Product Description

This book answers the questions being asked by growing numbers of flat leaseholders: 'Should we buy our building freehold? If so, how much will it cost, how do we do it and what are the pitfalls to avoid?' The Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act made it feasible for long leaseholders to buy their freeholds. But many residents wanting to do so face a David-and-Goliath challenge with landlords who may have deeper pockets, better lawyers, stronger organisational clout and the leisure of time. With clear and simple tools and tips, Lawpack author and leasehold consultant Kat Callo tells you how to go about a successful freehold acquisition without wasting money, time and effort and without souring relationships with your neighbours.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #213819 in Books
• Published on: 2006-07-13
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Lorna Bourke former Personal Finance Editor Daily Telegraph, The Times, and The Independent
Wriiten in plain English, this book makes a complicated subject accessible to all...

Jane Barry, property journalist
'A meticulous, highly-readable, warts-and-all exposition of the enfranchisement process.'

from
"Kat Callo estimates that, despite the difficulties, hundreds of leaseholds are being enfranchised every year".

Customer Reviews

Buying a Freehold
This is a pretty useful book. Kat Callo clearly has a comprehensive understanding and the experience of a wealth of case studies. It would be a great introduction for someone thinking of buying their freehold. The book is designed more for the reader who shares their freehold with a large number of other residents - such as a large mansion block - rather than, say, the reader who lives in a Victorian terraced house that has been converted into only 3 flats.
Early on, the purchase process is likened to a marathon race for which you, the reader, must rigorously train. Unfortunately, this metaphor is rather tired by the end of chapter 1, but Kat Callo tediously extends it through the entirety of the book. It is both monotonous and mildly condescending.
The book is somewhat repetitive, and feels a little strung out. Rather like the trend in television for summaries after each commercial break - for the benefit of the channel surfers who keep dipping in and out - each chapter has an introduction, a development and a conclusion. So the method of the author is 'Say what you are going to say, then say it, then say that you've said it'. The text is also interspersed with 'top tips' which are small summaries for those who don't want to read the minutiae. The book is best approached, then, not to be read from cover to cover, but to be dipped into as a work of reference.
There is a lot of useful information in the appendices at the back, including some horrendous stories about how ruthless and devious landlords can be.
The tables for calculating compound interest when working out the estimated cost of your freehold are very unhelpful, because the figures for a lease with more than 25 years to go are not provided.

Everything you need to know......
Excellent book - how refreshing to read a Leasehold property book that makes such a complicated subject so easy to understand. With this and Kat Callo's earlier book you have all you need if you are looking to enfranchise the block of flats or apartments you live in. It is a great book to pick up and put down and is very easy to reference when looking for something specific - Kat explains the processes and possible pit falls so plainly and in a 'straight forward' forward manner that is so refreshing - a must read book!!