Freehold and Leasehold

If you buy a house from us you will almost certainly be buying the freehold. If you buy a flat or a maisonette you will become a leaseholder. You pay the council a small ground rent and a service charge. Services can be higher than you might expect.

If you buy a leasehold property from the council

The council is still responsible for managing, maintaining, repairing and improving the block and the estate in which it is situated, but you will have to contribute towards the cost. Your contribution is normally billed separately from your annual service charge payment. The S125 notice will include a list of any works that may be carried out in the first five years of the lease with an estimate of costs of your contribution.

The annual service charge

We are responsible for providing services such as estate lighting, estate grounds maintenance, caretaking, cleaning of communal areas and certain routine repairs and maintenance. You will pay for this as part of your annual service charge. We will send you an estimate of the annual service charge with the S125 notice. You should think about the level of service charge when you decide if you want to buy.