Specialist Lease Enfranchisement Solicitors

Freehold purchase of a block of flats (which is often referred to as collective or lease enfranchisement) can only be successful when a certain number of leaseholders participate.

(This page deals with buying the freehold of a block of flats.
Click here to read about buying the freehold of your house)

Do you need a minimum number of people to qualify to buy your freehold?

Yes, the law requires that a minimum of 50% of the owners of the properties in the block have to participate, although there is nothing stopping you from starting the process with a lower percentage than this as long as the 50% mark is eventually reached.

It is important that this is pointed out to leaseholders in the early stages of the project as many leaseholders won’t want to get involved with collective enfranchisement until they are sure it will go ahead. This can lead to a “chicken and egg” situation which needs to be sorted out as soon as possible.

Looking for Specialist Advice How To Buy Your Freehold? Call FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 for FREE Initial Phone Advice – with no strings attached.

Your right to enfranchise – practical problems with bigger blocks

Remember too that the freehold purchase process is often far more straightforward when you are dealing with smaller blocks. If you are living in a block of only four flats, you will only need to convince one other leaseholder to join you to reach the 50%.

If in contrast you are living in a much larger block with 100 flats, it’s a much more complex job to get an additional 49 leaseholders to join the collective enfranchisement, and keep them involved to the end of the process. And that’s why with medium and large blocks, putting everyone involved to sign up to it is known as a “participation agreement” is really important.
Click here to read more about Participation Agreements

Exercising Your Right to Enfranchise – Issue an Invitation

It is always easier to start the collective enfranchisement process when a good proportion of the leaseholders have already decided that they would like to be involved. What makes up a significant number will depend on the nature of the block of flats.

At the earliest stages of planning, it is a good idea to issue a formal invitation to all of the leaseholders telling them about the proposed freehold purchase and asking them to get involved.

There is no legal requirement to issue this invitation, but it is a good way of starting the process of buying your freehold and enables you to contact all of the leaseholders quickly. It also keeps things on a formal footing, which may alleviate some leaseholder’s worries about the legal and financial aspects of the process.

What Should the Invitation Include?

The initial invitation which you send out should include:

•    Exactly what is being proposed
•    Deadlines for getting involved
•    The benefits of buying the freehold
•    The deposit required
•    Estimated costs for seeing the project through to completion.
Do make sure that you clearly state that any costs are purely estimated and that the final charges could vary and will only be fully known when the leasehold purchase has completed. (see below for more about the cost of enfranchisement).

Giving everyone the same information at the same time also helps to avoid possible conflict as leaseholders can see that everyone is being treated in the same way. There are some situations where this might not be such a good idea though, for example if the freeholder of the building has friends or relatives living in the block.

If the freeholder might prove awkward, it may be better to avoid them getting hold of confidential information about the proposed leasehold purchase at this stage.

Your Right to Enfranchise – Getting Leaseholders to Sign Up

Along with the invitation, include a simple sign-up form. Keep this brief, and simply ask the leaseholder to confirm that they are interested in taking part in the leasehold purchase when the project gets underway.

It should also be made clear that the leaseholder is not committing to anything by expressing their interest. It just lets the person leading the leasehold purchase that they are interested and willing to take part in collective enfranchisement.

Holding a Residents’ Meeting

At this point it is also a good idea to hold a meeting for leaseholders who still have questions or are unsure about whether to get involved. A meeting allows these leaseholders to ask any questions and get a full picture before committing. A meeting is a good technique to get more leaseholders interested in signing up.

Make sure that you ask an experienced leasehold enfranchisement solicitor to attend this residents’ meeting. The solicitor will be able to give the legal position and make sure that all of the information which is given is accurate. Having a solicitor at the meeting will also give the leaseholders peace of mind as they are being give information by someone who is experienced in this process and really knows what they are doing. Again this can encourage more residents to get involved in the freehold purchase.

Will we need to form a company to jointly own the freehold?

Yes – click here to read more about your collective enfranchisement company

The Difference Between Lease Owners and Residents

It’s also important to point out that issuing an invitation to all of the residents in the block might not help identify the leaseholders. Many flats are owned by landlords who rent them out, and it’s the person who owns the property and not the tenant who has to take part in a freehold purchase.

How much will it cost to buy our freehold?

There is no simple and straightforward answer to this 1. Broadly it depends entirely on your particular circumstances, and in particular the value of all flats in the block. But in general terms you will need to pay the following:

•     The premium – i.e. the price you pay your freeholder to purchase the freehold.
Click here to read more about the Enfranchisement Valuation – and how your premium is calculated

•     Your solicitors legal fees

•     Your surveyors fees for valuing the premium and helping with negotiating the price

•     The freeholder’s “reasonable” legal and valuation costs incurred by your freeholder

Click here to read more about Enfranchisement Costs in more detail

Do we need specialist solicitors?

Absolutely – the vast majority of conveyancing or indeed other solicitors rarely, if ever, come across freehold purchase. And sadly, in our experience, too many of those who dabble in the area make fundamental mistakes.

In contrast, our 5 strong leasehold team does nothing but lease extension, enfranchisement and right to manage applications. They are possibly the biggest and specialist team of the type in the country. And over the years we have assisted approximately 10,000 people to buy their freehold, extend their leases or take over the right to manage their block.

But don’t just take our word for it. We are the only solicitors recommended for this kind of work by The HomeOwners Alliance (Britain’s leading organisation to champion the interests of the nation’s homeowners).

What happens if the freeholder tries to sell the freehold to a third party?

In general terms, it’s a criminal offence for your freeholder to try to sell on the freehold to someone else without offering it formally to leaseholders first.
Click here to find out more about the Right of 1st Refusal

What happens if our freeholder is missing and can’t be found?

