Leasehold garage with freehold house!

Amywright2301

We are in the process of buying our first home, we have had our offer accepted, searches done and other bits underway. Our solicitor has now noticed from the draft contracts that the 2 single garages are leasehold, we weren’t told about this at any point up until now.
We have now been told there is a service charge of £150 every 6 months and there is 986 years left on the lease.

Does anyone have experience with this? We are considering whether we should pull out or not but we are completely in love with the property, so much so that we went £500 above the asking price, not realising this leasehold issue!

Should we carry on, pull out or try to renegotiate the price? Any advice is welcome please!!

AdrianC

I presume the garages are in a block elsewhere on the development, not on your own plot?

That £300/year service charge is, presumably, going into a sinking fund for insuring the block, and maintaining the structure of the garage block?

Lokolo

Is the garage in a block, or underneath another property?

ThePants999

I'm not really sure what you're asking here. A 986 year lease is obviously not going to significantly affect the value, so you just need to
- read the lease and see if it has any provisions you would consider deal-breakers
- decide whether you're happy with the service charge.

If it's all fine, go ahead. If any of it is a showstopper, pull out. If there's something you can live with but it materially affects how much the house is worth to you, you could reduce your offer. All up to you, really.

eddddy

Check the garage lease to see exactly what you are liable for...

e.g. it may be a share of maintenance/repairs to the garage block, the hardstanding in front of the garages, and the access road.

Check what condition those things are in (and how much is in the sinking fund), to see if you're likely to get a big bill soon.

Arguably, if you had your own garage and drive (freehold), you'd be liable for the costs of maintaining/repairing them anyway.


Note that the service charge is probably variable - e.g. if lots of repairs become necessary, the service charge might increase.

Also, do you have to pay ground rent for the garage?

PasturesNew

With a long lease, it's of no matter.

You just need to think about the charge and if you're willing/able to pay that - and check the nitty gritty details of how charges might be increased, or how your use/enjoyment of the garages might be altered.

Also investigate if/how you could buy the freehold.

£300/year might seem a lot to park your car in a garage you "own" ... but it all depends on your finances and the area as to whether that's value.

hazyjo

I had the same once before.


The service charge covered the insurance for the garages (we had two and there was a flat above), and some maintenance of parking area/common grounds.


It's very common with newer builds.


Might be worth trying to knock that £500 back off. They will either say yes or no. Depends who's blinking first really as to which way it goes...


When I sold it, I made it clear on the details. I suggest you do the same when you eventually come to sell it. Might get you fewer viewings, but at least they won't have a leg to stand on if trying to drop the price later.


I would also be asking how much the charge is for the vendors to get a 'management pack' (or whatever they want to call it) from the managing agents/freeholder to give to your solicitors. That could well be another few hundred quid when you come to sell it.

xylophone

Will the vendor sell you the freehold of the garages?

eddddy

xylophone wrote: »

Will the vendor sell you the freehold of the garages?

I doubt that the vendor owns the freehold of the garages.

(Given that the lease has 986 years remaining, it doesn't sound like it's the developer/freeholder selling. I'd guess the developer/freeholder sold the leases 13 years ago.)

AdrianC

xylophone wrote: »

Will the vendor sell you the freehold of the garages?

If the garages ARE part of a block elsewhere on the development, then there is no freehold for just those two garages. There's a freehold (perhaps even a headlease) for the entire block, which is on one title, probably complete with the access roadways. Sure, it could all be split up, but that's a whole bunch of extra legal work and headache.


And all because an FTB didn't realise that a garage in a block a short walk away wouldn't be part of their freehold...