Ball Park Valuation

Unfortunately extending your lease is likely to be an expensive business. The price you will have to pay to the freeholder will depend on a number of factors, including the value of the property, the length of the lease and the amount of ground rent.

In addition you have to contribute to the freeholder’s legal and valuation fees.

Finally, you will of course need to pay your own professional advisers. We aim to provide an efficient low cost service at fixed rates, not hourly rates where you do not know the extent of your commitment.

Payment to the freeholder

The price you pay to the freeholder is made up of three elements:-

• Compensation for loss of ground rent payments;
• Compensation for not receiving the property at the end of the lease;
• “Marriage value”, which is a complex calculation that increases as the term of the lease decreases.

Note that no marriage value is payable if the lease still has 80 years or more left so it pays to extend early!

You are also liable to pay the legal and valuation costs of the freeholder.

This liability is how ever restricted to the cost of the valuation, the legal costs for checking your eligibility and for dealing with the conveyancing. You are not liable for freeholder’s costs of negotiation or costs of attending the leasehold valuation tribunal.  Unfortunately, we will not know the amount of the freeholder’s costs until after the extension is complete.  If those costs are too high they can be challenged at the Tribunal.