Don’t worry. Our experienced team have a solution for that – the vesting order. And, unlike most solicitors, we handle these on a regular basis.
Click here to read more about buying your freehold and vesting orders

How To Enfranchise Your Lease – A Summary

In the early stages of planning a collective enfranchisement process, it’s essential to stay focused on the end benefits of freehold purchase, and have the costs of each of the separate stages laid out clearly so that your fellow leaseholders can see that you have nothing to hide in the whole process. Once the benefits of owning the freehold have been clearly spelled out and everyone understand what is required for the process, the chances of managing a successful leasehold enfranchisement are much higher.

Want To Know How to Enfranchise Your Block? Call Us Now

Exercising your Right to Enfranchise involves a really difficult of law  – so it’s critical that you get the right expert advice. Wherever your block is situated in England Wales, our specialist team can help. For a FREE initial phone consultation from an specialist in Enfranchisement

• Call us today on FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 or
• email us using our contact form for FREE initial advice and a FREE quote.

According to up-to-date records from the National Statistics Office, there are approximately around 1.5 million long leasehold flats in England and Wales. Bournemouth and the surrounding area has more than its fair share of these flats and apartments – and many of which are going to be eligible for leasehold enfranchisement [also known as collective or freehold enfranchisement, and freehold purchase].

Do You Own a Flat or Apartment in Bournemouth? Want to Buy The Freehold Of Your Block? For Expert FREE Initial Phone Advice, Call Us On FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 or (01202) 834450 

DO I NEED A SPECIALIST LEASEHOLD ENFRANCHISEMENT SOLICITOR?

In short, the answer is yes. Why?

o leasehold enfranchisement involves a particularly tricky area of law – in particular, for example, it’s easy to miss critical deadlines, and the law surrounding the exercise of your right to enfranchisement is notoriously difficult to interpret

o most property solicitors come across enfranchisement and lease extension very rarely – and our experience, the vast majority of non-specialist solicitors really struggle to cope with the intricacies of the enfranchisement process

o your freeholder is almost certain to will appoint their own specialist enfranchisement solicitor

o an experienced enfranchisement solicitor can play a crucial role in your enfranchisement team – drafting the legal compensation, cooperating with your surveyor , and you, or your project manager, to control the information flow and to make sure that the whole enfranchisement process goes through successfully

WE ARE COLLECTIVE ENFRANCHISEMENT SPECIALISTS

o There are very few solicitors who specialise in leasehold enfranchisement. The vast majority of property solicitors will not have ever dealt with leasehold enfranchisement – and you wouldn’t want to entrust your freehold purchase to a solicitor using your enfranchisement as a learning experience!

o Here at Bonallack & Bishop, our enfranchisement and lease extension team is based in Salisbury, although we also have offices in Andover, Amesbury and Fordingbridge. Our 5 strong leasehold enfranchisement and lease extension team are real specialists – that’s all they do – and we have experience of helping thousands of leaseholders to with successful lease extension and enfranchisement applications in the last 25 years.

o Our team are also members of the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners [ALEP] – which is the only national group of specialist enfranchisement solicitors and surveyors.

You can also enfranchise your leasehold house.
Click here to find more about how to buy the freehold of your leasehold house

OUR LEASEHOLD ENFRANCHISEMENT EXPERTISE – DON’T JUST TAKE OUR WORD FOR IT

Here’s what a local specialist enfranchisement surveyor says about us:

“I have worked alongside Bonallack & Bishop on numerous lease extension and enfranchisement cases and have been impressed by their efficiency, regular communication and knowledge of the subject.”

Stephen Higley, Smith Robinson Higley Ltd, Chartered Surveyors, Poole

And, what’s more, we are the only law firm nationwide recommended for lease extension and leasehold enfranchisement work by the HomeOwners Alliance, the nation’s leading organisation promoting interests of the UK’s homeowners.

THE IMPORTANCE OF YOUR SOLICITOR AND VALUER WORKING TOGETHER

In order for freehold purchase project to be successful, your solicitor and chosen valuer need to work together. Fortunately leasehold team know the right and valuers to appoint in the Bournemouth area, and we can introduce you to them, or appoint them on your behalf as part of our one-stop shop service. With solicitors and surveyors working well together, you can sure that the premium you will pay your freeholder is set at the right level and complete the enfranchisement process with ease.

 OUR ONE-STOP SHOP ENFRANCHISEMENT SERVICE

We can help you throughout the process – all the way from day one to pointing the right surveyor and finishing the project by setting up your new freehold management company.

January 2023 update –  In 2022, it was confirmed that marriage value would be abolished at some point during this parliamentary period, however no solid proposals have been released yet and there is no guarantee that it will go ahead as planned. Additionally, if the changes follow the new legislation abolishing ground rent introduced in 2022, they could only apply to new leases and not existing ones.

BOURNEMOUTH ENFRANCHISEMENT? CALL 01202 834450 TODAY

So if you own a flat or apartment in Bournemouth, and you’re interested in buying the freehold (or simply extend your lease), our team can help you. We are happy to meet you face-to-face, but equally, our team runs most of our enfranchisement work without a face-to-face meeting – taking instructions by e-mail, phone and Zoom video.

Email us using the contact form below and we can give you a FREE no obligation quote for your enfranchisement and answer your initial queries – or we can arrange to ring you back at a time convenient to you, if you prefer.

Do live in Leeds? Do you own a leasehold flat or apartment? If so, there is a good chance that you will be eligible to buy the freehold of your block through a process referred to as ‘leasehold’ or ‘collective enfranchisement’. You will need specialist lease enfranchisement lawyers to help you with the process – and here at Bonallack & Bishop, our dedicated team of enfranchisement and lease extension experts have all the expertise you need.

Own a Flat in Leeds? Want To Buy The Freehold Of Your Block? For the Specialist Legal Advice Call Us On FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 For FREE Initial Phone Advice.

MAKE SURE YOUR ENFRANCHISEMENT LAWYER IS A SPECIALIST

When dealing with enfranchisement or lease extension, its really important that both the lawyer and surveyor you choose is a genuine specialist. Why? Because lease enfranchisement is a complicated area of law involving strict procedure and tight deadlines. Most property solicitors have little if any experience of enfranchisement, which is why you need to find genuine specialists.

