Can I sell the freehold I have inherited?
Following the death of a relative, I have inherited the freehold for three flats. They are on a 125 year lease and have 95 years left to run. The income from the leaseholders is small – just £75 per year – and yet I have to pay the insurance and oversee any repairs to the building and will be responsible for chasing up payments from the leaseholders.
I don’t expect the leaseholders will be interested in buying the freehold from me. Is there anything I can do to off-load these leases? Do people sell such things?
Yes, there are companies who are interested in buying freehold leases. The time at which it will be most valuable is when the lease reaches sub 80 years (ie in 15 years time). You must offer the sale of the freehold to the leaseholders and you may find that one of them is interested in buying. Otherwise, you can offer the freehold up for auction. In which case, you’ll need advice from a chartered surveyor concerning the value and the process. The surveyor will check whether there is any other source of potential value in the freehold, apart from the ground rents. This might include offering the roof space as a potential extension to an existing flat, subject to planning permission of course.
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