Would you buy leasehold?

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I am thinking of buying a flat with a long leasehold (900 years, according to the estate agent). But I have been reading around on the web and have seen some scary statistics about how 60% of buyers regret/would never buy leasehold again; and testimonies from people who can't sell, the owner of the building won't do building maintenance, things like this.

I am currently renting and the mortgage would be about the same as the rent - would you do it?

Personally - no, but if that is your only option then yes. I think the scare stories (and I have read them too) make up a tiny % of leasehold properties - certainly when I was looking at buying flats the majority in my town were leasehold and no one thought anything about it. In fact flats that were freehold and free (from ground rent) were harder to get a mortgage on! Presumably because there was no one person responsible for maintenance. What is the % of leasehold to freehold in your town?

I think it really depends on the specifics.

Would I buy a leasehold flat in a newish high-rise in London, with a lift, gym, £500 ground rent on a ratcheting scale & a £4k p/a ongoing 'maintenance' charge that will only every get more expensive? No.

Small block of flats that look to be in good order with a small residents-run management company? Yes.

What sort of property is it? Half a converted house or part of a rather bigger building? Have you been told for certain what ground rent/maintenance charges (if any) are payable? From experience, estate agents frequently either a) don’t know and CBA to find out, or b) do know but are reluctant to tell you, in case you are put off.

We bought a LH maisonette, one of just two Edwardian purpose built m’ettes, with about 99 years left and fairly minimal ground rent to pay, no maintenance charges.

We ended up buying the freehold of both, since the freeholder was supposedly absent (he wasn’t, just hiding under another name because of debts) which caused a lot of problems with the purchase.

I’d buy that sort of LH property again (given no freeholder complications!) but would def. not buy a LH flat in a block or bigger building with hefty ground rent/maintenance charges. Especially if maintenance is carried out by one of those companies who apparently look on their contract as a licence to rip leaseholders off and keep whacking up their charges.

Thank you for the input, everyone. This is the kind of property I mean:
www.zoopla.co.uk/for-sale/details/56013360

Very few flats are not leasehold so yes. but i would do my due diligence and check it doesn't have doubling ground rent etc and no untoward clauses. I have a leasehold flat and it's been fine. the service charges are about £150 a year but do not increase etc. Management company are good and have a good sinking fund.

I did this in London and got caught out because it was 1/3 of a building and the other 2/3 was owned by the same person which gave me no rights. If there was an established management company and had equal rights I would consider it again - but only if I couldn't get what I wanted freehold.

Most of the horror stories concerning ground rents have come from new build flats and houses that have been leasehold.

With regards to maintenance, there may well be a payment included in the service fees towards a reserve fund or sinking fund that should cover things like painting and maintenance.

It would be worthwhile asking the person you're buying from for details of what maintenance has taken place over the last few years.

Most flats in London and other English cities are leasehold.

You need to read up about lease problems with the specific type of property you are buying e.g. flat in a converted house, flat in a small block with no lift, flat in larger development with lifts, and also do research on the actual freeholder.

Do you know how much the service charge is now, and if there are any major works planned?

Never again!! The biggest problem is that you are at the mercy of the freeholder when it comes to repairs and maintenance.

I agree with furier.
Housebuilders have a bit of a reputation (remember ransom strips?) so I would steer clear of modern leaseholds.
I'm not likely to be in the market for a flat but, if I was, I would consider an older leasehold. You also then have a bit of history - you can see how the freeholder has been operating over the last few years (done repairs? / gone AWOL? / claiming exorbitant service charge?). There again, the freeholder could change at any time. Ideally, you want the freehold held jointly by the leaseholders (although that, too, can have problems - either power-mad despots or committee members who aren't up to the job).
Look to see how much is in the sinking fund. Have a good look at the exterior - how long until roof, guttering, windows, etc need replacing? (leaseholders' problem, not the freeholder's)
Also, in light of Grenfell, try to think about what costs might be forced on to you in the future. Many flats are currently unsellable because the cost of sorting out the cladding is more than the flat is worth (only applies to buildings of a certain height although I believe some mortgage companies are applying rules wrongly and refusing to lend on flats that are not in the category).

And the other thing: not all flats are the same. Find out what you are really buying.
READ THE LEASE BEFOREHAND, don't complain AFTERWARDS "my solicitor didn't explain ..."
Caveat emptor.