What’s more, your freeholder will almost certainly have instructed a specialist themselves, so don’t start off at a disadvantage.

Your solicitor will also need to be able to work effectively with your surveyor and project manager to ensure that the leasehold enfranchisement process runs smoothly. Our team work with surveyors will it comes to enfranchisement and lease extension every day – so we are perfectly placed to help with your enfranchisement. And if you want us to instruct a solicitor on your behalf to value the premium you will need to pay to the freeholder to buy your freehold, we are happy to introduce you to a genuine specialists – a member of our informal enfranchisement surveyors’ panel, as part of our one-stop shop service.

RECOGNISED LEASEHOLD ENFRANCHISEMENT EXPERTS

Finding specialist leasehold enfranchisement solicitors is easier said than done.

However we have a dedicated team of four enfranchisement and lease extension lawyers who spend all their time helping leaseholders extend their lease or buying the freehold of their block.

We are also members of the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners (ALEP) – the only nationwide organisation of specialist enfranchisement solicitors and surveyors.

And what’s more, we are the only law firm in the country to be recommended for this type of work by the highly regarded HomeOwners Alliance –  the only group in Britain to represent, champion and serve the nation’s homeowners and homebuyers.

WHY GETTING YOUR FREEHOLD PURCHASE RIGHT IS SO IMPORTANT

When it comes to enfranchisement, it really important to make sure you stick to the procedure and in particular don’t miss any of the deadlines. Because doing so means your application fails and you have to start again from scratch.

Not only does that mean you will have picked up extensive and wasted legal fees in the process, but with your lease being shorter, especially if the value of your property has increased in the meantime, increase it’s likely that by the time your new application is filed the premium you will need to pay will be more expensive.

LEASEHOLD HOUSES – DOES THE RIGHT TO ENFRANCHISEMENT APPLY?

Yes. Click here to read more about how to buy the freehold of your leasehold house

LIVE IN LEEDS? CALL TODAY FOR THE RIGHT LEASE ENFRANCHISEMENT ADVICE

Despite being based in the South West, our clients come from blocks throughout England and Wales – it is not necessary to see us in person.

So if you live in Leeds, there’s no problem –  we can keep in touch with you via telephone, email and Zoom video as we do for any of our clients when helping them buy the freehold of their block – wherever they may be nationwide.

Want to know more about how to buy your freehold? For no strings attached FREE initial advice and a FREE quote

• Call us today on FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 for FREE initial phone advice

• Or email us using the contact form below – or we can arrange to ring you back when it suits you

Lawyers specialising in freehold purchase

Do you own a long leasehold flat or apartment [i.e. any residential lease with a term originally granted for over 21 years] in Bristol? Do you want to increase the value of your flat? Do you want to take over the right to manage your block from your freeholder? If you can answer “yes” to all three of these questions, then you could well be entitled to buy the freehold of your block of flats using a process called leasehold or collective enfranchisement.

You’ll need a specialist leasehold enfranchisement lawyer to help you with this – and at here at Bonallack & Bishop we have a 5 strong dedicated team of lease extension and enfranchisement who have all the knowledge you are going to need. And our specialists cancan also help you buy the freehold of your leasehold house

Helping you throughout the whole process

What’s more, we are are there with expert advice right from the initial valuation. And if you can’t get agreement from your freeholder, all the way to the First Tier Property Tribunal.

In addition, as part of our one stop shop service,we can introduce you to come and if necessary appoint, a member of our specialist panel of collective enfranchisement surveyors – because you are going to need an expert valuation and very few surveyors have the necessary experience or skill.

Looking To Buy The Freehold Of Your Block In Bristol? Looking For Specialist Solicitors? Call Us On FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 For FREE Initial Phone Advice.

Leasehold enfranchisement – what’s in it for me?

Buying your freehold gives you the opportunity of granting yourself a very long lease extension that often lasts for 999 years. And that comes with what’s known as a ‘peppercorn rent’, meaning the lease essentially becomes rent-free.

What’s more, there are plenty more benefits of owning your own freehold. They include

• the chance of better maintenance and intentionally cheaper management of your block as well as
• the ability to remortgage more easily due to added security of freehold over leasehold properties
• it secures family inheritance rights
• and increases building value, making it an attractive option for investors or those looking to buy their own home.

Use a Specialist Enfranchisement Lawyer

If you are going through the process of lease extension or enfranchisement, it’s important that you deal with a specialist surveyor and lawyer. Freehold enfranchisement is a complicated area of the law, and it involves specific terminology and strict deadlines.

Most property solicitors don’t touch leasehold enfranchisement very often if at all, which is why it is so important to find true experts and also why these experts are few and far between. Remember also that your freeholder will have already made the call to get their own specialist solicitors. So don’t put yourself at a disadvantage.

You will also have to ensure that your solicitor will have to work your surveyor to keep the process moving along slowly. Our legal team works with these people every day on lease extension and collective enfranchisement projects so is in the perfect position to help your enfranchisement too.

Genuine Enfranchisement Experts

It’s not always that easy to find a specialist freehold purchase solicitor. Here we are one of very few law firms nationwide with a team of lawyers who dedicate their entire working week to helping with leasehold extension or collective enfranchisement alone.

You can tell we are genuine specialists – because we are the only law firm nationwide recommended for enfranchisement work by the Homeowners Alliance – the biggest organisation representing the U.K.’s home owners.

We are members of the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners (ALEP) which is a body comprised of specialist surveyors and freehold purchase lawyers.

But don’t just take our word for it. Click here to read about what some of our clients and the Expert Enfranchisement Valuers we work with say about us.

Enfranchisement – Our One-Stop Shop Service

If you wish, we are able to handle your freehold purchase from day one until completion. This includes instructing a specialist surveyor to provide an initial valuation, drafting a participation agreement (essential to keep everyone on board if you’re in a big block) and serving the enfranchisement notice all the way to negotiating a price with your freeholder, setting up your new freehold company and registering you as the new owners of the block HM Land Registry.

