Leasehold vs freehold in plain English

Freehold means you own the building and the land it stands on, outright and indefinitely. Leasehold means you own the right to occupy for the years remaining on a lease, while someone else. The freeholder. Owns the building itself. Most London flats are leasehold; most houses are freehold. Everything else flows from that split.

What leasehold means day to day

• Service charges. Your share of maintaining the building, set through an annual budget.
• Ground rent. Historic leases may carry it; the rules around it have tightened significantly in recent years.
• Consent. Structural alterations, and sometimes pets or subletting, may need the freeholder's permission.
• Lease length. The number of years remaining affects value and mortgageability; short leases are renegotiated at a price.

You are not buying a flat. You are buying a lease. So read the lease with the same attention you gave the kitchen.

The reform backdrop

Leasehold law is in a period of genuine reform. Enfranchisement, lease extensions and ground rent have all seen or face legislative change. Rather than repeat details that may date, we'd say this: verify the current position on GOV.UK or with your conveyancer before acting, and factor the lease itself into every offer you make. We flag lease length and service-charge history on every leasehold instruction we sell.

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