There are two ways to buy your freehold. You can take a formal route, which gives you more protection, or an informal route which could save you time and money.
It is worth starting with the informal route and switching to the formal one if you need to.
Informal route
Under this route, you ask the freeholder whether they are interested in selling the freehold. There is no obligation on the freeholder to respond or to agree to sell.
If the freeholder agrees then you can negotiate.
But if you cannot agree on price and terms, and you meet the criteria, you can still use the formal route to try to buy the freehold.
Formal route
If you own the leasehold of a house you can buy the freehold by law if you and the building meet certain conditions:
- the building must be a house
- if the house has been divided into flats you must have the lease for the whole house
- your lease must have been for more than 21 years when it was first granted
- you must be the current leaseholder and have had the lease for the past 2 years
Under this route you and the freeholder need to follow a procedure and strict timescales set out in the law.
In short, you serve a formal notice on your landlord outlining your claim and your terms, and they have 2 months to reply. These are the possible outcomes:
- the landlord agrees to the terms – the sale can complete after 4 weeks
- the landlord agrees to your claim but not the price or terms – you negotiate further and if you cannot agree, you apply to the tribunal to decide the issue
- the landlord does not agree with your claim or does not reply – you apply to the county court to buy the freehold
Get help
Buying the freehold can be a difficult process. We recommend you get professional help from a solicitor and surveyor with experience in this area.
Template letter for the informal route
More information you might find useful:
- Houses – Qualification and Valuation: advice guide
- Application to the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber): advice guide
- More Frequently Asked Questions on Houses – Enfranchisement and Lease Extension
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