Freehold

[kaddi]

We are in the process of buying a freehold flat (maisonette style - ours is the upstairs flat and there is one downstairs), can someone explain what we are supposed to do regarding a contract for shared areas if there is not already one in place? The flat downstairs is also free hold but im not sure if they have an existing contract (for repairs and such)

[Maud]

A freehold flat is simply a flat held on a lease with a share of the freehold. The lease will specify how the common areas are dealt, the service charge etc. You will become a member of a company that comprises all of the other lessees with a share of the freehold and will be entitled to vote on all matters concerning the property - upkeep, repairs, insurance, etc - and, importantly, extending the length of the leases so that they are always easily mortgageable and sellable. However, many of the leading mortgage lenders will not touch freehold flats with a bargepole. 

[Maud]

.....how the common areas are dealt with,..............

[Didwot]

It will be necessary to inspect the deeds of both properties to come up with a definitive answer. It may be that the top flat is responsible for everything above ground floor level, including the roof, and the ground floor flat to be responsible for everything else, including the foundations. A better arrangement would be for the be to be a common responsibility for common parts, As Maud says the usual meaning of a freehold flat is one that has a share of the freehold, and the freeholder would be resposible for the common parts. In small schemes of onle two flats it is not always thecse that the freehold is owned by a company, the leasees may have own the freehold in their own right. You should be able to get all this explained to you by your lawyer. To really confuse the issue it is theoretically possible to have a freehold flat, without any separate frehold title, or flying freehold, but these are the stuff of nightmares.