OH MY, The Most Stunning Beautiful Property

PasturesNew

A property is valued for what it is. You wanted it to be more. If it were more, the cost would have been greater and you'd have not been able to afford it most likely.

Freehold is the land it sits on.

That's the way it works.

So, either buy it leasehold, or move on.

Captain_Mainwaring_2

matt99b wrote: »

Not talking rubbish- everything I said was true. Half of London is leased, correct. But this doesn't make it right.

Apparently we are being realistic. Otherwise we wouldn't have found this property we love.

I wouldn't call £170k beer money, but I would say property prices are 5 times too high for intrinsic value. And I wouldn't call living above a shop champagne tastes.

Sorry to contradict you Captain Mainwaring but you're wrong.

Sorry buddy but 170K is hardly Rothchilds is it? The cheapest place I can get locally is 185K complete with hot and cold running damp.

Prices are high, but not 5 times thus.

You have two choices, stick you hand in your pocket and come up with 375K and I'll sell you a nice house with room to extend and a garage and nice views, or stick with your budget and get compromise.

You're a FTB and you really can't go shouting the odds about the morality of leasehold etc, and just how would you generate a freehold title for a 1st floor flat? I've heard of a flying freehold but that is pushing the bounds a bit.

matt99b

Doozergirl wrote: »

It was always going to be leasehold if it was above something else. Share of freehold still involves leases.

The average estate agent knows very little about leasehold properties. This one certainly appears to know very little if they think the whole row needs to be involved, especially if you are self contained. You need to find the freehold title to your maisonette (costs £3) to check but I should think it's just you and the newsagent.

If you are interested then you should pursue through your solicitor once you get a sensible offer accepted. If you were offering asking price for a freehold property then I should think that the offer could be revised to include a lease extension if not SOF.

Purchasing freeholds might be more expensive if there is commercial property involved as the leases on these tend to be shorter and the freehold value higher.

You just have to do your homework. It may be that the lease is self managing (shops often have self repairing leases) and if it's just you and them, it mightn't be worth them employing a managing agent at all.

In fact, Does this property have a HIP? It would actually be invaluble in this case - save you spending money on a dead end.

If it's that great, you will find a way to do it. Or at least spend a bit of time doing some homework.

Thanks for this doozergirl. What is HIP? Do you really think we could just put in an offer to include Share of freehold?

This is a very helpful post, thanks.

Does share of freehold mean you can do anything to the property without having to ask permission of the landlord? Is it better than leashold? What are the drawbacks of share of freehold?

Thanks very much

patchwork_cat

Leasehold is not the same as renting at all. You may well be able to negotiate to buy the leasehold it is usually quite reasonably priced ( although this might be different it being a flat) . Admittedly 76 years isn't long, but quite normal in the capital. You will find that a lot of properties are leasehold although the remainder of a 999 year lease is better. My first property was remainder of 99 yr lease and we bought freehold after few years for £250. ground rent was £25 per year.

Now admittedly buying a flat is outside of my experience, but you do not have to ask anybodies permission to do anything to a house you own, provided it isn't listed of course .

Don't mean to be mean, but i think you need to do some homework if you don't even know what HIP is and think that leasehold is the same as renting.

Captain_Mainwaring_2

matt99b wrote: »

We don't want to own the grounds the flat sits on. We do want to own the flat and have control over it. With leasehold we would have to ask for permission to do anything. We don't want to answer to anyone about our own property thank you very much!

The sellers may not have thought about the garage conversion; maybe they want to move somewhere bigger; maybe they couldn't afford it, who knows ; who cares. This has all been taken into consideration but ultimately doesn't affect our love of the flat. This thread isn't about that. This is about the leasehold.

The lease apparently they can only estimate it might cost around £8000 to extend by 90 years. Apparently to get a real quote will cost a lot of money. That's what the agents told us. But we don't want to do that! I don't understand why anyone would want to lease a property.

You are in for a shock.

I doubt very much if the freeholder will give permission for a garage conversion even if it were possible, that's why the last people didn't do anything with it.

