999years Leasehold vs freehold house

[DinoDino]

We recently went to see a an old mid 1950's house and it happens to be a leasehold house. Not freehold.

We have been told there is a small annual ground rent to pay of a few pounds, which is negligible and not an issue to us. No other charges.

The lease was 999years. So over 900 years left on it.
We've been told by some that it's technically as good as a freehold due to the length of the lease.

We ideally wanted a freehold but like the house so considering this leasehold property.
We wanted to check if everyone agrees that this is technically as good as a freehold? or do you see any other cons which you thnk we should be aware of?

Thanks.

Is it in an area with lots of leaseholds? Eg i live in a town in north herts where about half of properties are leasehold. The older ones have 999 year leases and it wouldn’t really bother me. Some new builds have 150 years and under and I wouldn’t be as keen. I don’t know as much about the actual differences though!

@InescapableDeath

Is it in an area with lots of leaseholds? Eg i live in a town in north herts where about half of properties are leasehold. The older ones have 999 year leases and it wouldn’t really bother me. Some new builds have 150 years and under and I wouldn’t be as keen. I don’t know as much about the actual differences though!

Yes, I would say 90% of houses on the street are leasehold. There are a few that are freehold but I presume they are people who decided to buy the freehold from the landlord. Not sure about the area as a whole though whether other streets are leasehold or freehold...

Could you buy the freehold easily enough? Is it just ground rent you need to consider or will you need to seek permission if you want to do work on the property (as is usually the case with leasehold). Any service charge or maintenance to pay for?

Our house is leasehold with a 999 year lease when it was built in 1935. When we bought it and did searches, they didn't know who the freeholder was. Even if the freeholder appeared we would only owe them £5 per year peppercorn rent per year. Didn't put us off buying the house. It's basically a freehold.