Estate agent advises leashold I thought freehold best ???

Lizzy

Thanks I will look further. I also am a calculated risk taker, my initial worries were about how much profit was to be made. Now its a complicated issue of areas I know nothing about but if I am to dip my toe in the water with buy to sell I need to know these things. S**s law it had to be the first property I was interested in.....................

There are a few burnt out house's that perhaps I should look at. Is that anything you would consider Doozergirl ? think they are ex authority houses in areas Im not too sure about but not too far to drive to about 30 to 45 mins. Its a bit posh where I live and certainly couldn't afford to buy around here without a mortgage.

Doozergirl

Always think about resale and potential kerb appeal. Houses can be changed quite dramatically on the outside but you can't change where it is or change the buildings around it.

You take each house on it's merits and you don't buy unless you're sure it will reap for you. If that means waiting months, so be it.

ActionCat

Hi Lizzy,

I just thought I'd give you my experience of freehold flats. As well as the leashold on my flat, my husband and I also own the freehold on the whole building which consists of our flat and the 2 storey maisonette above. As we own the freehold and are at ground/basement level, we also have the garden.

In terms of getting a mortgage, we initially had no problems at all as we initially went to Northern Rock and it seems that they'll lend to pretty much anyone! However, when we tried to remortgage, we noticed that there were a few lenders who wouldn't provide us with a mortgage because we didn't have a mangement company. At the moment, we split insurance with the maisonette and we have a gentleman's agreement with regards to repairs etc. I think the worry for potential purchasers and for the mortgage company is that this relationship could go sour or new people could move upstairs that refuse to pay. However, in their lease there are various clauses about contributing to the upkeep of the building but it doesn't say how much etc but I presume would be enforceable in some way. I would presume there would be something similar in the leases of the other flats in your case too?

Hope this helps.