Tel: 07553 343 365     |     Email: andreworme@orme-associates.co.uk

Buying the freehold of a house

Your Right to Buy Your Freehold – The Basics

  • Owners of a leasehold house can purchase their freehold compulsorily from the Landlord under the Leasehold Reform Act 1967 (Leasehold Enfranchisement).
  • To qualify you must have owned the house for 2 years (or be in the process of purchasing the property from someone who has).
  • Also the property must be a house (reasonably so called), however mixed use properties will qualify, for instance a shop with a flat above, and houses converted to flats.
  • The price payable will be a multiple of the ground rent, and for houses with a less than 100 years still to run a portion of the property value to the Landlord depending on the length of the lease still to run.
  • It is necessary to also pay the landlords reasonable legal and valuation fees, these are limited to certain aspects of the process.
  • The process takes about 6 months for most cases, whilst more complex cases will take longer.
  • We can represent you through the entire process, our usual fees are £595 to £895 in most cases payable following the purchase of the freehold.

Why Buy My Freehold

Purchasing your freehold has the following benefits:-

  • Your property will no longer be subject to a ground rent (some ground rents such as doubling ground rents can make the property difficult to sell).
  • For those properties with leases below 100 years, you will no longer hold a depreciating asset, and will realize a profit from the increase in value following the purchase of the freehold.
  • You will have control over the improvement/development of your property and will no longer be required to seek landlords consent and pay consent fees before works, or bear the risk of enforcement action following improvement of your property where consent is not obtained.
  • You will have control of the use to which your property is put, such as a change of use, or sub-division of the property into smaller units.
  • You will not need consent to sell your property or pay fees for the return of the Landlords questionnaire on sale, or procure deeds of covenant, and therefore the sale process is less costly and less complicated.
  • A freehold property is a more salable asset and is understood by purchasers, and therefore consumer friendly, whereas leasehold properties can give concerns to purchasers.

About Orme Associates

  • Orme Associates are a property services company and advise leaseholders of houses and flats on all aspects of leasehold reform. We have a proven track record and have completed numerous transactions by agreement and via determination at the Leasehold Property Tribunal.
  • We welcome new clients and offer immediate free leasehold advice and an estimate of the price payable.
  • Our factsheet is available via  this link FactSheet and a selection of case studies appears at this link Case Studies
  • Andrew Orme is the principal officer at Orme Associates and for advice on Leasehold Reform, Andrew’s resume is downloadable here and LinkedIn profile is available here via LinkedIn
  • Andrew has written about Leasehold Reform. We have included here a discussion on “What is a house?” within the meaning of the 1967 Act.

Our Terms and Conditions are available by clicking here

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Orme Associates Property Advisers is the trading name of Monument Square Ltd (Co Reg. No 09909965), registered office 9A York Street, Liverpool, L1 5BN