Complete Guide to Selling a Leasehold Property in North London

If you own property in north London, chances are it’s a leasehold home, especially if you live in a flat. Government figures show that London has a higher proportion of leasehold properties than anywhere else in the UK.

If the prospect of selling your leasehold property is making you nervous – you shouldn’t be. Remember that many homeowners sell these types of property ever day without a hitch. There are, however, a few things you should be prepared for before you put your home on the market.

Whether your north London home is in Dollis Hill or Cricklewood, Kilburn or Queens Park, or elewhere in the region – read on for our complete guide to selling a leasehold property.

Selling a leasehold property – what’s different?

The difference between a leasehold property and one that is owned freehold is that with leasehold you own the property but not the ground it is built on, for the length of time allowed in the lease.

Selling a leasehold property is similar to selling a freehold one but there are a few extra steps for your conveyancer to complete, which mean it may take slightly longer.

The key differences between selling a freehold or leasehold property include:

• On a leasehold property you may need to extend the length of the lease term (typically if the current length is less than 90 years), which incurs additional costs.
• Your conveyancer will need to arrange the completion of extra paperwork, such as the leasehold management pack, with fees for this service. This includes providing service charge accounts and fire safety documents.
• Following completion, a notice of assignment is usually required.

What are the challenges of selling a leasehold?

If your buyer is looking at north London flats, they are likely to be viewing leasehold properties and this form of ownership shouldn’t put them off.

However, there can be challenges to selling a leasehold property, such as:

• Costs such as high ground rent or service charges on leasehold properties can put buyers off. 
• Buyers may have issues obtaining a mortgage for a leasehold property if there is a short term left on the lease. Some lenders decline applications if a lease is shorter than 85 years, for example. 
• There is often an above average time to sell your property when it is leasehold. Selling a leasehold property will usually take a several weeks longer to account for the additional work involved. 
• If the lease length is shorter than 90 years, buyers may try to negotiate on the price. 
• There may be delays in getting responses from the management company/freeholder.  

Selling a leasehold property timescale – what should I expect?

Selling a leasehold property takes around two to eight weeks longer than selling a freehold property. A leasehold property usually takes around 12 to 16 weeks to sell on average, compared to around 8 to 12 weeks to sell a freehold property.

The length will vary depending on factors such as the proactiveness of your conveyancer, the responsiveness of the freeholder and whether there are any complications such as obtaining a cladding certificate (EWS1).

The timescale when you sell a leasehold property will also be influenced by the length of the lease. If you have over 90 years remaining on the lease, the sale should be more straightforward but shorter lease lengths could lead to more buyer enquiries to respond to and price negotiations.

To help minimise delays, you should make sure you have all your lease documents ready in preparation and be upfront about the lease length or any other lease details that could be a concern to buyers.

What extra leasehold conveyancing costs should I expect?

When you sell a leasehold property, there will be conveyancing fees of around £1,500 to £3,000, which will vary depending on the property value, location and solicitor’s fee structure.

In addition to these conveyancing fees, there will usually be disbursement fees payable to third parties, including:

• Management pack fees (£150 to £500)
• Electronic transfer fee (£54)
• Copy of lease and title from Land Registry (£42)

How does the sales value of a leasehold property compare to a freehold property?

The sales value of leasehold properties decreases depending on the length of the lease. Properties with a lease length of over 90 years will usually sell for the full market value but shorter lease terms will impact the value.

Typical value impact depending on lease length:

• 80 to 89 years – Leases with close to 80 years could decrease in value by around 5%.
• 70 to 79 years – Typically 5% to 10% value reduction.
• 60 to 69 years – Around 15% to 25% below the market value.

As you can see, shorter leases can have a significant impact on the sale value, which is why many leasehold property owners decide to extend the lease prior to selling the property.

Will the Leasehold Reform Act make it easier to sell my property?

The Leasehold Reform Act was introduced by the previous government in an effort to make things fairer for leaseholders by making it easier to buy the freehold of a property and extend the lease. It became law in May 2024, however, has not fully come into force yet.

Some of the changes that have been implemented already include the removal of the two-year waiting period for new buyers to extend leases and the end of extra costs for lease extensions that have less than 80 years left.

Keep an eye on the media for news about the implementation of the law by the new government.

When is the best time to sell your leasehold home?

As long as you have plenty of time left on your lease, there is no more right or wrong time for selling than with a freehold property, so you should put your home on the market at the right time for you. However, the key to selling your leasehold home is to do so before the length of your lease dips too much – certainly before it reaches the tricky 80-year threshold.

If you want to sell a property with a short lease, it generally won’t much be harder to sell a leasehold but you may want to think about applying for a lease extension first or even buying the freehold.

What documents should I gather before the sale?

You will need to get hold of a copy of the lease and supply a leasehold information pack to your buyer. This should include details of:

• Service charges
• Ground rent
• Any plans for major works
• The building’s insurance
• The management company
• Any asbestos surveys carried out

The process of selling a leasehold property

If you’re curious about the process of selling a leasehold flat or house, take a look at our short summary of the process below:

1. Collating documents – Pull all your documents together and check the length of your lease. Decide if you want to extend a short lease or at least start the process.
2. Contact your freeholder – you’re not obliged to do this, but it may make things easier if you need information from them later on.
3. Stage your home for sale – you should make sure your home’s as appealing as possible to potential buyers. If there are issues with the property’s communal areas, contact your freeholder or management company.
4. Choose a local estate agent – look for a local agent with good knowledge and experience of selling leasehold properties in your areas.
5. Providing leasehold pack – get your leasehold pack together, ready for offers.
6. Instruct a solicitor (or conveyancer) – whomever you choose should have plenty of leasehold experience.
7. Be responsive – Respond to any queries from your conveyancer as soon as possible to keep everything moving along quickly.
8. Move towards completion – accept an offer and move to exchange contracts and completion, in much the same way as any other sale.

In conclusion

If you own a leasehold property in Kensal Rise, West Hampstead, Neasden, Willesden Green, Harlesden or elsewhere in north London – and are thinking of a house move – we’d be happy to advise you further about what you need to think about and offer a no-obligation market appraisal of your home. Talk to us today for more information.

Want to know more about selling a house? – Our blogs cover everything from equity release on a property to the costs of selling up.