So, Lord and Lady Fourmile don't want to answer to anyone? well buy a freehold in the middle of a big plot and maybe, just maybe you won't get bothered.

matt99b

Captain_Mainwaring wrote: »

Sorry buddy but 170K is hardly Rothchilds is it? The cheapest place I can get locally is 185K complete with hot and cold running damp.

Prices are high, but not 5 times thus.

You have two choices, stick you hand in your pocket and come up with 375K and I'll sell you a nice house with room to extend and a garage and nice views, or stick with your budget and get compromise.

You're a FTB and you really can't go shouting the odds about the morality of leasehold etc, and just how would you generate a freehold title for a 1st floor flat? I've heard of a flying freehold but that is pushing the bounds a bit.

You're wrong. 170k is plenty. 20 years ago this would have bought something huge in the same area. Sorry but thats the truth, and I don't see inflation rising by the same amount in 20 years, nor intrinsic value of property. Sorry but it's a fact.

I can go shouting about morality of leasehold. I just did. You don't need to be rich to judge morality.

We can stick our hands in our pockets but where are we going to get 375K from; that is ridiculous. Even on the best salaries you can't get that sort of money (barring ridiculous salaries above 60k). I don't even know how so many people manage to get that sort of money unless they're very lucky, have families with money, or have inheritance. We're doing this by ourselves. Even if I had 375k, I wouldn't buy a flat for it! Goodness I'd spend the money more wisely. Goodness me. I think it's sickening how some people buy such expensive value-less things; £20,000 bracelets and the like. Think about all the poor people in africa. My word. It makes me angry. Anyway. This isn't a debate.

Captain_Mainwaring_2

Doozergirl wrote: »

It was always going to be leasehold if it was above something else. Share of freehold still involves leases.

The average estate agent knows very little about leasehold properties. This one certainly appears to know very little if they think the whole row needs to be involved, especially if you are self contained. You need to find the freehold title to your maisonette (costs £3) to check but I should think it's just you and the newsagent.

If you are interested then you should pursue through your solicitor once you get a sensible offer accepted. If you were offering asking price for a freehold property then I should think that the offer could be revised to include a lease extension if not SOF.

Purchasing freeholds might be more expensive if there is commercial property involved as the leases on these tend to be shorter and the freehold value higher.

You just have to do your homework. It may be that the lease is self managing (shops often have self repairing leases) and if it's just you and them, it mightn't be worth them employing a managing agent at all.

In fact, Does this property have a HIP? It would actually be invaluble in this case - save you spending money on a dead end.

If it's that great, you will find a way to do it. Or at least spend a bit of time doing some homework.

Take legal advice- there is much more to it than that, in this case there will be a freeholder who could also own the headlease and who has issued an underlease for the flat, there are bound to be rights of way and easements etc.

patchwork_cat

However the OP needs to do some research and perhaps ammend his expectations, but Captain Mainwaring please be a bit more pleasant. Ambition and a want for better things is what keeps the economy moving.

matt99b

Captain_Mainwaring wrote: »

You are in for a shock.

I doubt very much if the freeholder will give permission for a garage conversion even if it were possible, that's why the last people didn't do anything with it.

So, Lord and Lady Fourmile don't want to answer to anyone? well buy a freehold in the middle of a big plot and maybe, just maybe you won't get bothered.

Just what we're trying to do!

matt99b

patchwork_cat wrote: »

Don't mean to be mean, but i think you need to do some homework if you don't even know what HIP is and think that leasehold is the same as renting.

I know what leashold is and don't think it's identical to renting. But it is in the ways that matter to us. We don't want to ask permission of landlords. If we buy we expect to own completely.

Don't preach; why not just tell me what HIP is. Googling I see it means Home Info Pack. Of course I know what that is. I didn't know that SOF meant share of freehold until I thought for a while. That doesn't mean I don't know what Share of freehold is. Please don't be so pre-judgemental.

Homework is why I'm on this forum in the first place