Are pets not allowed in leasehold properties usually?

[BananaMamas]

Considering purchasing a flat (haven't yet found one), are pets (cats) generally not allowed in leaseholds? It'd be anything between a conversion flat, mansion block, purpose build etc.
Is there a way the EA can find this out when we speak to them and start our search? I don't see how a housecat would represent a problem for neighbours?!

This is something I asked about informally, but I had no confidence in the answer until a solicitor did the relevant searches on the flat I wanted to buy. In my case the rule was one cat OK, but the freeholder would need to grant explicit written permission for a dog or more than one cat and presumably could turn that request down. Obviously wouldn't have been much comfort to me if I already had two cats and needed to wait until I owned the flat to ask permission...

@fivetriangulartrees thank you - so I'd need to ask for written confirmation from the freeholder? what about share of freehold, do you know?
What did you end up doing?

It all depends on the lease. One leasehold we had (and we were the sole freeholders as well) said no pets under any conditions and we stuck to that. We could have as freeholders done a variation of lease but over the years we were there only 1 person ever asked and we said no and they were fine with it so it wasn't worth the legal costs to do a variation of the lease. If someone had kicked off about it we would have probably looked into it more.

You can ask for details of the lease when viewing but they don't have to give you the lease so it could be a risk.

I think it varies from lease to lease. You could ask the EA to ask the freeholder for confirmation prior to putting in an offer, but realistically I can't see them bothering to do that - and the freeholder (who's not the one selling the flat) is not motivated to bother replying to the question to some random who doesn't even own a leasehold on their flat, unless perhaps they're a cat-loving altruist who actually reads their emails. In my experience it's something to tell your solicitor is a priority for you once you've had an offer accepted - no point in proceeding until you know you can bring your cat.

(I bought the flat and lived in it with my one cat.)

There were other things I kind of had to hold my breath about too. The flat desperately needed a new boiler but you needed the freeholder's written permission for that too, and they wouldn't talk to you until you owned the flat...

@fivetriangulartrees Thank you, I didn't realise you need to ask permission for a new boiler too - is this different if you own a share of the freehold?

Again, it depends on the terms of YOUR lease, so you'll need the solicitor to find out all those details.

This is one of the reasons I avoided leasehold property - a decade of renting meant that I was thoroughly fed up with having someone else tell me what I could do in my own home!

Leaseholders can withdraw permission for your cat too, placing you in the unenviable position of having to choose between your home and your cat. I wouldn't want to risk that scenario.