Locating The Freeholder Of My Leasehold House

[crazyhorse 37]

Hi

 

Just after some advice if possible on how I might go about locating the current freeholder of my leasehold house.

My house has 674 years left of an 800yr lease (for either £8 a year or £2 a year).

I say either £8 or £2...as I believe the freehold also covers the neighbouring 3 terrace properties.

The land registry title documents for all 4 houses refer to the same 800 year lease and the same original freeholder.

There is something about the rent being apportioned to £2 on those other leases, so I am assuming it may be split into 4 x £2 a year...but I have allowed a worse case value of £8.

 

Back in 2007, a couple of years after I bought the house, I received a letter from a solicitor down in Norfolk, saying they were acting for a lady, in whom the freehold was vested and offering me the chance to buy it for £250 plus her legal costs. My neighbours may well have received similar letters when they moved in over the next few years...I will check with them.

I probably should have taken her up on her offer at the time, but didn't have the spare cash at the time.

These days I am more interested in the idea, but do not know if the solicitors mentioned in the letter still act for her, or whether she even currently owns the freehold.

I was thinking of sending an email to the solicitors down there to ask if they still act for her...but they might not respond.

 

I thought I could get info about the freeholder by buying a copy of the Title Register from the LR for £3...but it doesn't mention it on the Title Register docs for any of the 4 houses involved.

Is there a more detailed register at the LR that states this, does anyone know please?

Or could it be that the LR have no idea who owns the freehold?

If a solicitor was acting for me, then how would they track the freeholder down?

 

I have never received a notice of arrears for any ground rent and as far as I am aware, neither have my neighbours...so no ground rent is currently being paid by any of us 4 households, as far as I am aware.

 

I would like to rectify this situation with the ground rent and get a quote to buy the freehold reversion...but am wondering if it is better to let "sleeping dogs lie"...based on the amount of rent, the length of the lease and the fact that there are no constraining terms in my lease.

Just like the idea of tying up loose ends and actually owning the freehold.

 

Any thoughts anyone please?

 

Steve

 

[sheffbag 230]

write back to the solicitor who contacted you. If you can do it then do it now. When i moved i had a peppercorn lease like yuo and got offered a figure to buy. fast forward 5 years and they had sold it to a company who now wanted 5 times the original price.

[geared 321]

Who do you pay your yearly ground rent to?  That might give you some idea who to start looking for.

 

To request payment, shouldn't the freeholder send a correctly formatted notice each year requesting the money?

Edited September 12, 2023 by geared

[Jeffrey Shaw 93]

2 hours ago, crazyhorse said:

I thought I could get info about the freeholder by buying a copy of the Title Register from the LR for £3...but it doesn't mention it on the Title Register docs for any of the 4 houses involved.

Is there a more detailed register at the LR that states this, does anyone know please?

Or could it be that the LR have no idea who owns the freehold?

 

 

It depends.

Each ownership 'level can have its own title number at HMLR: e.g. one per house (leasehold as split-up) plus one or more for the freehold reversion. Perhaps what you saw was for only the leasehold? Try HMLR, using this link (remove line break):

 

https://search-property-information.service.gov.uk/?_ga=2.227252893.1011285419.1624257816-2123334908.1623227908

 

But perhaps the f/r is still unregistered. That does happen and makes life much more complicated.

Edited September 12, 2023 by Jeffrey Shaw

[crazyhorse 37]

22 hours ago, geared said:

Who do you pay your yearly ground rent to?  That might give you some idea who to start looking for.

 

To request payment, shouldn't the freeholder send a correctly formatted notice each year requesting the money?

I haven't paid any ground rent in the 18 years I have been here, because beyond the single letter I received back in 2007 asking if I was interested in purchasing the freehold...I have never received any request for it.

 

Will ask my neighbours...who I believe have the same freeholder, if they have received any such request.

Perhaps one of my neighbours is paying my share of the £8 ?

22 hours ago, sheffbag said:

write back to the solicitor who contacted you. If you can do it then do it now. When i moved i had a peppercorn lease like yuo and got offered a figure to buy. fast forward 5 years and they had sold it to a company who now wanted 5 times the original price.

Yes this is what I am concerned about.

 

I have done a bit of research on the solicitors used and it appears the solicitor who sent the letter retired back in 2009...although the company still exists.

I think I will ask my neighbours if they have had any contact (I believe all 4 houses are on the same freehold) and if not, will send the solicitors a query, to see if they still act for the freeholder for mine and my neighbours houses.

21 hours ago, Jeffrey Shaw said:

It depends.

Each ownership 'level can have its own title number at HMLR: e.g. one per house (leasehold as split-up) plus one or more for the freehold reversion. Perhaps what you saw was for only the leasehold? Try HMLR, using this link (remove line break):

 

https://search-property-information.service.gov.uk/?_ga=2.227252893.1011285419.1624257816-2123334908.1623227908

 

But perhaps the f/r is still unregistered. That does happen and makes life much more complicated.

Thanks for the link Jeffrey.

That was the one I was using before however and only shows leasehold documents.

Perhaps as you say, the freehold has not actually been registered with the LR....

[Jeffrey Shaw 93]

But someone does own the f/r nevertheless. Ask your solicitors.