House Enfranchisement
Owners of most leasehold houses now have the right to purchase the freehold from their landlord, under the Leasehold Reform Act 1967 – this is known as Enfranchisement.
To qualify for house enfranchisement:
- The building must be a ‘house’ within the meaning of the Act. Mixed use buildings and houses converted to flats can qualify but where part of a property overlaps an adjoining property it may not be eligible to enfranchise.
- The property must be held on a lease that was originally for over 21 years.
- The tenant must have owned his property for at least 2 years, but where a property is being sold, the seller can serve a notice to enfranchise on behalf of the buyer so the buyer does not then have to wait for 2 years.
Procedure for house enfranchisement
- The Tenant serves, (via his solicitor) a prescribed form of notice on the Landlord.
- The Landlord serves a counter-notice in return stating the price at which he is prepared to sell.
- There is then a period for negotiations, with a referral to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal if agreement on the premium can not be reached.
- Completion of the freehold purchase – either by negotiation or by determination of the courts.
House enfranchisement can be a highly complex process and the legal procedures are inflexible. Specialist advice from both expert surveyors and solicitors is strongly recommended.
For an initial discussion please contact one of our team and see our list of enfranchisement solicitors.