Buying the freehold on my block of flats

motorbiking · Monday at 3:07 PM

I can't recommend one.

Just do some googling and ask for quotes.. "Collective engranchisement" brings up plenty of specialists, talk to them get quotes. Typically these are companies that specialise in managing leases on behlaf of resident, where the maintenance is resident controlled.

Do take notice of the reputation of the company you are dealing with. They seem very similar to the one I was refering to. Th whole goal is to find ways to charge you for things you don't need or have to pay.

Keitai · Monday at 7:36 PM

motorbiking said:
I can't recommend one.

Just do some googling and ask for quotes.. "Collective engranchisement" brings up plenty of specialists, talk to them get quotes. Typically these are companies that specialise in managing leases on behlaf of resident, where the maintenance is resident controlled.

Do take notice of the reputation of the company you are dealing with. They seem very similar to the one I was refering to. Th whole goal is to find ways to charge you for things you don't need or have to pay.

Found this-

Extend a Leasehold | Property Solicitors Online | Lawhive

Find a solicitor to extend a leasehold in the UK. Lawhive is fast, convenient and cheaper than traditional law firms.

lawhive.co.uk

Keitai · Tuesday at 6:34 AM

motorbiking said:
Does he have the right to sublet?

What do you mean by this?

Keitai · Tuesday at 6:40 AM

motorbiking said:
Since the OP hasn’t returned.

1. Call a meeting with the other leaseholders to discuss the risks of allowing the freehold to fall in to 3rd party hands
2. Talk to an estate agent to understand the increase value.
3. Get some advice on the process and valuation of the freehold.

You don’t say how long your lease is and what other terms exist.

What exactly are the risks of being freehold falling into the hands of a 3rd party?

What kind of things do we need to know about the process and valuation of the freehold?

Tbh, I'm working with mostly morons. No one I live with understands what's going on or can be bothered to do anything.

motorbiking · Tuesday at 7:48 AM

Keitai said:
What do you mean by this?

Your lease may limit his right to sublet or place additional restrictions obligations on him if he does.

motorbiking · Tuesday at 7:51 AM

Keitai said:
What exactly are the risks of being freehold falling into the hands of a 3rd party?

What kind of things do we need to know about the process and valuation of the freehold?

Tbh, I'm working with mostly morons. No one I live with understands what's going on or can be bothered to do anything.

The sorts of things that these firms do are :

Excessive repair, insurance and maintenance charges. Before I got rid of it I had one flat costing £600 a year for building insurance.

Charging administrative fees for the performance of the landlord (normally unlawful).

Charging for subletting “packs” if you sublet.

Immediately charging legal and recovery fees if you miss a payment.

blup · Tuesday at 7:55 AM

Keitai said:
Tbh, I'm working with mostly morons.

From the link you only need half the leaseholders to go forward with the freehold, is that feasible if you only bought out your own block?

Keitai · Tuesday at 10:01 AM

motorbiking said:
The sorts of things that these firms do are :

Excessive repair, insurance and maintenance charges. Before I got rid of it I had one flat costing £600 a year for building insurance.

Charging administrative fees for the performance of the landlord (normally unlawful).

Charging for subletting “packs” if you sublet.

Immediately charging legal and recovery fees if you miss a payment.

I'll list these in the meeting to show everyone what might happen if someone else buys the freehold

Keitai · Tuesday at 10:05 AM

blup said:
From the link you only need half the leaseholders to go forward with the freehold, is that feasible if you only bought out your own block?

What link? I have no idea. But 3 or 4 of the 5 residences in my block would be interested for the right price

blup · Tuesday at 12:45 PM

Keitai said:
What link? I have no idea. But 3 or 4 of the 5 residences in my block would be interested for the right price

The link mbk put up first

Keitai · 2024-10-30T08:28:46+0000

I was supposed to be called by a solicitor to discuss this but no one called. Shall I just walk or call some and ask to speak to someone

motorbiking · 2024-10-30T08:45:59+0000

Eventually you will find a firm willing to get out of bed for your fees. The others will moan about how tough business is

blup · 2024-10-30T09:19:55+0000

Look for a firm that specialises in the subject, or a high street firm with a specialist solicitor.

motorbiking · 2024-10-30T10:46:48+0000

This is not a difficult matter, it's about following the process and timelines. The other side will "help" you delay so that you are out of time.

The priority is to get the leaseholder meeting and understand if the freehold is available block by block. You can waste the other side's time and money by asking their lawyer, to confirm that you can purchase the freehold for your block independently of the others. I think he indicated this earlier. In that case its about cost and fees.

Remember you are going to create a resident controlled freehold company with each "buyer" owning a share of the freehold. You are then going to generate return for the buyers by topping up the leases increasing the value. You don't stop being lease holders, they remain separate things.

do you have a company that does the building maintenance and management? Is it resident controlled? If yes and yes, this company may well be able and interested in doing this.

Keitai · 2024-10-30T11:03:23+0000

motorbiking said:
Eventually you will find a firm willing to get out of bed for your fees. The others will moan about how tough business is

No one seems to be helping or doing any leg work. There are 22 flats. Just exhausting. They're interested but no-one is doing any research. They want someone else to do it. I'm worried this good opportunity won't be taken.

How long have I got before this opportunity is lost?

The company that did my lease are going to look over the documents.. is it best to let them do that before we hold meeting?

The letter I'll write and give individually to each leaseholder-

Dear Leaseholder, as you may know Tosser Estates are offering to sell the freehold for our building for £61,000. We the directors feel this is an opportunity to not be missed if it's as good as it looks. We propose to get a solicitor to review it and have a meeting with everyone interested. We would like you to attend a meeting on Wednesday 6th Oct in in our resident old git's flat.

Allowing the freehold to be purchased by someone else could mean-

Excessive repair, insurance and maintenance charges. Before I got rid of it I had one flat costing £600 a year for building insurance.

Charging administrative fees for the performance of the landlord (normally unlawful).

Charging for subletting “packs” if you sublet.

Immediately charging legal and recovery fees if you miss a payment.

Buying the freehold on my block of flats

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