Take control of your block — with the numbers and the procedure on your side.

1. Collective enfranchisement

Under the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993, qualifying leaseholders in a block of flats can come together to buy the freehold of the building. It is the single most powerful right in residential leasehold law — and the most demanding to execute.

Building qualification

• The premises must be a self-contained building or part of a building.
• Two or more flats held by qualifying tenants.
• At least two-thirds of the flats in the building must be held by qualifying tenants (long leases originally granted for more than 21 years).
• Non-residential use must not exceed 25% of the internal floor area (excluding common parts). The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 lifts this to 50% on commencement.

Participant qualification

• At least 50% of the qualifying flats must participate.
• The right is exercised by a nominee purchaser — usually a participation company limited by guarantee with the participating leaseholders as members.
• A reservoir of professional advice is mandatory: solicitor, valuer, and increasingly a project manager or case handler to coordinate the group.

The collective process at a glance

1. Pre-claim feasibility: tenure schedule, qualification check, participation agreement, group company.
2. Valuation: opening offer based on detailed Schedule 6 valuation, often two scenarios.
3. s.13 Initial Notice served on the competent landlord with the offer.
4. Landlord's counter-notice: acceptance, counter, or denial of qualification.
5. Negotiation on premium and terms.
6. If unresolved within 6 months of counter-notice — refer to Property Chamber.
7. Tribunal determination, then completion of conveyance.

2. Statutory individual lease extension

A qualifying leaseholder can extend their lease by 90 years on top of the unexpired term, at a peppercorn rent, on payment of a statutory premium. The right is exercised under s.42 of the 1993 Act. If terms cannot be agreed the Property Chamber decides under Form Leasehold 9.

• The lease must originally have been granted for over 21 years.
• You must have been registered as proprietor for at least 2 years (subject to reform).
• The 1993 Act regime is currently in force; the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 introduces important changes (notably abolition of marriage value and a standardised valuation method) but only on commencement of the relevant provisions.

The premium — Term, Reversion, Marriage Value

The statutory premium under Schedule 13 is the sum of:

• Term: the capitalised value of the ground rent the landlord loses for the remaining unexpired term.
• Reversion: the present value of the landlord recovering vacant possession at the end of the lease (its long-leasehold value, deferred at a 'deferment rate' — 4.75% for prime central London, 5% elsewhere following Sportelli, though Cadogan v Sportelli debate continues).
• Marriage Value: the uplift in combined value when the lease is extended. Marriage Value applies only where the unexpired term is under 80 years and is shared 50/50 between landlord and tenant.

The 80-year cliff is the most expensive number in leasehold. A flat with 81 years remaining can be extended without marriage value; the same flat at 79 years cannot. As a rough rule of thumb in central London, marriage value can add 30–60% to the premium. We model both scenarios (above and below 80 years) as a routine part of viability work.

What changes under the Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024

The 2024 Act, as it commences, will: abolish marriage value, prescribe deferment and capitalisation rates, remove the 2-year ownership requirement, and substantially lower extension premiums for most leaseholders. Each provision commences separately — always check the position at the date of the initial notice.

3. Right to Manage (RTM)

RTM under Chapter 1 of Part 2 of the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 lets qualifying leaseholders take over the management of their building without buying the freehold and without proving any wrongdoing by the landlord.

• Qualifying premises tests mirror enfranchisement (self-contained, predominantly residential, <25% commercial today).
• Membership of an RTM company limited by guarantee, with prescribed articles.
• Notice Inviting Participation, then Claim Notice — strict content and service rules under the regulations.
• Counter-notice from the freeholder denying qualification triggers a Property Chamber application.
• RTM takes over insurance, maintenance, statutory compliance and service charge collection from the acquisition date.

RTM is procedurally rigorous — getting a single notice detail wrong can end the claim — but the benefits in transparency, control of contractors and contribution to reserves are significant. Many groups use RTM as a stepping-stone to collective enfranchisement.

4. Landlord costs challenge — Form Leasehold 10

On both collective enfranchisement and lease extension, the leaseholder must pay the landlord's reasonable statutory costs of valuation and conveyancing (s.33 of the 1993 Act). These costs are limited by statute to specific categories and must be reasonable in scope, in time spent and in rate.

We routinely see landlord cost schedules that include:

• Time spent on issues outside the s.33 scope (negotiation tactics, internal client meetings)
• Partner or senior counsel rates for routine paralegal work
• Duplication between solicitor and valuer time records
• 'Costs of arguing about costs' that the 1993 Act does not let the landlord recover

Form Leasehold 10 brings these before the tribunal. Recovery rates of 30–60% reductions on contested schedules are typical for well-prepared challenges.

5. Where the Property Chamber stops — and where you'll need other forums

• Conveyancing disputes (e.g. boundary, easements) — High Court / County Court.
• Validity of original notice (in some respects) — court actions for declaratory relief.
• Appeals from FTT — Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber), permission required.