Under the 1993 Act, if you have owned your flat for more than two years you are entitled to an extension to the length of your Lease. You must also hold a long lease which means it was originally granted to last more than 21 years. There are some exceptions that apply but we can advise you on this in more detail.

A 90 year extension to the remaining term of the existing lease
A peppercorn ground rent

The process is started by the Tenant serving a notice on the Landlord (section 42 Notice) and this notice would include the premium which we believe should be payable for the Lease Extension. Your Landlord would then have two months to serve a counter notice. The counter notice must admit whether you have the right to a new Lease under the Act or not and if not, must specify the reasons why. The counter notice must also state which of the proposals in the notice are accepted, and specify counter proposals for any proposals which are not accepted. This is usually the premium so the Landlord must say what premium they would accept for a Lease extension.

Once your notice has been served, the Landlord can ask for a deposit of 10% of the premium proposed in your notice at any time. Your Landlord is also entitled to have access to your flat for the purposes of valuation after service of your notice, providing he gives you three days’ notice.

A longer lease will maintain or enhance your property’s value and make it easier to sell or remortgage.

Once the lease drops below 80 years the cost of extending it increases rapidly as the Tenant must pay the Landlord half  of the increase in the lease’s value that results from the lease extension. This uplift is called the “marriage value”.

Once the Landlord serves a counter notice, (section 45 Notice)  both parties have 6 months to agree the premium payable and the terms of the new Lease.
Blakes will then be negotiating the premium with the freeholder’s surveyor. In the meanwhile, Arcadia Law will be dealing with the draft lease. We will up to 6 months from the date the counter-notice is served to agree on both the premium and the terms of the new lease.

Valuation fees
Negotiations (if required)
Legal fees
Freeholder’s Reasonable fees
Lease extension premium

For a more precise calculation, book a free,  consultation with us.

Once premium agreed, Arcadia Law will complete on the lease extension and register the lease at the Land Registry.

The Lease Extension will usually take between 6 – 12 months depending on how efficient and reasonable your Landlord is.