Posted on 4th November, 2020

Julian Wilkins has success at the First Tier Tribunal with a 1967 Act freehold purchase case

As well as specialising in the valuation of lease extensions for residential flats, Julian Wilkins & Co Chartered Surveyors also specialise in valuation of freeholds of leasehold houses. We assist leaseholders of leasehold houses to purchase their freeholds.

The 1967 Leasehold Reform Act gives owners of leasehold houses the right to purchase the freehold by way of a statutory procedure following the service of a formal notice upon the freeholder.

In most cases, the value of the freehold is successfully negotiated after service of the formal notice. However, if this cannot be agreed between the parties, the valuation dispute can be referred to the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) for determination. A determination by the FTT involves the submission of detailed expert evidence relevant to the valuation issues.

Julian Wilkins, a RICS accredited Expert Witness, regularly deals with expert evidence and has recently acted for the owners of a leasehold house in Penns Court, Steyning, West Sussex where the valuation of the freehold was determined by the FTT.

Julian submitted expert evidence that the purchase price under the 1967 Act (Section 9(1) ) should be £8,691 whilst the freeholder’s valuer submitted evidence that the value of the freehold should be £16,500. The FTT expert panel agreed with Julian’s evidence relating to all parts of the valuation and determined the purchase price of the freehold to be £8,691. This was in total agreement with Julian’s valuation which is an excellent result for our leaseholder clients.

For an initial no obligation discussion regarding the possible purchase of the freehold of a leasehold house anywhere in England please call or email Julian or one of our team and we can advise you of how we can help.