The distinction between leasehold and freehold is one of the most fundamental — and frequently misunderstood — aspects of property ownership in England and Wales. Many buyers, particularly first-time buyers, reach the point of making an offer without fully understanding which type of tenure they're buying, let alone what the implications are for a survey, for ongoing costs, and for their long-term ownership experience.
This guide explains what leasehold and freehold actually mean, the specific survey considerations that apply to leasehold properties, and the key questions you should be asking before you commit to a leasehold purchase in Crawley or anywhere across West Sussex.
What Is Freehold?
When you buy a freehold property, you own the building and the land it stands on outright. There is no landlord, no ground rent, and no lease to worry about. Your ownership is permanent and unconditional — subject only to planning law, restrictive covenants, and any other legal encumbrances registered against the title.
The vast majority of houses in England and Wales are sold freehold. If you're buying a detached, semi-detached, or terraced house in Crawley, Horley, Horsham, or the surrounding area, it will almost certainly be freehold unless it's a relatively modern development where the builder retained the freehold and sold the houses on long leases — a practice that became widespread in some parts of the country but has now been largely restricted by legislation.
For freehold properties, the survey is entirely focused on the condition of the building and land you are purchasing. You are responsible for all maintenance and repair, and the survey report is your primary tool for understanding what that obligation entails.
What Is Leasehold?
When you buy a leasehold property, you are purchasing the right to occupy the property for a fixed period of time — the length of the lease — rather than owning the building outright. The building (and the land beneath it) is owned by the freeholder, also known as the landlord. You are the leaseholder.
Leasehold is the standard tenure for flats and apartments in England and Wales. When you buy a flat in a converted Victorian house in Crawley, a purpose-built block in Gatwick or a modern apartment development in Horsham, you will almost certainly be buying leasehold.
The terms of your ownership are governed by the lease — a legal document that sets out the rights and responsibilities of both the leaseholder and the freeholder. Key terms include:
- The lease length: How many years remain on the lease. This is critically important — more on this below.
- Ground rent: An annual payment from the leaseholder to the freeholder. Under the Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022, ground rents for new leases in England and Wales must be zero (a "peppercorn"). However, many existing leases still have ground rent provisions, some of which are onerous.
- Service charges: Annual charges covering the maintenance and management of the building, communal areas, and any shared facilities. These can vary considerably and can increase significantly if major works are required.
- Buildings insurance: Typically arranged by the freeholder for the whole building, with the cost passed to leaseholders via the service charge.
- Restrictions: Many leases contain restrictions on what leaseholders can do with their property — subletting, keeping pets, making alterations, and so on.
Why Lease Length Matters So Much
This is the single most important thing I want buyers of leasehold properties to understand. The length remaining on a lease at the time of purchase has a direct and significant impact on the value of the property, the cost of extending the lease, and the ease of selling the property in the future.
The critical thresholds to understand are:
Lease Length: Key Thresholds
The survey will note the lease length, but it's your solicitor who will advise on the legal and financial implications of the remaining term and the process for extending the lease. Make sure both conversations happen before you exchange contracts.
Understanding Service Charges
Service charges are one of the most significant ongoing costs of leasehold ownership — and one of the areas where buyers are most frequently caught out. The service charge covers the day-to-day management and maintenance of the building: cleaning communal areas, maintaining lifts, insuring the building, managing the grounds, and so on.
Current annual service charges are typically disclosed as part of the leasehold information pack that your solicitor will request. But equally important — and sometimes not adequately disclosed — is the reserve fund and any planned or anticipated major works.
Major works — such as reroofing a building, replacing external cladding, refurbishing lifts or redecorating communal areas — can result in significant additional one-off charges to leaseholders. These are called "section 20 notices" (or major works notices). In extreme cases, section 20 charges can run to tens of thousands of pounds per flat.
Before committing to a leasehold purchase, ask your solicitor to investigate:
- The current annual service charge and what it covers
- The level of the reserve (sinking) fund
- Any section 20 notices that have been issued or are anticipated
- Any planned major works to the building
- The managing agent's track record
The Survey and Leasehold Properties
This is where my perspective as a surveyor becomes particularly important. A survey on a leasehold flat is different in some significant ways from a survey on a freehold house.
The Building Fabric — Beyond Your Flat
When I survey a leasehold flat, I am not only assessing the flat itself. I'm assessing the condition of the entire building — roof, external walls, communal areas, shared services, drainage — because the condition of the whole building directly affects the leaseholder. If the roof needs replacing, you will be contributing to the cost through your service charge, regardless of whether your flat is directly affected. If the external walls have significant defects, the potential for damp penetration to your flat is real even if it hasn't manifested yet.
