shortterm lease

[saady]

i am interested in buying a property and need some advice on lease thing.

the lease period on the property is under 25 years, now if i buy it what should i do, or what should i do before buying it?

is the lease extendable? if yes how to and how much would it cost?

can i buy the lease in my name? if yes then how to and how much would it cost?

thank you

[Richard Webster]

If it is a residential flat lease will normally be extendible by 90 years at a nil ground rent but you only have a right to such an extension after you have owned the lease for 2 years.

This will be totally unmortgageable so presumably will be going for some ridiculously cheap price. It will cost a lot to extend the lease - a five or even six figure sum depending on the value of an equivalent property with a long lease.

Normally you should only buy if the seller will organise a lease extension for you so that when you complete the purchase you get an extended lease. If the seller is seriously trying to sell such a lease then he must be very strapped for cash.

[Dan S]

As Richard said, you'll certainly not get a mortgage on this property (unless you try a bridging loan, which is a very dire alternative), but assuming you can overcome this hurdle, you absolutely must get a proper quote for the extension of the lease. It's a large risk without doing so.

I wish you the best of luck

[Enness Private Clients]

You may be able to get a mortgage with this lease length if the property is in central london