And in the unlikely event that there is a dispute with your freeholder, we can even represent you at the First Tier Property Tribunal – though we are pleased to say that around 95% of our cases are sorted out without the need of any Tribunal application.

The cost of getting leasehold enfranchisement wrong

Failing to complete the enfranchisement process correctly or missing deadlines for example, can come with a hefty price tag. Not only would you need to start from scratch and cover any associated, not to mention wasted, legal costs, but by the time you’re able to start a new application, your lease will be shorter and it’s quite likely that the value of your flat will have increased. This could lead to an increase in the premium that you are going to need to pay to your freeholder.

Live in Bristol? Looking to Purchase the Freehold of Your Block? Contact Us Now

Exercising your Right to Enfranchise is a complicated process and it’s really important to make sure you have specialist legal advice.

Our specialist team represent clients throughout England and Wales. So if you own a flat in Bristol and you are looking at enfranchisement;

• Call us now on FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 for FREE initial phone advice and a FREE quote OR

• Email us using the contact form below

Leasehold enfranchisement, also known as ‘freehold purchase’ or ‘collective enfranchisement’ allows leaseholders to buy the freehold of their leasehold flat or apartment. If you live in Sheffield and you are interested in the enfranchisement process, our expert lease extension and lease enfranchisement solicitors can help you, increasing the value of your property and leaving you with more control over its maintenance.

Thinking of Buying The Freehold Of Your Block In Sheffield? Need Specialist Legal Advice? Call Our Expert Team On FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 For FREE Initial Phone Advice.

LEASE ENFRANCHISEMENT – ONLY A SPECIALIST WILL DO

Here are 3 reasons why you will need a specialist solicitor when you’re looking to enfranchise your block:

• Lease enfranchisement is a tricky area of law. Few property solicitors have much experience or any real understanding about it.The tight deadlines and complex legislation involved make the process particularly complicated. In fact, the vast majority of property solicitors rarely if ever, come across lease extensions, let alone enfranchisement cases

• It is almost certain that your freeholder will have instructed a specialist solicitor – so it is really important that you make sure that you get similarly specialist legal advice

• A specialist solicitor will fully understand the whole process – and in particular be able to communicate effectively with your surveyor and any project manager choose to appoint (quite important with bigger blocks) to make the process as swift and successful as possible.

PROVEN LEASE ENFRANCHISEMENT EXPERTS

If you choose the team here at Bonallack & Bishop to help you enfranchise your block, you can be sure that you are instructing genuine specialists in their field. As one of the largest teams in the country, our four-strong group of lawyers are dedicated to lease extension, right to manage and enfranchisement work only – that is simply all they do.

Over the last 25 years, thousands of leaseholders and freeholders have benefitted from our team’s experience. And we are also members of the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners, the only organisation of specialist enfranchisement solicitors and surveyors nationwide.

NB It’s also possible to buy the freehold of your leasehold house.
Click here to find more about leasehold house enfranchisement

MAKE YOUR LEASE DOES NOT DROP BELOW 80 YEARS

The reason for this is simple – if the lease of your apartment or house has less than 80 years remaining, then the cost of buying your freehold rises drastically. This is because the freeholder is entitled by law to half the profit made by extending the lease, known as ‘marriage value’.

In 2022 the UK government stated its intentions to abolish marriage value before the current Parliament ends, but no formal proposals have been announced and they follow the ground rent changes made in 2022, there may be no changes for those that already have an existing lease agreement.

BUT DON’T JUST TAKE OUR WORD FOR IT

We are the only solicitors recommended for enfranchisement work by the HomeOwners Alliance – Britain’s largest organisation representing the nation’s homeowners.

LEASE ENFRANCHISEMENT IN SHEFFIELD – CONTACT US NOW

When you come to buy the freehold of your block, we believe it’s much more important to get a specialist than look for a local solicitor to meet face-to-face. Whilst you are more than welcome to visit us in one of our four offices, we run the vast majority of our lease extension and freehold purchase cases with clients nationwide using Zoom video, email or telephone.

So if you own a flat or apartment in Sheffield, and want to know more about how to buy your freehold (or about just extending your individual lease), get in touch with our team today

For no strings attached free initial phone advice and an idea of the costs likely to be involved in your project,,

• email us using the enquiry form below, or
• call one of our team on FREEPHONE 0800 1404544.

The population of Liverpool has grown by around 5.5% over the last 10 years, to almost half a million people. and if you consider the extended “metro area population of Liverpool”,  in 2023 that’s 917,000. So, given that nationwide there are an estimated 1,500,000 leasehold flats, it is hardly surprising to find that there are so many flats and apartments in Liverpool – with many leaseholders wanting to gain greater control over their property by buying the freehold of their block using the leasehold enfranchisement process.

Genuinely specialist enfranchisement solicitors are very hard to find. But here at Bonallack & Bishop we have a 5 strong team who do nothing but enfranchisement, lease extension and right to manage company formation cases throughout England and Wales – and who can help you buy the freehold of your block.

Own a Flat or Apartment in Liverpool? Interested in Buying The Freehold Of Your Block? For the Specialist Legal Advice You Need, Call Us On FREEPHONE 0800 1404544

YOUR ENFRANCHISEMENT – YOU NEED A SPECIALIST SOLICITOR

Here’s why you will need to instruct a specialist solicitor to help with your lease enfranchisement:

• The relevant legislation is complicated and difficult to understand. There are also a number of critical deadlines which must not be missed – sadly, in our experience, a generalist property solicitor without much, if any, freehold purchase experience is simply not up to the job

• It’s highly likely that your freeholder knows the importance of having a specialist enfranchisement solicitor.  That means that there likely to instruct an expert solicitor themselves. You therefore need to do the same to ensure a level playing field between you.

• To go through a successful enfranchisement cost effectively and with minimal complication, your solicitor will need to cooperate with the surveyor and project manager. Our team liaise daily with specialist surveyors and valuers – and collective enfranchisement project managers

OUR ENFRANCHISEMENT EXPERTISE

Over the last 25 years, we have helped thousands of leaseholders throughout England and Wales benefit from lease extension and freehold purchase. And we also act regularly for freeholders – so we fully understand the whole process from both sides.

