on it's not on the same road but 200-300m away and I get use to construction noise as this area around Canary Wharf is pretty much one big construction site since I remember. I was more concerned about the potential drop in property prices due to these new many flats for sale I reckon in 1 year time.

I mean I can rent it out after 5 years or sell it.

JohnBravo

user1977 said:

Assuming you can afford to buy now - is this the property you'd want to buy? Obviously it would avoid the hassle/risk of moving - but is that enough to tip the balance?

The idea of buying this time round caught me a bit off guard. But you are right staying at this property would save me hassle especially when I was not expecting to move. Perhaps I would consider investing in a property spring next year.

I mean knowing the property inside out and the neighbours is a valuable intel.

I am not a good psychologist but the landlord (perhaps I described him too harsh, he is good but spare):

1. he knew about it and just wanted to keep me at the property to the very end, avoid the risk of me leaving (as he I can give a 1 month notice) prematurely

2. he's honest

because if dishonest then I would want to beat the price.

In worst case I have to be at landlords disposal when the people come to see the property which is a big inconvenience/ no privacy. In this case I would prefer to rent another property and move out earlier to avoid this.

The 3rd option is for the landlord to sell the property with tenants in situ but this could cut the number of potential buyers.

JohnBravo

I mean my main concern at the moment is the length of the lease which is only 84 years.

The building is about 70 years old but it does not look as such look more like 1990-2000 something, 20 years old. It looks more solid that other open deck access buildings I saw and it's only 2 storeys.

I read that it's harder to get a mortgage or sell a property that is below 80 years mark.

I can get a mortgage myself but not after 4 years if I want to sell it someone else will have a problem getting a mortgage.

Another option is to ask the seller to extend the lease before selling but not sure if this is an option or how long would it take.

JohnBravo

I have downloaded the LandRegistry register and something is not right with the Lease time I was given by the landlord or what's in the survey.

From what I calculated it is 106-107 years not 84.

125 years from 2003.

Should I double check this anywhere?