Lawyers specialising in freehold purchase
Do you own a long leasehold flat or apartment [i.e. any residential lease with a term originally granted for over 21 years] in Bristol? Do you want to increase the value of your flat? Do you want to take over the right to manage your block from your freeholder? If you can answer “yes” to all three of these questions, then you could well be entitled to buy the freehold of your block of flats using a process called leasehold or collective enfranchisement.
You’ll need a specialist leasehold enfranchisement lawyer to help you with this – and at here at Bonallack & Bishop we have a 5 strong dedicated team of lease extension and enfranchisement who have all the knowledge you are going to need. And our specialists cancan also help you buy the freehold of your leasehold house
Helping you throughout the whole process
What’s more, we are are there with expert advice right from the initial valuation. And if you can’t get agreement from your freeholder, all the way to the First Tier Property Tribunal.
In addition, as part of our one stop shop service,we can introduce you to come and if necessary appoint, a member of our specialist panel of collective enfranchisement surveyors – because you are going to need an expert valuation and very few surveyors have the necessary experience or skill.
Looking To Buy The Freehold Of Your Block In Bristol? Looking For Specialist Solicitors? Call Us On FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 For FREE Initial Phone Advice.
Leasehold enfranchisement – what’s in it for me?
Buying your freehold gives you the opportunity of granting yourself a very long lease extension that often lasts for 999 years. And that comes with what’s known as a ‘peppercorn rent’, meaning the lease essentially becomes rent-free.
What’s more, there are plenty more benefits of owning your own freehold. They include
- the chance of better maintenance and intentionally cheaper management of your block as well as
- the ability to remortgage more easily due to added security of freehold over leasehold properties
- it secures family inheritance rights
- and increases building value, making it an attractive option for investors or those looking to buy their own home.
Use a Specialist Enfranchisement Lawyer
If you are going through the process of lease extension or enfranchisement, it’s important that you deal with a specialist surveyor and lawyer. Freehold enfranchisement is a complicated area of the law, and it involves specific terminology and strict deadlines.
Most property solicitors don’t touch leasehold enfranchisement very often if at all, which is why it is so important to find true experts and also why these experts are few and far between. Remember also that your freeholder will have already made the call to get their own specialist solicitors. So don’t put yourself at a disadvantage.
You will also have to ensure that your solicitor will have to work your surveyor to keep the process moving along slowly. Our legal team works with these people every day on lease extension and collective enfranchisement projects so is in the perfect position to help your enfranchisement too.
Genuine Enfranchisement Experts
It’s not always that easy to find a specialist freehold purchase solicitor. Here we are one of very few law firms nationwide with a team of lawyers who dedicate their entire working week to helping with leasehold extension or collective enfranchisement alone.
You can tell we are genuine specialists – because we are the only law firm nationwide recommended for enfranchisement work by the Homeowners Alliance – the biggest organisation representing the U.K.’s home owners.
We are members of the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners (ALEP) which is a body comprised of specialist surveyors and freehold purchase lawyers.
But don’t just take our word for it. Click here to read about what some of our clients and the Expert Enfranchisement Valuers we work with say about us.
Enfranchisement – Our One-Stop Shop Service
If you wish, we are able to handle your freehold purchase from day one until completion. This includes instructing a specialist surveyor to provide an initial valuation, drafting a participation agreement (essential to keep everyone on board if you’re in a big block) and serving the enfranchisement notice all the way to negotiating a price with your freeholder, setting up your new freehold company and registering you as the new owners of the block HM Land Registry.
And in the unlikely event that there is a dispute with your freeholder, we can even represent you at the First Tier Property Tribunal – though we are pleased to say that around 95% of our cases are sorted out without the need of any Tribunal application.
The cost of getting leasehold enfranchisement wrong
Failing to complete the enfranchisement process correctly or missing deadlines for example, can come with a hefty price tag. Not only would you need to start from scratch and cover any associated, not to mention wasted, legal costs, but by the time you’re able to start a new application, your lease will be shorter and it’s quite likely that the value of your flat will have increased. This could lead to an increase in the premium that you are going to need to pay to your freeholder.
Live in Bristol? Looking to Purchase the Freehold of Your Block? Contact Us Now
Exercising your Right to Enfranchise is a complicated process and it’s really important to make sure you have specialist legal advice.
Our specialist team represent clients throughout England and Wales. So if you own a flat in Bristol and you are looking at enfranchisement;
- Call us now on FREEPHONE 0800 1404544 for FREE initial phone advice and a FREE quote OR
- Email us using the contact form below