What’s more, we are long-standing members of the only specialist body for leasehold surveyors and solicitors – the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners – ALEP.

In addition we are the only solicitors nationwide who the highly regarded campaigning organisation, the HomeOwners Alliance, recommend for this area of work.

DO I NEED TO INSTRUCT SOLICITORS AT ALL?

No – there’s certainly no legal requirement, but like conveyancing, very few people are confident enough to take a chance on making a mistake when buying property.

THE ADVANTAGES OF BUYING YOUR FREEHOLD?

Enfranchisement gives tenants the right to extend their existing leasehold to unlimited length –  usually increasing to a 999 year terms— and to pay what is known as a peppercorn rent (which is essentially a rent-free agreement).

Other benefits of opting for purchase include taking complete control over maintenance and management, easing mortgage refinance, providing a more secure inheritance option, and increasing building value. Owning a share of the freehold of your block also makes buying your flat much more attractive to most potential purchasers.

DOES OUR FREEHOLDER NEED TO OFFER THE FREEHOLD OF THE BLOCK TO US BEFORE TRYING TO SELL ELSEWHERE?

Yes – there is a clear legal requirement. Your freeholder must offer it to you, as leaseholders 1st, and the right of first refusal allows you, as the leaseholders of the building, to bid for the right to buy the freehold if the freeholder wishes to sell it.
Click here to read more about the Right of 1st Refusal

DOES THE RIGHT TO ENFRANCHISEMENT ALSO APPLY TO LEASEHOLD HOUSES?

Yes. Click here to find out about how to buy the freehold of your leasehold house

THINKING OF ENFRANCHISEMENT IN LIVERPOOL – CONTACT US NOW

Our service is so specialist that we regularly represent clients throughout England and Wales – with the vast majority of our collective enfranchisement cases being run by phone, email and Zoom video. In fact, it’s very rare that we meet our freehold purchase clients – and it’s never been a problem

So, whether you live in Liverpool or anywhere else nationwide, for FREE expert initial advice and a FREE freehold enfranchisement quote

• Call us now on FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 or

• Email us using the contact form below – or we can arrange to ring you back when it suits you

HOW TO ACCOUNT FOR GARAGES AND OUTBUILDINGS WHEN GOING THROUGH ENFRANCHISEMENT

Collective enfranchisement can be a difficult process, particularly if you’re unprepared. There are a lot of things to remember and to consider when making your initial offer in the Enfranchisement Notice and some of the things which are often forgotten are garages, gardens, outbuildings and other areas of surrounding property. Of course, a block of flats is not just the flats themselves – and these additional areas form part of the freehold must be accounted for when preparing a collective enfranchisement effort.

Additional areas – do you want to include them in your Enfranchisement Notice?

When exercising your right to enfranchise, you may also have the opportunity to buy garages, gardens or surrounding property. So when preparing an offer to buy the freehold on your block of flats, this is something you should consider.

These additional areas can include pathways and walkways, parking areas and forecourts and are often referred to as the ‘appurtenant property’.

If your offer includes wanting to buy this appurtenant property, you must clearly state this in your initial Enfranchisement Notice.
Click here to read more about the Enfranchisement Notice

Your garage – is it part of your lease?

When exercising your enfranchisement rights, you legally have the right to force your freeholder to sell you your garage if the lease of your flat include the garage. The two are deemed to be linked and tied, and should you wish to buy it as part of your enfranchisement then your freeholder must comply.

However if the garage and the flat aren’t linked but the lease for the two is held by the same person, the leaseholder is legally entitled to buy the freehold on the garage as well as the flat.

It is worth noting that the leaseholder doesn’t need to purchase their flat or be a participant in the collective enfranchisement effort — the garage is considered enfranchisable separately and the leaseholder could buy it outside the scope of the collective enfranchisement effort if they so wish.

The need for specialist professional help

Professional help is vital at this stage, as you will require a specialist enfranchisement solicitor [or possibly a paid project manager if your block is a large one and none of the leaseholders have sufficient time] to conduct a search of all leasehold titles on the property, including leasehold ownership details for all garages and outbuildings from HM Land Registry.

This is not something which can easily be done by individual leaseholders, nor should leasehold ownership be assumed without first having the official ownership documents obtained from HM Land Registry. The leasehold titles can be downloaded from the Land Registry’s website or an OC1 Form can be sent to them which will enable you to obtain the titles by return of post.

Getting your Collective Enfranchisement Notice right

When preparing your Enfranchisement Notice, you should therefore make sure that, if appropriate, details of two areas of land are included: the first covering the block of flats itself and the second covering the appurtenant property — the garages, outbuildings, paths and parking areas you wish to buy as part of the collective enfranchisement.

If these additional areas of property are not included in the original Enfranchisement Notice, it will be deemed that your sole offer is for the block of flats itself – and that you do NOT wish to purchase the appurtenant property. If this is, indeed, your actual aim then you should explicitly state this in your Enfranchisement Notice.

Having all of the facts laid down in the Notice is vital to ensuring there are no misunderstandings or legal hiccups as the enfranchisement process continues.

Having specialist legal advice from an experienced collective enfranchisement solicitor will help you to avoid any problems throughout the process. A solicitor who specialises in freehold purchase and lease extension work will often save you money in the long run as well as the peace of mind for you and your fellow leaseholders – that the collective enfranchisement effort is being dealt with by the safest possible pair of hands, keeping confidence high and potential disagreements at a minimum.
Click here to read more about the enfranchisement notice

Contact Our Collective Enfranchisement Solicitors

Exercising your Right to Enfranchise involves a really difficult of law  – so it’s critical that you get the right expert advice. Wherever your block is situated in England Wales, our specialist team can help. For a FREE initial phone consultation from an specialist in Enfranchisement

• Call us today on FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 or
• email us using our contact form for FREE initial advice and a FREE quote.

