Leasehold flats/houses
It is very rare that you would find a freehold flat, and if you did then it would probably not be a good investment as most mortgage lenders will not lend on them mainly because having a separate freeholder generally means there is a means in place for maintenance of the building, if this is not done by a Management Company.
If a flat is referred to as freehold then you should check whether it is a “share of the freehold” that is being sold. It is acceptable to mortgage lenders for the freehold of a building converted into flats is owned jointly by the leaseholders.
When a flat or house is leasehold, this means that you own the building for the term of the lease and someone else (the freeholder) owns the land on which it is built. You will pay ground rent to the freeholder for the term of the lease depending on what is in the lease.
Most leasehold apartments and some houses are subject to payment of service charges to a Management Company.
When buying an apartment your lease will also make you responsible to contribution towards the cost of repairs of the building and contribution towards the building insurance. These payments would generally be made by way of service charges.
The terms of the lease and in particular the amount of ground rent is now very important following a decision by the Council for Mortgage Lenders several years ago that certain conditions in leases were no longer acceptable, such as ground rents which double every 10 years so it may be if you are buying a house with a ground rent that is unacceptable you would need to ask your seller to obtain a Deed of Variation from the freehold agreeing to vary the lease to make the ground rent amount acceptable to the lender. These are all things that we would check on your behalf as part of our work and we would always advise you wherever we think there is a problem?
It is also important to check the number of years remaining on the lease. If it is less than 80 then we would recommend that you request a lease extension to be obtained by the seller before proceedings.
Can I Purchase the Freehold on my property/home?
When you own a leasehold house and have owned it for two years you are entitled to apply to purchase the freehold interest in the property from your freeholder. Your freeholder would advise the amount required and you would be expected to pay the freeholder’s legal costs in addition to your own. However if you did complete the purchase of the freehold reversion then your house would become a freehold house and not leasehold.
This would apply to a house. If you have a leasehold flat then you are unlikely to be able to buy the freehold reversion in the building unless the flat owners in the building collectively purchased it. Quite often where the flat is in a large block then the freehold is owned by a Management Company who are responsible for the maintenance and repair of the building and all the services provided.
Meet our team of experts
Frequently asked questions
Conveyancing Client Reviews
Clear Advice Feels Better
Clear Advice Feels Better
Good morning,
I just wanted to send an appreciation email! People are often quick to complain but not as quick to give appraisal.
This is the second time that I have used Vincent’s solicitors and I have yet again been very happy with the service received. Any queries I had were always answered efficiently & I never felt that I asked too many questions (or that they were silly to ask!). Nothing was too much trouble. Joe, also a great point of contact with again great communication and always very helpful.
Thank you so much for making this a stress free process, and I will continue to recommend Vincent’s Solicitors & the team there.
Happy Monday & have a great week!
Kind regards,
Jessica
Clear Advice Feels Better
Nicole, Sarah, Daisy
A belated thank you from me for all your support , patience and hard work on getting the purchase over the line.
As ever, a first rate service from you all – you are by far the best conveyancing team I have ever experienced and as this was property transaction no 18 for me that gives you some context !
Kind regards
Alison
Clear Advice Feels Better
Following completion on my property sale I just wanted to show my appreciation for Vincents conveyancing services and in particular the support provided by Kerry Rankine.
Kerry was efficient, responsive and proactive throughout the transaction, her efforts made what could have been a stressful process straightforward and stress free, please pass on my personal thanks.
Now that this property has been sold we need to sort out our Wills & LPAs and I would appreciate an introduction to a suitable contact within Vincents, our preference would be to visit the Garstang office.
Regards
Adrian
Highly Recommended
I highly recommend Vincent’s solicitors for their exceptional conveyancing services. June and her team were not only friendly but also displayed extensive knowledge, delivering an excellent service for the selling and purchase of my new property.
Efficient and Reliable
We have used Vincents now on two occasions and cannot fault them. They are efficient, reliable as always. And as for solicitors, I will not use anybody else going forward. Amazing service and would recommend them to anybody!
Extremely Responsive
My wife and I have used Vincent solicitors for conveyancing since 2005 and for every property I’ve bought they have provided a consistently great service. They are always extremely responsive which helps enormously to speed the transactions along and they have always shown a high level of expertise. That expertise was especially useful in our most recent house purchase, which saw us move from a city centre property in the South East, to rural Cumbria. For this purchase June Caunce was our conveyancer and she helped guide us through the intricacies of easements, septic tanks, boundary issues and more! These are all elements we had not encountered before and so having a local and knowledgeable firm helping us was vital in covering off those elements, ensuring the purchase went smoothly.
Clear Advice Feels Better
Good morning,
I just wanted to send an appreciation email! People are often quick to complain but not as quick to give appraisal.
This is the second time that I have used Vincent’s solicitors and I have yet again been very happy with the service received. Any queries I had were always answered efficiently & I never felt that I asked too many questions (or that they were silly to ask!). Nothing was too much trouble. Joe, also a great point of contact with again great communication and always very helpful.
Thank you so much for making this a stress free process, and I will continue to recommend Vincent’s Solicitors & the team there.
Happy Monday & have a great week!
Kind regards,
Jessica
Clear Advice Feels Better
Nicole, Sarah, Daisy
A belated thank you from me for all your support , patience and hard work on getting the purchase over the line.
As ever, a first rate service from you all – you are by far the best conveyancing team I have ever experienced and as this was property transaction no 18 for me that gives you some context !
Kind regards
Alison
Clear Advice Feels Better
Following completion on my property sale I just wanted to show my appreciation for Vincents conveyancing services and in particular the support provided by Kerry Rankine.
Kerry was efficient, responsive and proactive throughout the transaction, her efforts made what could have been a stressful process straightforward and stress free, please pass on my personal thanks.
Now that this property has been sold we need to sort out our Wills & LPAs and I would appreciate an introduction to a suitable contact within Vincents, our preference would be to visit the Garstang office.
Regards
Adrian
Highly Recommended
I highly recommend Vincent’s solicitors for their exceptional conveyancing services. June and her team were not only friendly but also displayed extensive knowledge, delivering an excellent service for the selling and purchase of my new property.
Efficient and Reliable
We have used Vincents now on two occasions and cannot fault them. They are efficient, reliable as always. And as for solicitors, I will not use anybody else going forward. Amazing service and would recommend them to anybody!
Extremely Responsive
My wife and I have used Vincent solicitors for conveyancing since 2005 and for every property I’ve bought they have provided a consistently great service. They are always extremely responsive which helps enormously to speed the transactions along and they have always shown a high level of expertise. That expertise was especially useful in our most recent house purchase, which saw us move from a city centre property in the South East, to rural Cumbria. For this purchase June Caunce was our conveyancer and she helped guide us through the intricacies of easements, septic tanks, boundary issues and more! These are all elements we had not encountered before and so having a local and knowledgeable firm helping us was vital in covering off those elements, ensuring the purchase went smoothly.
Stay in the loop
Latest Industry news and insights
