Do you have a legal interest in the freehold title? Extend your leases now

• Do you own a share in the company who owns your freehold building?
• Have you recently purchased the freehold interest of your building following a successful collective enfranchisement claim?
• Do you own the freehold with your fellow leaseholders?
• Are you a landlord of a freehold building and have been approached by your leaseholders for a lease extension?

If your answer is yes to any of the above, Callie Tuplin can help. Many leaseholders have an interest in the freehold of the building. They successfully go through a collective enfranchisement claim or have bought the freehold interest from their previous landlord, but fail to then proceed to the next stage of the lease extension process. Simply because you now have an interest in the freehold does not alter your lease to which you own your flat. This will continue to reduce down in years to come, and you are still legally bound to pay the ground rent owed under your lease.

Many leaseholders forget this, until it effects another transaction such as your selling the property, and the buyer requires the lease to be extended prior to the sale, or you are re-mortgaging the property and the lender does not accept the length of lease remaining.

Take action on extending your lease now, to save delaying and causing a possible issue in the future when time is of the essence.

Usually there is no cost or premium involved in extending your lease when you already have a legal interest in the freehold title, save for legal fees and disbursements. You can extend the term to any length up to 999 years and reduce the ground rent to a peppercorn (yes, a peppercorn, that is quite literally the pepper you put on your dinner!)

Lease extension solicitor Callie Tuplin can provide initial free legal advice as to how you can proceed with a lease extension. This can be collectively as a block with the other shareholders or the freehold owning company, or your other leaseholders who also have an interest in the freehold. If you are the landlord of a block of flats or small maisonettes and have been approached by the leaseholders for a lease extension then we can help guide you through the process, draft the leases required through to completion and registration. For free initial advice, contact Callie today on 01206593990.