Buying the Freehold on property with an Underlease

blueparsnip

We have been contacted by the freeholder asking if we would like to buy the freehold. The property was built on leasehold land which was originally two houses and gardens. Underleases were then created. If we go ahead with the purchase, will the underlease be dissolved also?

SDLT_Geek

So is the structure as follows:

• Freehold at the top, now offered for sale
• Headlease(s) of what used to be two houses
• Eight underleases of eight new houses of which you hold one?

If so, then buying the freehold would not cause any of the leases to end.  There would just be a different owner of the freehold.

blueparsnip

Thanks for that. If we went ahead and bought the freehold (but still have the underlease) would we then be free of any restrictions and covenants on the headlease? 

anselld

blueparsnip said:

Thanks for that. If we went ahead and bought the freehold (but still have the underlease) would we then be free of any restrictions and covenants on the headlease? 

To "free yourselves" you would collectively need to own everything top-to-bottom and all joint owners would need to agree and follow a legal process to restructure the land into separate freeholds.

Who currently owns the middle lease, what SDLT_Geek called the headlease?  Is that also for sale?