Thanks again, everyone, this is all huge help.
The ground rent + service charged (rolled into one) is £350 a year, according to the estate agent (but the estate agent hasn't impressed me with in-depth knowledge so far...

One can never say never, but I would avoid any type of leasehold.

You have all the costs of ownership, plus possibly many more from the lease-yet you don't really own the property. You might have no real say on a replacement roof, or insurance. It is not true ownership.

The only type I would consider is a leasehold house, with nominal ground rent, no service charge or insurance etc payable to the freeholder and a 999 year lease (or remainder over 880 or so years).

If buyers want a flat it’s difficult to avoid leasehold. So everyone saying avoid - it’s easier said than done.

DD has leasehold in London. Vendor lied about service charge but it’s not horrendous. I/she never looked at a freehold flat. You must have a long lease. We also have a freehold London flat and we bought the freehold when the freeholder wanted to sell.

One word of warning with the flat in the link above. The external cladding doesn’t look to be in great condition. I would not buy on that basis alone. That building needs work.

I would and have.

No issues.

Almost all flats are leasehold. Each lease will be different though and many work well.

I would go on to the Land Registry site and download the deeds, which will include the lease. It would cost about £3 I believe. It will tell you about the ground rate and any increases in charges.
I would also ask who the Managing Agents are and ask them directly about charges etc. There are one or two companies who tend to spend profligately and agressively defend their management contract. We had one who would send an electrician to the development from about an hour away to change the time switches when the clocks changed. That cost us 2.5-3 hours time at time and a half ( Sunday) twice a year. It was one of the reasons that the owners got together and changed the agent. Again the ways you can do that should be in the Lease- usually an Emergency AGM and a given percentage of owners supporting the change.
The development looks as if it was built by the Local Authority. In that case, I would want to know how many have been purchased and whether the Council still have a role. My friend bought an ex Council flat and had real problems when they wanted to replace all the windows. Initially they wanted to charge £10K for UPVC windows in a 1 bed flat. At roughly the same time another friend had a quote for £10k for her 4 bed house. She got it down to £7K in the end by threatening a First Tier tribunal.
As PP have said, most flats are Leasehold and you need to do your homework.

If you can possibly avoid it no (I bought a smaller flat in London to afford share of freehold).

However most city flats are and mostly it's OK - you want a long lease, which you have, but as other PP are saying you ideally want an older property with a long history so you can see if there have been issues. Small independent blocks better than those huge blocks run by developers.

But try for share of freehold if you can!

Thank you all again, greatly appreciated.
@78percentLindt, thank you, I have done it and now have the register - seems I have to fill in a paper form and send it in via post to get a copy of the lease .

Leasehold flats aren't ideal, but it's a route into home ownership. I live in a leasehold flat and have done for 12 years. I now have a decent amount of equity for a deposit on our next place. Not everyone can afford or even want a house.

I would if it was leasehold and all parts of the building were permanently owned by a management company. Having lived in India where freeholders regularly blocked essential improvements on flats until buildings fall down; or something big and uninsureable happened and freeholders couldn’t afford to essentially rebuild a block of flats, I would never buy a flat freehold.

Everyone I know started out in leasehold, because in London buying a house as a FTB is a niche opportunity...for those with a lot more money. So, it's normal.

My first flat was leasehold, but all the flat owners (5) jointly owned the management company, so in effect we owned the freehold between us. It was a nightmare because it was us neighbours who had to chase each other for ground rent and the minimal service charge (which paid for the security lights in the hall and repainting the front door etc) and run the maintenance fund and deal with needing a new roof. On the other hand we weren't charged silly money for the provision of a shared aerial or buildings insurance and could shop around. And no danger of our leases running out.

Look carefully at what the service charge covers, and what the arrangements are for major works. If a new roof or new window frames or full external redecoration (for example) are needed, you will be charged for a share of this. Your survey should give an indication of any major maintenance work that needs carrying out in the near future.

@RainingBatsAndFrogs, thanks for this. I somehow imagined that because it's a flat, it won't need to be surveyed... I obviously know nothing about buying property. Your reply also highlights that it's not much better if the tenants jointly own the freehold... it's just a different bunch of problems.

@PresentingPercy, thank you. The lease is 900 years or so (I now know this after paying the £3 to the Land Registry, thanks to excellent advice here ) - but I have also learned that the management company has 1 person, a director listed, and he was born in 1949 ... and the company has had 4 resignations.