Expert advice on absent freeholder situations

Are you looking to extend your lease or buy the freehold – but can’t locate your freeholder? Brady Solicitors’ expert team can help you overcome the challenges of an absent or unknown freeholder.

Helping you extend your lease or acquire your freehold when the freeholder cannot be found or is unknown

In many cases, where the freeholder is missing the freehold building may have fallen into disrepair and the freeholder’s covenants relating to insurance and repair will not be complied with. This could have a negative impact on the value of the flats and restrict the ability of the leaseholder to extend their lease and otherwise deal with their flat.

Where a freeholder cannot be found or the identity of the freeholder is unknown, you may still have the right to extend your lease or acquire your freehold.

How do you show that your freeholder is missing?

No recent ground rent demands;
No reply from their last known address;
No knowledge of their whereabouts from neighbours

Brady Solicitors can help you gather information to show your freeholder is absent and successfully guide you through the court and tribunal process, to help you secure your lease extension or acquire your freehold.

Advantages to acquiring your freeholder where the freeholder is absent:

Officially control the maintenance and management of the freehold
Extend your leases
Avoid the pitfalls of an absence freeholder when selling your flat
Obtain refinancing for your flat

Blogs and insights

We blog regularly on a range of property-related legal matters, from service charge arrears recovery through to lease extensions. We also aim to bring up to date, easy to read analyses of recent cases to help readers stay informed. Many of our blogs arise from questions we are asked by our clients; to suggest a possible blog topic please do get in touch.

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Testimonials

Leaseholder

London

Many thanks for your help, professional advice and calm nerves. I will be recommending you to anyone I know needing a good solicitor buying or selling or indeed needing a lease extension.

Leaseholder

Newcastle

I am very happy with the way Brady Solicitors helped me to extend my lease. They made the process easy, clarifying the various stages, giving me advice on my options and handling them professionally.

Leaseholder

Coventry

I was very satisfied with Brady Solicitors. They were very helpful and if I did not understand things they were always there to help. I would definitely recommend them to everyone.

Leaseholder

Burton

Brady’s has recently carried out multiple lease extensions, with mine included. These have taken place in good time, and I have been informed of the various steps of progress in a pleasant and knowledgeable manner. Many thanks.

Managing Agent

Bedfordshire

I have found them to be highly professional in all our dealings, but most of all knowledgeable of the minutiae of service charges and block management.

Managing Agent

Oxford

We turned to Brady Solicitors when our existing legal team hit a brick wall. Bradys got to grips with the problem, recovered the arrears and – happily – have helped us to build better leaseholder relationships.