Future sale of property with 57 year lease

youth_leader

Good luck.  Unfortunately your parents are in the same situation as my aunt, who had allowed her lease to drop to 74 years.  She is 88 and @eddddy helped me to help her, it took a year - and her freeholder lives next door.

At this moment in time, any profit your parents get from extending the lease now has to be shared with the freeholder - it is called 'marriage value'.  

ExEstateAgent

Marriage value is being abolished. 

To the OP - your parents don't own a property at the moment, they only own a lease which is essentially a bundle of paperwork that allows them to live in the house for the term of the lease. 

If you can, I would seriously look at buying the freehold now, as said, with a charge to protect your interests. One other thing to think about is if either of your parents needed to go to a care home the costs of that may need to be covered by any sale proceeds. 

ExEstateAgent

Just to add, if you didn't buy the freehold or extend the lease, and say in 7 years time you had to sell, you'd need a cash buyer - it's possible that someone retiring and downsizing would consider buying such a property especially if they didn't have any issues with leaving assets to family/friends! (but price would reflect the short lease). 

mlz1413

"Marriage value is being abolished. "

Yes it is, but highly unlikely to be soon.
This started around 2020, but the detail has not been agreed and the current government say that they want to review what previous government started.... IE delays!

This matter is also not a priority, so it could be years. It could be next year. 

OP you can ask the freeholder if they will extend outside of the legal framework. (You will still need to pay a solicitor regardless or informal or formal route)

There is lots of free info at Leasehold Advisory Service website.   It's a good start point.