Lease extension cost breakdown: premium, fees and who gets paid

Four payments, three recipients

The premium, to the landlord

The sum paid for the grant of the new lease. It is determined by valuation, not by legal argument, and it is normally the largest figure in the matter. Gov.uk states that when 80 years or less remain on the lease, the cost of extending it increases significantly (gov.uk).

Your solicitor's fee, to your solicitor

For conducting the matter: qualification, notices, negotiation of the terms of the new lease, completion and registration. Quoted as a fixed fee or an hourly rate.

Your valuer's fee, to a surveyor

A separate profession and a separate instruction. The valuer produces the figure your solicitor then negotiates around, and may be needed again if the matter goes further.

The landlord's reasonable costs, to the landlord

On a statutory claim, section 60 of the 1993 Act makes the tenant liable for the landlord's reasonable costs of investigating the right, of the valuation, and of the grant of the new lease (legislation.gov.uk). Section 60(2) limits what is recoverable to costs the landlord would reasonably have incurred if personally liable for them.

Why nobody can quote you a total up front

The premium depends on a valuation of your specific flat and lease, and until a valuer has looked at it the number does not exist. Professional fees are set by each firm. The landlord's costs depend on what the landlord's advisers do. A site that prints one figure for all of this is guessing, and the guess will not be your number. What can be stated with confidence is what each payment is for and what drives it, which is what the table on the home page sets out.

The order things usually happen in

1. Establish the remaining term and whether you qualify. This is a title question and comes before anything else.
2. Obtain a valuation, so you know the order of magnitude of the premium before you commit to a route.
3. Choose between the statutory route and an informal negotiated deal. See the comparison.
4. Instruct a solicitor on a stated basis, with the fee and the exclusions in writing.
5. Serve the notice or open negotiations, and budget for the landlord's costs from that point on the statutory route.

The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 (legislation.gov.uk) changes parts of the statutory regime and its provisions do not all come into force at the same time. Anything you read about qualifying conditions, the valuation basis or costs liability, on this site or anywhere else, should be checked against current gov.uk guidance and confirmed by a solicitor before you act on it.