How Much Will It Cost Me To Extend My Lease?

The number one question I get asked by new clients is “how much will it cost me?” and quite rightly so.  You will want to make sure you can afford the process before getting started and I am always upfront and clear with my clients on all the different costs involved.

So what are the costs involved?

• The Premium
• Unpaid ground rent
• Unpaid service charges
• Your legal costs
• Your landlord’s legal costs
• Your landlord’s surveyors valuation fee
• Registration fees and disbursements

The premium is calculated by looking at three main components; the length of your Lease, your ground rent and the value of your property with a long Lease.  It is best to instruct a specialist surveyor to carry out a formal valuation and provide an accurate cost of what the likely premium will be, especially if your Lease is below 80 years and/or you have an onerous ground rent clause.  However, Anthony Gold would be able to give you a rough estimate based on the above information.

When a lease term is below 80 years you would also need to pay something called ‘marriage value’.  This is the increase in value of your property following the lease extension.  However, the marriage value will be split between the freeholder and the leaseholder.  This is why it is important to instruct a specialist surveyor to carry out a valuation when marriage value is involved as they will have knowledge of the local housing market.  Anthony Gold works with a number of specialist surveyors and would be happy to recommend someone.

If you are thinking of extending your Lease and want to know how much it will cost you, please contact me on lam@anthonygold.co.uk where I can give you an estimate of the fees involved including Anthony Gold’s costs.