Part of the garden is leasehold to the railway but they wont extend...

[MrsKoala]

i'm really looking for some advice.

We are almost at exchange point in purchasing a freehold house. But a section (about half of the back) is lease hold to Network Rail. Our solicitors have enquired about extending the lease as it's down to 65 years but Network Rail have replied saying they are not extending the lease for anyone on that side of the street as they may plan to do some widening of the railway.

This wont affect our mortgage but of course will affect selling it on.

The house is well/low priced for the area and we couldn't afford anywhere else.

Does anyone know what the process is to compel a freeholder to extend the lease?

Any advice would be gratefully recieved.

Thanks

I doubt you could force NR or any other Publicbody to extend the lease tbh. I'd also guess they could compulsory purchase the remaining years if they did extend the railway.

If you ended up losing half the garden would you still have a decent amount left?

The Leasehold Reforn Act 1967 govern the compulsory acquisition/sale of freeholds. Don't know if it would apply to part of a garden though. You'll have to read through the act.

Titchy - no. It would be half gone which would be about a metre and a half i think. I'd have to go back to the drawings and check. The garden is tiny as it is. It would only ever be a small patio space anyway and the railway wall is very high so it doesn't get much sun. But these houses are about 50-75k less than all others in the area because of it and it's really near a park, good schools and has off street parking to the front. It wouldn't be a deal breaker. Just a hassle to sell on i think we'd legally have to sell it as without that part as i doubt a lender would loan on anything less than 60years.

Would we have to sell it back to NR in that case?

What's your solicitor's opinion?

That it's up to us but we may find it difficult to sell with the lease so we may have to sell as gardenless.

3 other houses have been sold on that side of the road and i contacted those estate agents (as we had looked at those houses too) and they said it didn't come up at all in their buyers surveys/lenders. Basically it is only because our solicitor enquired about upping the lease that we know this. All the other buyers took the 65 yrs at face value and just assumed they will up it in a couple of years. They will of course get a shock when they try.

it's about 40 houses on that side of the road.

Does your solicitor have an opinion on your question in the OP-
Does anyone know what the process is to compel a freeholder to extend the lease?

No. They have just said we could try it but they aren't sure we'd be successful and it would be a specialist legal process which would be costly.

I agree with titchy about compulsory purchase - look at HS2!

Network Rail's investment plans are online - you could maybe look into what they are doing in your area?

Thanks. The solicitor has said they have no actual plans for anything. I think we are going to buy the house anyway and just sell it on with a reduced garden. It is a good price for the area we want to live in and we have sunk so much time and money into it already. I am due a baby in the next 6wks so we really need somewhere to live.