What is a lease term of 999 years?

The lease term is the duration of the ownership, so a lease term of 999 years is an arrangement whereby the lease holder owns the property for 999 years. A lease term of 999 years is considered a 'permanent' lease of the property as the lease is highly likely to outlive the building itself.

What happens when a 999 year lease expires?

After the lease term has expired, the leaseholder can stay on under the same terms until the freeholder serves notice, or they can formally surrender the tenancy of their own accord. It may still be possible to extend the lease or buy the freehold.

A cosy living room in a property under a 999 year lease. SAM Conveyancing explains the pros and cons of these leases

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Is a 999 Year Lease Worth It?

by:

Andrew Boast

Last Updated: 29/05/2024

Read by:

8,142

4 min read

Key Takeaways

999 years is the maximum term for a lease.
A formal lease extension is limited to 90 years, but an informal extension can extend up to 999 years.
Extending to 999 years can add 5 to 7% to the value of the property.

The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 was passed on the 24th May 2024, but is not fully enforced yet and the date for this is not yet clear. We will update our content as and when the finalised legislation is published.

Is it worth buying a 999 year lease?

A 999 year lease is the most attractive buying option when it comes to leasehold properties, especially if the ground rent is low. Longer leases like this are valued pretty much the same as an equivalent freehold, so are easy to sell on and to mortgage.

In the past, 999 year leases were mis-sold as 'good-as-freehold' for this reason, but buyers were faced with a nasty surprise when they realised their seemingly reasonable ground rent would double every ten years. This meant the freehold value (calculated based on the total ground rent payable over the remainder of the lease) was very high, and leaseholders were faced with a difficult choice: pay tens of thousands to buy out the freehold (tens of thousands more than the property was worth had it been sold as freehold in the first place) or pay ever increasing ground rent until they sold the house, or died.

Fortunately, thanks to the leasehold reform updates of 2022, most new residential leaseholds have their ground rent capped at one peppercorn (literally one peppercorn, per year), though pre-existing leases may still be subject to increasing ground rent. Check this on any lease you are considering purchasing. Your conveyancing solicitor may be able to help you vary the terms of the lease (all formal lease extensions will reduce the ground rent to one peppercorn immediately on the completion of the extension, but on informal extensions the new ground rent will not take effect until the original 999 year lease expires, so fairly unhelpful in this context).

With peppercorn rent, the question of whether it is worth buying a 999 year lease comes down to restrictions and service charges. As with any lease, you will not be able to do certain things to the property. For example, it is unlikely you'll be allowed to extend or make major alterations to the property and many leases explicitly prohibit pets.

On the other hand, many leaseholders enjoy their freedom from the responsibility of maintaining and repairing the building, boundaries, gardens, drains, roof, and shared spaces, knowing that the landlord takes care of it all in exchange for a reasonable service charge.

If the property's freeholder takes good care of things, it is worth buying a 999 year lease. If you are concerned about having more control over the property, you may even be able to purchase a share of the freehold, through lease enfranchisement with the other lease owners.

Can you extend a lease to 999 years?

You can extend a lease by up to 999 years via the informal lease extension process. The formal process remains set at 90 years. The issue with extending to 999 years is you can only do this with the cooperation of your freeholder and they may use this to bargain for ground rent. If you are negotiating an informal lease extension it can be very helpful to involve an experienced leasehold solicitor.

Many leaseholders are working around this challenge by first purchasing the freehold as a collective and then, with the cooperation of all of the other co-freeholders, informally extending all of their leaseholds to 999 years for zero premium. This is not suitable for all cases and depending on your neighbours it may be better to deal with just one freeholder, than have to reach a consensus with all the other leaseholders.

Free Initial Leasehold Advice

Arrange a free consultation with one of our experienced lease extension team on:

Specialist leasehold solicitors.
Statutory or Non-Statutory Lease extension.
Selling a leasehold property with a short lease.
Extending the lease at the same time as you sell.
Buying the freehold (collective enfranchisement).

An illustration of an apartment block where the lease holders my need extension advice

Frequently Asked Questions

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Written by: Andrew Boast

Andrew Boast FMAAT is a qualified accountant, conveyancing specialist and author with over 25 years of experience in the UK property sector. Since beginning his career in 2000 within established SRA and CLC-regulated conveyancing solicitor firms, Andrew has overseen the legal journeys of more than 75,000 clients.

He is the self-published author of the first-time buyer guide: How to Buy a House Without Killing Anyone, and a frequent contributor to mainstream UK media on legislative updates, property law, first-time buyer guides, conveyancing best practices, and stamp duty changes. Andrew specialises in resolving complex title issues, property conflict disputes, and property tax options, streamlining the enquiry process to reduce transaction times and maintaining a client-friendly focus.

Reviewed by: Amanda Ambler

Amanda Ambler is a highly accomplished conveyancing specialist with over 15 years of dedicated experience across residential property law, legal compliance, and practice management. Having held senior roles, including Head of Legal Practice and Head of Conveyancing at established UK law firms, Amanda possesses a profound, hands-on understanding of the technical intricacies of the property market.

As the designated Legal Content Reviewer for SAM Conveyancing, Amanda ensures that every guide, legal update, and resource published meets the absolute highest standards of accuracy, regulatory compliance, and factual integrity. Her rigorous review process guarantees that complex property legislation and industry processes are communicated clearly, transparently, and safely for home buyers and sellers alike.

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