A thorough survey of a leasehold flat will comment on:
- The condition of the roof covering (as viewed)
- The external fabric of the building — render, brickwork, windows, gutters
- Communal areas (as accessible)
- The flat itself — floors, walls, ceilings, services, windows
- Any visible evidence of water ingress or damp from shared structures
What the Survey Cannot Tell You
It's important to understand the limitations of a building survey in a leasehold context. We cannot inspect areas that are not accessible — the roof structure, for example, if there is no loft hatch, or subfloor voids in communal areas. And critically, a survey cannot tell you what the freeholder or managing agent plans to do with the building, what the reserve fund balance is, or whether there are pending major works. That information comes from your solicitor's leasehold enquiries.
The survey and the conveyancing are complementary, not interchangeable. Both are essential on a leasehold purchase.
Shared Freehold and Share of Freehold
A third scenario worth understanding — particularly relevant in West Sussex, where many Victorian and Edwardian houses have been converted into flats — is the "share of freehold" arrangement. In this structure, the leaseholders of the individual flats collectively own the freehold of the building, either directly or through a management company.
Share of freehold arrangements have significant practical advantages: leaseholders have direct control over the management of the building, major works decisions, and service charges. Lease extension is typically straightforward and low-cost since the leaseholders control the freehold. Many buyers understandably prefer share-of-freehold flats for precisely these reasons.
However, they do come with responsibilities: as a freeholder, you share collective responsibility for the management of the building, including making decisions about major works, taking out buildings insurance, and complying with your obligations as a landlord to the other leaseholders. If the other shareholders are disengaged or difficult, managing the building can become complicated.
Ground Rent Issues to Watch For
The Leasehold Reform (Ground Rent) Act 2022 banned ground rents for new residential leases in England and Wales — but many existing leases still have ground rent provisions, some of which are problematic. Specifically, watch out for:
- Doubling ground rent clauses: Some leases contain provisions that double the ground rent at regular intervals (e.g., every 10 or 25 years). A ground rent that starts at £250 per year and doubles every 25 years will reach £2,000 per year within 75 years, with significant impacts on value and mortgageability.
- RPI-linked increases: Ground rents linked to the Retail Price Index can increase significantly over time.
- High absolute ground rents: Ground rents over a certain threshold (currently £250 per year in England, £1,000 per year in Greater London) can cause a lease to be classified as an "assured shorthold tenancy," which has very different legal implications.
These are legal issues that your solicitor must advise on, but it's worth being aware of them as a buyer so you know what questions to ask.
Our Advice for Leasehold Buyers
Buying a leasehold property in Crawley or West Sussex doesn't need to be complicated, but it does require care and the right professional support. Here's a summary of the key steps:
- Check the lease length early — before you get emotionally committed to a purchase. If it's under 80 years, understand the extension costs before you proceed.
- Commission a building survey — don't assume the building is fine just because your flat looks fine. A survey assesses the whole building.
- Instruct an experienced solicitor — leasehold conveyancing is more complex than freehold. Make sure your solicitor requests and reviews the full leasehold information pack, including service charge accounts, major works history, and reserve fund balance.
- Budget for ongoing costs — factor in service charges, ground rent (if applicable), and a contribution to a personal reserve for potential future major works.
- Consider share of freehold properties favourably — all else being equal, share of freehold flats offer more security and control than those with an external freeholder.
"Leasehold tenure is perfectly workable — millions of people live happily in leasehold properties. But it requires a different level of due diligence than freehold. Don't let enthusiasm for a property override the need to understand exactly what you're buying."
If you're buying a leasehold flat or house in Crawley or West Sussex and need a building survey, contact our team. We have extensive experience surveying leasehold properties across the region and will give you a thorough, honest assessment of the building's condition.
Frequently Asked Questions
Most mainstream mortgage lenders require a minimum lease length at the end of the mortgage term — typically 70–85 years remaining. As a general rule, if the lease has less than 85 years remaining when you apply for a mortgage, you should take specific advice. Many lenders will decline to lend on properties with fewer than 70 years remaining on the lease. A property with a very short lease may only be purchasable with cash.
The cost of a statutory lease extension depends primarily on the current lease length, the property's value, the ground rent, and local market conditions. For a standard flat in West Sussex with 85–90 years remaining, informal extension costs (including solicitor and surveyor fees) might range from £5,000 to £15,000. For a flat with only 70 years remaining, "marriage value" (the increase in the property's value following extension) becomes payable to the freeholder, which can significantly increase the cost. Always get a specialist leasehold surveyor's advice before committing to a purchase where lease extension may be needed.
The freeholder owns the building. The managing agent is a company appointed by the freeholder to manage the day-to-day running of the building — collecting service charges, arranging maintenance, dealing with communal area issues, and so on. Not all freeholders appoint a managing agent; some manage the building themselves, particularly in smaller conversions with shared freehold arrangements. The quality of property management varies enormously and is worth researching before you buy.
The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 has introduced significant restrictions on the sale of new build houses as leasehold in England and Wales. The practice of selling new-build houses on long leases — which became widespread from the late 2000s and was widely criticised as unfair — is now heavily restricted for future sales. However, many existing leasehold houses sold before the legislation came into force remain leasehold and will need to be dealt with under the existing legal framework.