Magic Words That Add Value to Your Home ; a 'Share of Freehold' Will Help to Beat the Ups and Downs of the Property Market. Here's How to Secure Yours

Summary

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Buying the freehold of a flat is tipped as one way to help ride out any future storms in the property market. Estate agents say flats with the magic words 'share of freehold' in their sale particulars are seen as more attractive than their traditional leasehold rivals so should be more likely to sell when buyers are in short supply.

'Overseas buyers in particular are far less likely to consider leasehold flats as very few other countries have this sort of system and buyers from abroad just don't understand it,' says Ed Mead, of Douglas Gordon estate agents in London's Chelsea. 'Flats with a share in their building's freehold can be marketed to a far wider group of potential buyers.' Many people also feel that buying the freehold of your building adds a hefty amount to the property's value. The Government-funded Leasehold Advisory Service suggests this uplift can be as high as ten per cent for flats with less than 70 years left on their current leases, though many agents agree on a far lower figure, especially for flats with long leases.

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Magic Words That Add Value to Your Home ; a 'Share of Freehold' Will Help to Beat the Ups and Downs of the Property Market. Here's How to Secure Yours

So if a share of freehold is worth having, how do flat owners go about achieving it? Fortunately, rule changes in recent years have made the process easier.

STEP ONE

Find out if your building qualifies and if enough leaseholders...

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