Do you own a leasehold apartment or flat in Brighton? Are you fed up with the cost of maintenance or with having to deal with a particular difficult freeholder. If so, there is every chance that you could be entitled to buy the freehold of the block using a legal process called “collective” or “leasehold enfranchisement”. And there is a similar right to buy the freehold of a leasehold house.

What’s more, once the collective enfranchisement process is completed, leaseholders have the right to grant themselves 999 year leases for what is known a “peppercorn rent” i.e. nil rent.

You will need the advice of specialist lease enfranchisement solicitors to guide you through the system, and here at solicitors, Bonallack and Bishop, we have a dedicated team of lease extension and freehold purchase specialists who can offer all the expert advice and expertise you could need.

Looking To Buy The Freehold Of Your Block In Brighton? Looking For The Right Legal Advice? Call Us On FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 For FREE Initial Phone Advice.

Getting a Specialist Leasehold Enfranchisement Lawyer

When going through the process of a lease extension or collective enfranchisement, it is crucial that the surveyors and lawyers you deal with are specialists. Why? Well, leasehold enfranchisement is a complex legal area and it involves unusual legal terminology and strict deadlines. The overwhelming majority of property solicitors have very little experience in this area, if any at all. It is therefore important to find the true specialists –  and in reality there are so few of them.

Don’t put yourself at a disadvantage without specialist advice – your freeholder will almost certainly have the backup of legal experts.
NB it’s also possible to buy the freehold of your leasehold house – click here for more information

Working Together for a Smooth Enfranchisement Process

Your solicitor will also have to work with your chosen valuer [and the project manager if your block is a medium or large sized block] to make sure the enfranchisement goes through without a hitch.

Our legal team works with surveyors who specialise in lease extension and enfranchisement every day of the week – what’s more, if you don’t know which surveyor to appoint in Brighton, just ask us – we know exactly which Brighton-based specialist surveyor to use and, if you wish, we can appoint them and instruct them as part of a one-stop service on your behalf to value the enfranchisement premium you are going to have to pay your freeholder.
Click here to read more about the leasehold enfranchisement process

Recognised Leasehold Enfranchisement Experts

It’s not always that easy to find solicitors who have expertise in leasehold enfranchisement.

Here, however, we have 5 strong Leasehold Team who do nothing but help leaseholders nationwide extend their lease or purchase the freehold of their block – taking instructions by phone, e-mail or video call. And over the last 25 years, we’ve both represented numerous  freeholders, and leaseholders like you, in many thousands of lease enfranchisement, lease extension and right to manage cases. Currently we are taking about 500 such cases each year.

But don’t just take our word for it. We are the only solicitors nationwide recommended for enfranchisement and lease extension work by the HomeOwners Alliance – Britain’s leading campaigning group for home owners.

And here’s what one of Brighton’s specialist enfranchisement valuers says about us:

“As one of the leading and longest established firm of chartered surveyors specialising in leasehold reform, we have worked with Bonallack and Bishop on many occasions. The process is complex and a procedural minefield. Bonallack and Bishop certainly know the ropes and we have always found them knowledgeable and efficient and a joy to deal with”.
Andrew Pridell, Andrew Pridell Associates Ltd – specialist Lease Extension Chartered Surveyor and Valuer, Hove

We are also members of ALEP (The Association Leasehold Enfranchisement Solicitors. ALEP logo” src=”https://www.enfranchisementsolicitors.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/Full-Alep-logo-300×105.jpg” alt=”Brighton Leasehold Enfranchisement Solicitors. ALEP logo” width=”300″ height=”105″ />of Leasehold Enfranchisement Solicitors),  the only nationwide organisation representing specialist enfranchisement surveyors and lawyers.

Leasehold enfranchisement – what are the pros and cons?

Many leaseholders feel that they would like more control over the management of their property. And if that sounds like you, you have 2 main options. Either you can buy the freehold or you can apply for the ‘right to manage’ the block.  But be aware that both options mean that you need to make a joint application with other leaseholders – and that can prove tricky if you come from a large block, because these applications require the support of at least 50% of leaseholders (and both of you if your building has just 2 flats) .

So what are the advantages and disadvantages of going down the collective enfranchisement route?

• Freehold purchase – the advantages

• Increase the value of your home: prospective buyers are likely to be more attracted to flats where they will own the freehold.

• Extend your lease for free: if you choose to buy the freehold you will not need to pay a fee to extend your lease and can extend it up to 999 years (with the agreement of your fellow freeholders).

• You don’t pay ground rent: if you own the freehold, you will not need to pay any ground rent.

• You choose service providers: this means you can control the amount you pay in service charges whereas before you paid the service charges determined by the freeholder.

• Avoid conditions: As a leaseholder you are bound by various conditions over repairs and pet ownership for example which can be frustrating having forked out on a home. This is not usually the case as a freeholder, provided the other freeholders either agreed to amend the terms of your lease or not to enforce any restriction.

• Freehold purchase – the disadvantages

So far so good, however some elements of freehold purchase are less attractive, for example:

• It’s not cheap: enfranchisement can, depending on the value of your flat, prove quite expensive – but this is almost always exceeded by the value that it can add to your home.

• You are going toneed your neighbours’ help: It can be difficult – especially for those living in large blocks – to draw together a team of people who are willing to engage in collective enfranchisement and who will be organised and co-operative throughout the process. You may even struggle to find the freeholder (though don’t worry if they’re missing – our team can help you through the process to buy a freehold even with an absent freeholder).

• It can be a slow process: leasehold enfranchisement usually takes about 12 months but if your freeholder is uncooperative it can take considerably longer, especially if you don’t instruct specialist solicitors.

• The lease conditions may remain: the conditions of your lease will not change simply because you have bought the freehold, although it is quite common for freeholders to agree lease variations for other freeholders. It is therefore important to instruct an expert solicitor to update unfair or badly drawn-up leases.

