Statutory rights

You have statutory (legal) rights even if they are not stated in your lease. Some leases (especially older ones) may not tell you about these legal rights.

These rights relate to:

• buying the freehold
• extending your lease
• changing (“varying”) your lease
• fees, charges and access to information
• managing your block of flats (flats only)

Buying the freehold

Owning the freehold gives you more control over things like maintenance and service charges and can make your home easier to sell or remortgage. It can also make it much cheaper to extend your lease.

You can informally negotiate buying the freehold from your landlord (freeholder) but you might also qualify for the legal (statutory) right to buy it.

Flats

If you qualify, you have the legal right to buy the freehold of your block of flats collectively with the other leaseholders and ask a tribunal to decide the price. This is known as "collective enfranchisement".

Also, if the landlord wants to sell their interest in the building and you qualify, they must offer it for sale to the leaseholders first. This is known as the right of first refusal.

Houses

If you qualify, you have the legal right to buy the freehold of your house and ask a tribunal to decide the price.

Find out more: buying the freehold - the benefits, your rights and things to consider

Extending your lease

Extending your lease can protect the value of your home and make it easier to sell or remortgage. As your lease gets shorter, the value of your property usually goes down. And once the lease has 80 years or less remaining, extending it becomes much more expensive.

You can informally negotiate extending the lease with your landlord (freeholder) but you might also qualify for the legal (statutory) right to extend it.

Flats

If you qualify, you have the legal right to add 90 years to your flat’s lease and reduce any ground rent to zero.

Houses

If you qualify, you have the legal right to add 50 years to your house’s lease. Your ground rent will become a modern ground rent (generally higher than you pay now).

Find out more: extending your lease - the benefits, your rights and things to consider

Most leases last many decades, so it is common for leaseholders or landlords (freeholders) to need to update or correct them. This is called "varying a lease".

You might want to vary a lease to:

• correct a mistake
• change or remove outdated clauses
• make clauses clearer - for example, on how charges are paid or who is responsible for certain types of repairs
• update the layout of a property following an alteration

You can do a voluntary variation (where you and your landlord agree to change the lease). But you may also be able to apply to a tribunal and ask for the changes to be made.

Find out more: varying the terms of your lease

Right to challenge charges

You can challenge a service charge or administration charge at a tribunal if, for example:

• your lease does not say you have to pay it
• the amount is unreasonable compared to the service or work provided
• the service or work was unnecessary or poorly done

Find out more: when and how to challenge a service or administration charge

Right to financial information

Below summarises the typical financial information you have a right to.

Service charges

• Summary of the “relevant costs” making up the service charges for the last accounting period.
• See all receipts and invoices that support the figures in the service charge accounts. You can inspect these in person (for free) or ask for copies (a reasonable fee can be charged).
• With each bill you must be given a summary of your rights and responsibilities.

Administration charges

• With each bill you must be given a summary of your rights and responsibilities.

Ground rents

• Any demand for ground rent must be in a specific format and contain standard information.

Building insurance

• Summary of the insurance policy including the name of the insurer, the sum insured and the risks covered.
• You can inspect these in person (for free) or ask for copies (a reasonable fee can be charged).

Find out more about enforcing your:

• rights to service charge information
• rights to administration charge information
• rights to information in a demand for ground rent
• rights to buildings insurance information (flats only)

Right to be consulted about service charges

If you pay a service charge you must be consulted on:

• major works costing more than £250 for any one leaseholder
• service contracts (over 12 months) costing more than £100 a year for any one leaseholder - for example, cleaning or gardening

The consultation process (known as a section 20 consultation or S20 consultation) must follow a strict set of rules. These include telling you about the planned work or service, asking for your views and (sometimes) letting you suggest a contractor. If these rules are not followed, there may be limits on what you can be charged.

Section 20 consultations are more common in flats but can apply to leasehold houses on managed estates.

Find out more: your section 20 consultation rights

Right to form a tenants’ association

If you qualify, you can set up a recognised tenants’ association with the other leaseholders of the same building or managed estate. The association can support you on critical issues and act on your behalf. For example, to:

• improve communication with the landlord or manager
• ensure leaseholders are kept informed and consulted
• ensure the rights set out in the lease are maintained

Find out more: Tenants’ Associations

You have rights to take over the management of your building (even if it is being done properly). Many leaseholders do this to get more control over the building’s management and service charges.

If you qualify, you and the other leaseholders can:

• set up a company to take over the management and services of your block from the landlord or their agent - known as the right to manage
• ask a tribunal to appoint a different manager for your block - known as the right to appoint a manager

You can also complain about managing agents and the service they provide to a government-approved complaints (redress) scheme.

Find out more: your rights related to the management of your building