Comments on: If you have a share in the freehold of a flat, then does it matter how many years are left on the lease?

By: METALBIKER

METALBIKER — Wed, 27 May 2009 13:42:29 +0000

Freehold is the way to go don’t touch Leasehold as it is only yours or your families as long as the lease does not run out ,when it does , you or they have to pay again????

By: acacia

acacia — Sun, 24 May 2009 14:44:06 +0000

you are ok with that

By: MSMORTGAGE

MSMORTGAGE — Thu, 21 May 2009 06:54:02 +0000

I think you will find a lot of mortgage lenders do not like freehold flats. If its freehold why would it have a lease. They are asking a lot of money for what could be a milestone around you neck. I think you should also consider if you wish to selling it on in 10 years, it will have 62 years left - far to lower lease. Don’t buy it.

By: Haribo

Haribo — Mon, 18 May 2009 00:39:08 +0000

72 years is a low lease anything below 75 yrs is normally un mortgageable and requires a lease extention. The share of freehold is totally seperate from the lease hold and gives you 1/8 control over the building if all the freeholders sat round a table they could extend the lease’s to 999yrs for no cost apart from legal fees.
However if they dont extend the lease’s in 72 years your flat would return to the freholder, meaning 8 people would then own your flat. Solicitors hate dealing with leasehold properties.

to answer your email imagine that the freehold is completely seperate to the lease hold. In 72 the lease will end and the flat will revert to the freeholder. Now you have a 1/8 share of the freehold so you would then own 1/8 share of your flat. But that is in 72 years. The likely hood is that everyones lease is getting low and will need to be extended soon.
Also a mortgage lender is not interested if a property has a share of the freehold they are only interested in the lenght of lease and if it is defective or not.
To make it quite obvious there is no such thing as a freehold flat every flat has a lease and is leasehold some may come with a share of freehold or indeed the entire freehold but there is no such thing as a freehold flat, people just like to say freehold because it sounds better.

By: Krop

Krop — Sun, 17 May 2009 07:52:53 +0000

As you “own” 1/8th of the whole building, when the leasehold runs out, you and the other 7 freehold owners will decide whether to grant a renewal on the lease. As you are both the leaseholders and freeholders you would be unwise not to grant yourselves renewal on your leasehold. :o) It is likely that all the flats were built at the same time and so everyone’s lease will expire at the same time. 72 years is not especially low, anything over 50 years is fine from a mortgage/resale point of view. Perhaps you could place the offer on condition of extension of tenure.

By: K38

K38 — Fri, 15 May 2009 02:38:48 +0000

I don’t understand. It’s either free hold or leasehold. If when you complete the sale it’s free hold then the number of years left on the expired lease would be moot. Sounds a bit dodgy to me though, what if the freehold isn’t granted?