Check both lender tests, see your ground rent risk and the cost to extend.
Lenders test your lease twice: at application and at the end of the mortgage term. Enter your details to see both tests.
| Illustrative policy | Needs at application | Needs at end of term | Your result |
|---|
UK mortgage lenders do not only ask how long your lease is today. They usually apply two tests at the same time, and your lease has to pass both:
The calculator subtracts the mortgage term from your unexpired years to show what is left at the end, then tests that and your current figure against five illustrative policy profiles. It then estimates the statutory premium to add 90 years, using the same method as our lease extension calculator: capitalised ground rent, reversion at 5%, Gerald Eve relativity and, at 80 years or fewer, 50% of marriage value.
We do not publish pass or fail results for named lenders. Lender criteria change often and sources disagree, so a table of named lenders would be out of date quickly. The five profiles show the pattern: a lease with 85 years left passes almost any policy, while one with 65 years left passes only the most flexible specialist policies.
These tables are pre-calculated with the same logic as the calculator, so you can compare scenarios without typing anything in.
| Lease left today | 20-year mortgage | 25-year mortgage | 30-year mortgage | 35-year mortgage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 years | 40 years | 35 years | 30 years | 25 years |
| 65 years | 45 years | 40 years | 35 years | 30 years |
| 70 years | 50 years | 45 years | 40 years | 35 years |
| 75 years | 55 years | 50 years | 45 years | 40 years |
| 80 years | 60 years | 55 years | 50 years | 45 years |
| 85 years | 65 years | 60 years | 55 years | 50 years |
| 90 years | 70 years | 65 years | 60 years | 55 years |
| 99 years | 79 years | 74 years | 69 years | 64 years |
| Lease left today | Strict (85 / 40) | Higher (80 / 35) | Lower (75 / 30) | Flexible (70 / 30) | Specialist (55 / 25) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 60 years | Fail | Fail | Fail | Fail | Pass |
| 65 years | Fail | Fail | Fail | Fail | Pass |
| 70 years | Fail | Fail | Fail | Pass | Pass |
| 75 years | Fail | Fail | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| 80 years | Fail | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| 85 years | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| 90 years | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass | Pass |
| Lease left today | £300,000 flat | £400,000 flat | £500,000 flat |
|---|---|---|---|
| 65 years | £33,805 | £44,275 | £54,744 |
| 70 years | £27,646 | £36,056 | £44,465 |
| 75 years | £22,191 | £28,776 | £35,361 |
| 80 years | £17,436 | £22,431 | £27,426 |
| 85 years | £9,605 | £11,166 | £12,728 |
Policy labels show years needed at application / at end of term. Premiums are estimates before professional fees of about £4,000–£8,000. At 85 years the figure drops sharply because marriage value no longer applies.
Sources
Related guides
It depends on the lender. Many mainstream lenders want about 70 to 85 years left when you apply, and some specialist lenders accept less. Lenders also test how many years will be left at the end of the mortgage, so a long mortgage on a shorter lease can fail even where the application test passes.
It is the lease length remaining when the mortgage should be repaid. You work it out by subtracting the mortgage term from the years left on the lease. For example, 74 years left on a 25-year mortgage leaves 49 years at the end.
Yes. Some lenders decline where ground rent is high compared with the property value, often cited at around 0.1%, and most will not lend where the rent can rise above the Housing Act 1988 thresholds of £250 outside Greater London or £1,000 inside it, unless the lease is varied.
A seller can serve a section 42 notice and assign the benefit of it to the buyer. This lets the buyer complete the extension at the premium set at the notice date. It involves strict timing, so take advice from a leasehold solicitor.
No. It is an educational estimate. LeaseVault is not a lender or broker. Ask a whole-of-market mortgage broker for lender criteria and rates that apply to your property.
This calculator was built and is maintained by Rahul Tandon, an independent web developer and researcher. It applies published statutory rules and the 5% Sportelli deferment rate, and every assumption is shown on this page. The formulas and limits are on the methodology page; see our editorial policy. LeaseVault is not a law firm, a surveying practice or a mortgage broker, and the result is an estimate for initial budgeting, not legal, financial or valuation advice.
We’ll notify you when 2024 Act provisions come into force and when new premium rates are confirmed.