• You have responsibilities: as a freeholder you become responsible for setting up and running your new freehold company, keeping the accounts, maintaining the property and securing insurance. This is not for the faint-hearted. it can be a particular strain if the block is a big one or if you have some difficult issues or awkward leaseholders. Failure to properly run the freehold company and maintain their block can have expensive consequences.

• Disagreements may still occur: some neighbours are still likely to complain about service charges once the freehold company has been set up. These disputes may arise between you and other freeholders as well as those who were not party to the collective enfranchisement. And this can be particular difficult if you’re living in the block and the arguments are with your near neighbours or friends.

Flat in Brighton? Looking to Purchase the Freehold of Your Block? Call us today

Exercising your right freehold purchase can prove really complicated – that’s why it’s so important to have an experienced and expert enfranchisement lawyer on your side.

Our team represent have all the expertise you need – representing clients throughout England and Wales. Lease extension and collective enfranchisement is all they do.

So if you are the owner of a flat in Brighton and you want to purchase the freehold [or simply extend the term of your lease];

• Call us now on FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 for FREE initial phone advice and a FREE quote OR

• Email us using the contact form below

There are thought to be around 1 ½ million leasehold flats in England and Wales and many of these are in Manchester. If you live in Manchester and you own a leasehold flat you may be interested in the leasehold enfranchisement process (also referred to as ‘freehold purchase’ or ‘collective enfranchisement’). This right to enfranchise enables you to get together with some of your fellow flat owners to jointly buy the freehold of your block and to gain greater control over your property.

Do You Want to Purchase The Freehold Of Your Block In Manchester? For Specialist Legal Representation You Can Rely On, Call FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 For FREE Initial Phone Advice.

CHOOSE AN EXPERT FOR YOUR LEASE ENFRANCHISEMENT

Having an expert enfranchisement solicitor on board is really important. Why? Because tricky deadlines and complex legislation make lease enfranchisement and lease extension difficult areas of law.  And what’s more, very few property solicitors have any enfranchisement experience. However, specialists like those here at Bonallack & Bishop have handled numerous block purchases – so you can rest assured that we have all the experience needed to help you buy your freehold.

It’s also worth bearing in mind the importance of ensuring that you and your freeholder are on a level playing field. Given that whoever owns the freehold of your block is almost guaranteed to instruct a specialist enfranchisement solicitor, it is important that you get advice from a similarly experienced solicitor. A specialist solicitor will understand exactly how to work effectively with your project manager and surveyor to help make sure your enfranchisement goes through at the right price with minimal delay.

Enfranchisement is the legal process by which a leaseholder can purchase the rights of their leasehold property from the Freeholder. This allows them to obtain a new lease from the Freeholder that may be extended up to 999 years and provides several benefits. These include improved maintenance and management of their building, easier remortgaging opportunities with lenders, added security for family inheritance, and increased value which often attracts buyers away from conventional leasehold properties.

THE COSTS OF GETTING IT WRONG

And getting the application wrong or missing one of the deadlines can prove expensive. It could mean that your application simply fails entirely, and you have to start the procedure from scratch, with all the legal costs and delay that entails. And, what’s worse, if property prices are rising, and given that the length of your lease is falling at the same time, you may find that by the time you get your new application in, the actual price of the premium you will need to pay to the freeholder has gone up.

EXPERT LEASE ENFRANCHISEMENT SOLICITORS

• Buying your freehold isn’t cheap – especially if you live in an expensive flat (because one of the factors that affect the price or premium you will need to pay to your freeholder, is the value of your flat). So it’s really important to get the right solicitor on board from day one. solicitor. Our specialist team has over 25 years of experience assisting thousands of freeholders and leaseholders with enfranchisement and lease extension.

• At Bonallack & Bishop, our enfranchisement solicitors really are genuine specialists – our 5 strong team deals with nothing but lease extension, right to manage and enfranchisement work. And we help somewhere in the region of 500 people every year extending their lease or buying the freehold – all the way from single flat lease extensions to the freehold purchase of large blocks

• We are members of the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners – the only nationwide organisation of enfranchisement specialists

• Don’t worry that our team is not local to you – we deal with almost all lease extension and enfranchisement work remotely – taking instructions from clients all over England and Wales by phone, email and Zoom video

• We can handle your enfranchisement from beginning to end – from obtaining the initial valuation, and serving the Enfranchisement Notice, to helping you with formation of your freehold purchase company and registering you as a new owners with HM Land Registry – and even taking your case to the First Tier Property Tribunal in the unlikely event it becomes necessary

• If you own a leasehold house, it’s also possible to compel your freeholder to sell the freehold
Click here to find more about how to buy the freehold of your leasehold house

BUT DON’T JUST TAKE OUR WORD FOR IT

Here’s what Tom Jefferies, a specialist Leasehold Barrister from Landmark Chambershas to say about Jenny Slater, the head of our leasehold team:

“I would happily recommend Jennifer Slater for all types of leasehold enfranchisement. She has the knowledge and experience you would normally only find at a specialist London firm.”

DON’T UNDERESTIMATE THE BENEFITS OF ENFRANCHISEMENT

Collective or leasehold enfranchisement [as the process of joining together with some or all of your fellow leaseholders to jointly buy the freehold of your block] will increase the value of your flat or apartment and potentially provide you with much greater control over maintenance and service charges for the block.

And you may be surprised to find that, the price you need to pay to your freeholder for a 90-year lease extension may not be that much more than your share of buying the freehold of your block of flats.

What’s more, with slightly bigger blocks, where there are therefore more leaseholders sharing those costs, you may even find that the legal and valuation costs for each leaseholder is actually less than you would pay for an individual leasehold extension – because although the overall legal and valuation bill may be higher, it’s going to be divided between all those participating in the enfranchisement.

So, subject to the issues raised below, you may find that it’s far more attractive to buy your share of the freehold rather than simply extending your lease by a further 90 years.

LEASEHOLD ENFRANCHISEMENT IN MANCHESTER? CONTACT US TODAY

So if you own a flat or apartment in Manchester, and you’re interested in buying the freehold (or just extending the lease):

• Call us today on 0800 1404544 or
• Email us using our contact form for FREE initial advice and a FREE quote.

