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Buy freehold before we can sell
LoopyLoops
Posts: 156 Forumite
We bought our home 13 years ago. It is leasehold with the local council holding the Freehold.
Now we are looking to sell and only have 50 years left on the lease, which we know is a major issue. We have contacted the council and asked for the cost of purchasing the freehold, and the cost of extending the lease. My question is they are using a surveyor to work out the costs, but the surveyor doesn't need to come to the house. We are wondering how can they work out the value of the house without visiting it? The council have said that it will take a couple of weeks We are very anxious about what the cost is going to be. We are concerned that if they over value the house that it will make the Freehold more expensive, or does it make no difference and this is why the surveyor doesn't come inside the house? Any insight greatly appreciated. Thanks
We where offered the opportunity to purchase the Freehold when we bought, but we didn't understand the implications and didn't stop to ask. We know that this is our fault, but what is done is done, and we will pay the price now.
Now we are looking to sell and only have 50 years left on the lease, which we know is a major issue. We have contacted the council and asked for the cost of purchasing the freehold, and the cost of extending the lease. My question is they are using a surveyor to work out the costs, but the surveyor doesn't need to come to the house. We are wondering how can they work out the value of the house without visiting it? The council have said that it will take a couple of weeks We are very anxious about what the cost is going to be. We are concerned that if they over value the house that it will make the Freehold more expensive, or does it make no difference and this is why the surveyor doesn't come inside the house? Any insight greatly appreciated. Thanks
We where offered the opportunity to purchase the Freehold when we bought, but we didn't understand the implications and didn't stop to ask. We know that this is our fault, but what is done is done, and we will pay the price now.
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Comments
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I assume your home is a house (not a flat).
So you're taking an informal approach to buying the freehold.
If you don't like the price the council suggests, you can negotiate.
Although realistically I doubt the council would take much notice of an amateur valuation (done by yourself) - you would probably need to pay your own surveyor for a professional valuation before negotiating.
If you and the council can't agree on a price, you'd probably need to go down the statutory route and serve notice on the council etc. (Which will ramp-up the fees you have to pay.)
See: http://www.lease-advice.org/advice-guide/houses-qualification-and-valuation/0 -
LoopyLoops wrote: »We bought our home 13 years ago. It is leasehold with the local council holding the Freehold.
Now we are looking to sell and only have 50 years left on the lease, which we know is a major issue.
TBH, I'm surprised you could mortgage it with only 63 years left.
For a statutory extension, you can use this simple online calculator.We have contacted the council and asked for the cost of purchasing the freehold, and the cost of extending the lease.
http://www.lease-advice.org/calculator/
Because they just need a rough ballpark - and there will be more than enough comparables to go by.My question is they are using a surveyor to work out the costs, but the surveyor doesn't need to come to the house. We are wondering how can they work out the value of the house without visiting it?0 -
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If the price of the freehold is not favourable, there may be room to negotiate. You could sell through an agent and market to appeal to investors who don't mind short leases. You could also sell at auction there are fees but there is an option to get the buyer to pay if you can't, I believe (the auction houses can confirm).0
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