Lease Extension Valuations
What is a Lease Extension Valuation?
A lease extension valuation is a professional assessment that determines how much it will cost to extend the lease of a leasehold property. Cheke & Co provide valuations specifically for statutory lease extensions, which add 90 years to the remaining lease term and reduce ground rent to zero.
Under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993, statutory lease extensions follow a clearly defined process and valuation framework. Informal (voluntary) extensions can sometimes be negotiated directly with the freeholder, but these offer no guaranteed terms or costs and may include rising ground rents. Cheke & Co specialise exclusively in statutory lease extension valuations.
Also known as a lease extension premium valuation or leasehold enfranchisement valuation, this specialist assessment is carried out by RICS-qualified surveyors to ensure accuracy and compliance with recognised professional standards.
A statutory lease extension valuation typically includes:
- A detailed assessment of the remaining lease term, ground rent, market value and other relevant variables
- A calculation of the premium payable to the freeholder, including marriage value where applicable
- A clear written report explaining what a fair premium looks like and the range you should expect
- Guidance on negotiation strategy and the appropriate next steps when serving notice or instructing your solicitor
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Why is a Lease Extension Valuation important?
As your lease shortens, the value of your property is more likely to decrease – while the cost of extending it increases. Once a lease drops below 80 years, marriage value becomes payable, often causing a significant rise in the premium required. Many mortgage lenders also refuse to lend on short leases, making early action essential to preserve your property’s marketability.
A professional valuation ensures you enter negotiations with a fair, evidence-based premium figure rather than relying on estimates or online calculators. It also provides reliable documentation that can support negotiations, legal discussions or tribunal proceedings if required.
Most importantly, it gives peace of mind that your valuation has been completed by an experienced RICS surveyor using current legislation and up-to-date market data.
When should you choose a Lease Extension Valuation?
A lease extension valuation is advisable whenever you are considering extending or buying a leasehold property with a low lease. Most leaseholders begin exploring the statutory lease extension process after owning the property for two years, as this is typically when statutory rights become available.
A Lease Extension Valuation is best for:
It is less suited for:
Why choose Cheke & Co for your Lease Extension Valuation?
At Cheke & Co, your lease extension valuation is carried out by independent, RICS-qualified surveyors with decades of experience across Essex and Greater London. We provide clear, transparent reports that give you confidence at every stage, supported by a friendly, approachable team who explain everything in plain English. Trusted by homebuyers, solicitors and professional clients for our detailed and reliable lease extension valuations, we offer fast turnaround times and straightforward guidance on what to do next once your report is delivered.
How we work
- Initial consultation: we discuss your current lease terms, remaining years and your objectives for extending.
- Data collection: we review lease documents, ground rent schedules, property details and comparable leasehold evidence.
- Valuation calculation: we determine the likely premium range, including best- and worst-case scenarios and marriage value where applicable.
- Report preparation: you receive a clear, easy-to-understand report with recommended negotiation figures and statutory guidance.
- Delivery: your report is provided electronically, typically within a few working days of inspection.
- Follow-up: if needed, we explain the findings and next steps for serving notice or liaising with your solicitor or the freeholder.
Our Approach
We take a clear, client-focused approach to every lease extension valuation, ensuring the process feels straightforward and well-supported from start to finish.
- All our valuations carried out by experienced RICS-qualified chartered surveyors.
- Fully independent advice we act solely for the leaseholder
- Plain-English reporting that makes complex calculations easy to understand
- Deep knowledge of leasehold values across Essex and Greater London
- Responsive, personal service with direct access to your surveyor
- A commitment to accuracy, transparency and client care
Get in touch
If you’d like to discuss your lease extension valuation, we’re here to help. You can request a no-obligation quote or, if you’re unsure which service you need, you’re welcome to speak directly with one of our surveyors.
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FAQs about Lease Extension Valuations
Generally, once the term of an unexpired lease falls below 85 years some form of action should be considered otherwise the general value of the property and its overall saleability could be negatively affected. This could also be relevant to anyone looking to remortgage their property as many lenders will be reluctant to offer further advances whilst the unexpired term of the lease continues to reduce.
Several factors influence the value, including property size, its condition and location. Other matters considered will include the current unexpired term of the lease, any payments made to the freeholder such as ground rent as well as the general state of the housing market at the particular time.
Providing a client has been provided with all appropriate advice from a Chartered surveyor which includes their thoughts in terms of a valuation then they should feel confident to move forward and begin negotiations either directly with the freeholder or a solicitor. At Cheke & Co any recommendations we provide will be comprehensive and based on significant research and industry expertise.
Much will depend on who is appointed to undertake such work. Many companies who profess to be specialists in this field will only undertake a ‘remote’ desktop valuation. This will naturally speed up the process but the final recommendations especially in terms of the valuation may be inaccurate. Every property is different and cannot in our view be properly appraised from a distance. At Cheke & Co we will adopt a more comprehensive approach which will incorporate a visual inspection on site. This will obviously delay the turnaround time slightly, but we would hope to have everything back to our clients within 7 days of accessing the property.
A lease renewal is effectively the creation of a brand-new lease, and a lease extension is merely extending the unexpired term of an existing lease. Our specialist surveyors are happy to provide more detailed advice upon request.
Yes, expert valuations can play a crucial role in resolving lease-related legal disputes by providing an unbiased assessment of the property’s value. At Cheke & Co our ultimate objective is to provide sound valuations and advice which helps our clients reduce the possibility of engaging in a dispute with their freeholder. However, if a dispute proves unavoidable then our expertise should hopefully help reduce both the time and related costs spent in reaching a mutually acceptable conclusion for all parties involved.
If a group of different leaseholders owning properties within the same development want to collectively extend their leases or acquire the freehold, a single valuation can be used to support either offer.