Applying For A Lease Extension: The Qualifying Criteria

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Although getting a leasehold extension is a common practice it is still a specialist area of the law, which should only really be dealt with by an experienced leasehold extension lawyer.

There is no point in employing a generic solicitor or lawyer to ensure that the lease can be extended; legal representation with specialist knowledge of leasehold extension is preferable.

The main criteria to qualify for a lease extension are that the flat must have been held under a very long lease which is taken to mean any period over 21 years. You must have owned the property for at least 2 years. You cannot therefore purchase a flat one month and then immediately apply for an extension in the next month.

You may read that you need to be resident within the flat. This used to be the case historically, but this has now changed, so there is no need to be resident there is only an issue relating to the ownership.

But although the two reasons above are the basic 'qualifications' for being able to apply for a lease extension, there are other qualifications that are less well known. However, it is also possible to gain an extension with a short lease if certain other criteria are satisfied. A shorter than 21 years lease may well be acceptable for a leasehold extension if the lease contains a clause that provides the leaseholder with the right to 'perpetual' renewal. But this needs to be an explicit clause within the lease.

If there is a 'Prince of Wales' clause in the lease then this may allow a shorter lease to qualify for an extension. This provides that the lease will have the ability to be terminated upon either death or marriage or at a non-specified date.

The last situation where you could get away with a short lease extension is where you are dealing with shared ownership and the leaseholders share is actually 100%.

There is a complex piece of law that will also allow a leaseholder who has held over a lease at the expiry of any long lease and the competent landlord has not actually served any notice that gives notice to terminate the tenancy.

Thus there are various situations where a leaseholder can apply for a leasehold extension and any leaseholder who is interested in applying for a lease extension should explore all possibilities with regard to qualifying criteria.

About the Author:
If you need Lease Extension Solicitors, contact Bonallack & Bishop, a firm specialising in leasehold extension. Senior Partner Tim Bishop is responsible for all major strategic decisions, seeing himself as a businessman who owns a law firm. Tim has expanded the firm by 1000% in 12 years and has plans for its continued development.



Article Originally Published On: http://www.articlesnatch.com


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