Posted on 21st November, 2025

Brighton & Hove City Council Lease Extensions

If you own a flat in Brighton & Hove where the freeholder is Brighton & Hove City Council, now is the time to check your lease length and consider whether a lease extension is required.

Many council tenants bought their flats following Right to Buy legislation in the 1980’s and these were typically granted 125 year leases. These leases will reach a significant milestone in the next few years as the unexpired lease terms will drop below 80 years.

The significance of 80 years is that, under current legislation, the amount you pay to extend a lease increases significantly due to marriage value being added to the calculation. Marriage value is the uplift in value between a short lease and a long lease and the legislation states that this must be split 50:50 between the leaseholder and the freeholder. If your lease is extended before your lease falls below 80 years, this can provide significant savings as the law currently stands.

Typically, a lease extension premium for an ex-Council flat in Brighton and Hove costs between £3,000 – £5,000 plus legal and valuation costs (depending on the type of property with a lease in excess of 80 years). If the lease drops below 80 years, even just by one day, the premium could double which is why it is worth considering extending before this happens.

To extend a council lease, Brighton & Hove City Council require a leaseholder to proceed via the formal statutory route in accordance with the 1993 Leasehold Reform Housing & Urban Development Act. A leaseholder will require valuation advice which we can provide, and also a specialist legal advisor to serve a formal notice and complete the necessary legal work.

We specialise in assisting leaseholders of ex-Council flats with the necessary valuation and negotiation work and will be pleased to advise and assist any leaseholders.

Next steps

1. We can help you establish the years remaining on your lease.
2. We can discuss the new legislation with you which relates to your individual circumstances and provide you with a no obligation quote.
3. We will carry out a desktop valuation report which can offer you a saving on our standard valuation fee (this only applies to flats with over 80 years unexpired leases, and which are within purpose-built blocks).
4. Following our valuation, we can give you a likely cost of the lease extension. We will provide you with the valuation advice and can work with your legal advisor to commence the statutory lease extension process.
5. We will negotiate on your behalf to achieve the best possible terms to extend your lease.

For initial informal no obligation advice please contact us and speak to one of our specialist lease extension valuers on 01903 872211 or use our contact form here

If you have a flat in a Council block that is not purpose built, i.e. a converted property or your lease is under 80 years unexpired – please give us a call and we will be happy to advise you.

We can also assist with lease extensions in other areas with ex-Council flats including London Boroughs. Please give us a call and we can also assist you.