Can I claim compensation for a short lease?
To find out if you can claim compensation for a short lease call our legal helpline for a free case assessment and details of no win, no fee funding. Call 0333 888 0403 or email details to [email protected]
You may be able to claim compensation for a short lease if your conveyancing solicitor failed to advise you about the problems commonly associated with short leases when you purchased your leasehold property.
Many properties in the UK are leasehold, particularly flats and apartments. Leases are granted by the freeholder of the land for a specific period. Leases are often granted for 999 years, which doesn’t cause any issues when you come to sell them on as there will be plenty of time remaining. However, some leases are granted for much shorter periods. this means that when they are sold on, the remaining term of the lease may be very short; as short as 80, 70 or even 60 years.
If you buy a short lease then it is likely that you will have difficulty is selling it on unless you pay for the lease to be extended. Lease extensions can cost a lot of money, and the shorter the lease is, the more money it will cost. You must also own a property for two years before you can extend.
This expense needs to be factored in when you are purchasing the property. It is therefore important that you are made aware of this when you buy. Most conveyancing solicitors will draw this issue to their client’s attention. This gives the buyer the opportunity to renegotiate the purchase price or withdraw from the transaction. It also allows you to ask the seller to serve a lease extension notice on the freeholder before you buy so that you can extend the lease without waiting two years.
However, lawyers do sometimes fail to warn their clients that the lease they are acquiring is short. When this happens then the unwitting purchaser may be able to claim compensation for the short lease from their solicitor.
The amount of compensation will vary from case to case. It may be the amount it costs to extend the lease or it could be the difference in value between the price you paid for the property and its actual value, taking into account the short lease.
We deal with solicitors negligence claims nationwide and are experienced in claiming compensation for a short lease. We will be happy to provide an assessment of your case free of charge, together with details of no win, no fee funding. Call us now on 0333 888 0403 or email details of your claim to us at [email protected]
