House Advertised as Freehold.

Lovem

Llllloooooooo

ACG

Its your solicitors job to check whether it is freehold or leasehold and any associated costs. The agents just make an assumption/go off what the vendors say or think.

As for impact on valuation, it depends on how long is left on the lease. If its below 90 then its likely to have an impact.

Marktheshark

Basically Freehold you own Leasehold someone else owns and you have a contract to use it.
Leaseholds are serious over valued in the present market and the idea they are "virtually the same" is madness, when you own a freehold, its yours, when you buy a lease, you buy a contract, a bit of paper, someone else owns the actual property.
I would say this was done deliberately to get buyers hooked and then think Oh whats it matter.
It matters and it matters a lot, especially if it is a short lease and you intend to stay.
How would you sell a property for a profit when the lease could run out in 30 years, who would buy that ?
Some of these leaseholds are countdown financial disasters, where they can not be renewed the value on those with 60-90 years remaining will get to a point where it is "not worth the paper its written on" after all thats what it is, a bit of paper your buying.

Everyone else might be doing it, everyone else also put all their money in to endowment mortgages that could not fail.