Birmingham has a population of over 1.1 million people [according to 2018 figures from Birmingham City Council itself]. So, as Britain’s second city, you probably won’t be surprised to hear that there are a huge number of flats in Birmingham, many of which are owned under a long leasehold [i.e. a lease originally granted for at least 21 years] rather than rented from say the local authority or a housing association. In fact according to the 2011 Census, Birmingham had 86,595 purpose built flats – and that’s before you consider consider the tens of thousands of houses that have been converted into flats and the thousands of new builds.

But owning a leasehold flat isn’t like owning a freehold house. You don’t have complete control over your block.. Instead, you have to pay service charges and ground rent to your freeholder – and year by year your lease gets gradually shorter. So when it expires, you end up owning precisely nothing.

Do You Own an Apartment in Birmingham? Are You Interested in Buying The Freehold Of Your Block? For Expert FREE Initial Phone Advice, Call Us On FREEPHONE 0800 1404544

THE ANSWER? FREEHOLD PURCHASE

One way of avoiding these problems with a leasehold property is to join together with some of the other flat owners to buy the freehold of your block – through a process known as leasehold enfranchisement (often referred to as ‘freehold purchase’ or ‘collective enfranchisement’).

If you live in Birmingham and are thinking of buying your freehold, you’re going to need a specialist solicitor – the specialist enfranchisement team here at Bonallack & Bishop can help.

You can also buy the freehold of your leasehold house.
Click here to find more about leasehold house enfranchisement

LEASE ENFRANCHISEMENT – WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS?

• Your flat will increase in value – and will become easier to sell

• You take over management of your block

• Block maintenance will probably become cheaper, as you organise it yourself

• You don’t have to put up with a difficult landlord

• You can extend your lease up to 999 years

• No more ground rent to pay

• Greater security – as a freeholder, normally only failure to meet your mortgage could cause eviction

WHY A SPECIALIST ENFRANCHISEMENT SOLICITOR IS SO IMPORTANT

You may wonder why any solicitor couldn’t handle your lease enfranchisement. After all, how difficult can it be?

Lease enfranchisement is, in fact, a particularly complicated area of law with tight rules, strict deadlines and a number of traps for the unwary. It is an area of law that very few property solicitors will ever have dealt with – and therefore are unlikely to have sufficient understanding of the issues surrounding enfranchisement.

Given that your freeholder is highly likely to instruct a specialist lease enfranchisement solicitor of their own, you do not want to start on an uneven footing – especially when large financial sums are at stake.

OUR COLLECTIVE ENFRANCHISEMENT EXPERTS

Finding an expert lease enfranchisement solicitor is difficult – the vast majority of property solicitors deal with regular conveyancing of flats and houses, with landlord and tenant issues or deal with commercial property. But not freehold purchase.

In contrast;

• We have a team of five who specialise in nothing but lease extension, right to manage company formation and lease enfranchisement.

• We are the only solicitors are recommended for freehold purchase by the Homeowners Alliance, the largest organisation representing Britain’s homeowners.

 • Our team liaise with specialist enfranchisement and lease extension surveyors every single day – so, if you wish, as part of our one-stop shop service, we cannot only introduce you to a specialist local surveyor, we can also instruct them on your behalf.

• We are members of the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners (ALEP) – the only group of specialist enfranchisement surveyors and solicitors nationwide.

 • We can handle your enfranchisement from beginning to end – from obtaining the initial valuation, and serving the Enfranchisement Notice, to helping you with formation of your freehold purchase company and registering you as a new owners with HM Land Registry – and even taking your case to the First Tier Property Tribunal in the unlikely event it becomes necessary

 • Our dedicated team have helped thousands of clients with successful freehold purchase and lease extension cases over the last 25 years

THE IMPORTANCE OF BUYING YOUR FREEHOLD WITH AT LEAST 80 YEARS LEFT ON THE LEASE

Leaseholders seeking the right to buying the freehold of their block should be aware that it is more expensive once a lease has less than 80 years to run (the same applies if you’re thinking of extending your lease). Sometimes much more expensive.

Why? That’s because where the lease has less than 80 years left on it, your freeholder has the right to charge an additional premium – which is known as the “marriage value”. (The marriage value is valued at half the difference between the property value before and after the leaseholders have exercised their freehold right to bu)y.

In practical terms for most flats, this means each individual leaseholder may have to pay thousands more to participate in the freehold purchase. And that figure only increases as the lease term steadily drops.

Marriage value also applies to lease extension – so if you’re considering the alternative of extending your lease – try to do so before that critical 80 year period.

N.B. There is no marriage value if the unexpired portion of the lease has more than 80 years to run

GETTING OTHER LEASEHOLDERS INVOLVED IN BUYING THE FREEHOLD

If your leasehold enfranchisement is going to be successful, you are going to need the support of at least 50% of leaseholders of the block of flats.

And getting half of all the leaseholders to commit, and remain committed, can be a tricky job with medium and larger sized blocks.

However, the good news is that the freehold purchase process can be started with less than 50% of leaseholders, provided the 50% quota is eventually reached. This is an important point to bear in mind. Often leaseholders will be reluctant to get involved with the collective enfranchisement until they are sure it will go through. This “chicken and egg” situation needs tackling at the early stages of freehold purchase.

One of the best ways of getting people committed to the project is by getting them signed up to what is known as “a participation agreement” – a legally binding contract setting out the details of the planned enfranchisement and who will be involved.

Our specialist team can help you draft a participation agreement that suits your particular circumstances.
Click here to read more about participation agreements.

THINKING OF ENFRANCHISEMENT IN BIRMINGHAM? CONTACT US TODAY

Due to the specialist nature of our service, we represent leaseholders and freeholders alike throughout England and Wales – with the vast majority of our enfranchisement cases being run by phone, email or video call.

For FREE no strings attached initial advice and a FREE enfranchisement quote

• Call our team free on FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 or

• Fill in the email enquiry form below