Which property type (particularly maisonettes) tends to hold their value

kingkano

I thought maisonettes basically had their own entrance. Most flats have a communal area of some kind, maisonettes generally don't. It seems to be a bandied about word though. Our EA first tried to list our flat as a M, but I told him I thought it deceiving as it was obviously just a flat in a block of flats. SO he used apartment instead :S lol

Richard_Webster

There's no legal definition of a maisonette. Most estate agents use the term to refer to a flat where there is a separate outside door and often an area of garden thrown in. They are usually low rise and when looked at quickly from a distance the building will often look like a pair of semis.

Sometimes people use the expression to refer to a two floor flat.

You can call a property what you like. Builders now charge significantly more for new "apartments" then for older "flats". Don't be taken in by a name!

Most important point is the length of the lease. A lot of "maisonettes" do have 999 year leases so that may not be an issue, but some only have 99 years. Once the lease gets under 80 years the freeholder can charge a significant sum for extending a lease. For instance a lease with 70 years unexpired at a rent of £50 pa with a present market value of £125,000 could cost something of the order of £5-£6K to extend.

Mortgage lenders will want something between 55-70 years left on a lease generally, so a buyer who is properly advised should look at this factor when making an offer. Either they will have to pay for an extension, or their eventual buyer will be worried about having to do so in a few years time.

This issue is a hotter one in London than in the provinces. Sellers with leases in the 70s of years in my area in Hampshire will often get away with no discount on price because even if the first buyer doesn't go ahead someone else will do so because they haven't spotted the problem!

Another point is to check the neighbours - you will have to get on to some extent with the person in the other maisonette - and existence of legal rights is not very relevant when a court case over say recovery of part of the cost of some repairs is going to cost thousands of pounds - so if you have a difficult neighbour - walk away.


As a conveyancing solicitor I believe the information given in the post to be useful but I accept no liability except to fee-paying clients