got stuck

Has anyone any advice on how to find freehold (as opposed to leasehold) retirement cottages or bungalows for sale in communal gardens? On property sites such as Rightmove they're practically non-existent.

mikelincs

I suspect that they are a lot like hens teeth, if the place is a retirement site, then someone owns it, and has the freehold. They are unlikely to have any other than leasehold apartments etc on the site as they will want to ensure that no-one can do anythiong that might affect the values of the rest of the properties.
I've never seen any, and have looked at many properties.

You might like to look at Girlings retirements, they have plenty of rental properties but also properties for sale.

robin1234

Why wouldn't you consider leasehold? All retirement properties I've ever seen have either been rentals or leasehold. We just bought a leasehold flat (not a retirement property) in a small building of ten flats, 120 years from 2014. Obviously leasehold is a bit of an adjustment if you're used to freehold, but in practice it seems to me it is a reasonable way to go when there are common services and common areas to be maintained & managed.

Editha

You are not going to find such a property freehold. It is just the way UK land law works.

Retirement properties of the type you want are almost always leasehold, as are almost all apartments. But the leasehold might be for 99 or 999 years. This makes them very different to a rental for a monthly rent. Long leaseholds are bought and sold just like freehold houses (see Robin's post). The reason is that where there are communal areas to be maintained, or where you have one building divided up into apartments, a lease is the best way to stipulate how the common parts are to be maintained.

Editha

If you are searching for such a property on Rightmove, choose properties for sale and the 'retirement properties' option. But, if your budget is limited, you are not going to find many bungalows or cottages; most retirement properties are apartments.

got stuck

Thanks everyone for the replies. Robin, the reason I'm not keen on leasehold is that my (much younger) brother will one day inherit the property and I've read that it will be virtually impossible for him to sell a leasehold property at market value. I suspect that so-called 'lock up and leave' properties are so much in demand that new developments hardly need to be advertised, which makes it difficult for someone living abroad to find one.

Editha

That simply isn't correct. As I've already stated, virtually all apartments are leasehold and they appreciate in value with the rest of the market. The reason you can't find what you want is not because it is much in demand, but because it doesn't exist.

mikelincs

I fully agree, I would expect ALL retirement properties like the ones the OP is talking about to be leaseholds, mainly because the builders will want to ensure that they are getting the money back, remember that those sort of properties all have service charges, which will cover the insurance of the fabric of the property, the looking after the grounds and in many cases all water charges because many of these developments have communal laundry rooms. All these developments will also have communal lounges for residents to use, and most of them will have guest suites which can be booked by residents for guests at anything between £10 and £30 per night. Any properties in the complex that was freehold would cause problems with these arrangements.

Perth

Interesting discussion. I think I asked this somewhere before, but now can't find it. What property companies in the retirement development area are considered trustworthy?

Editha

Why should any be considered un-trustworthy?

Perth

No reason really, maybe I have lived in the US for too long

I'm talking about the kind that charge very unreasonable amounts for questionable repairs and keep shoving up maintenance fees without good cause.

Editha

But more generally, in answer to your question, I think anyone considering sheltered housing or a similar retirement scheme, should look at the charging structure very carefully. There have been cases of charges rising precipitously, making it difficult for the residents to either continue paying or to sell their properties.

Your solicitor should be able to advise you, but a purchaser will have to make up their own mind about whether the charges represent good value, and whether they will be able to go on paying them in the long term.

I've looked into sheltered housing, and similar,for my own mother, and frankly I don't regard them as good value. Living in her own bungalow, we pay far less for a gardener, cleaner, odd-job man, etc, than she would be paying as charges in sheltered housing. In sheltered housing you do get a warden on call, but my mum is fortunate in having good neighbours, who keep a look out for her for free.

But I've discussed this issue with other members of this forum before, and I know that some are very satisfied with their sheltered housing or other retirement housing scheme, either for themselves or an elderly relative. So, I guess it just depends on what you want and what you are prepared to pay for it.

scot47

There is no UK property market. Property Law is very different on different sides of the Tweed. That is one reason why apartments are more common in Scottish towns. If in doubt have a look at the New Town in Edinburgh.

Editha

Scotland does have a different legal system, and I agree that very few Scottish apartments are leasehold, where instead they have freehold flats with a statutory tenancy management scheme, introduced by legislation in 2004. Prior to that, my understanding is that there were often problems with maintenance of freehold apartments.

If there are more flats in Scotland (which I seriously doubt) this has absolutely nothing to do with the difference in the law, since there are no problems with leasehold tenure.

scot47

There is no leasehold per se in Scotland. Increasingly as people from the South move into Scotland there is confusion amongst those who expect the same rules to apply North and South of the Tweed.
If buying in Scotland, use a Scottish solicitor. Do not assume that an Estate Agent in Birmingham is competent to buy and sell Scottish property.
Dictionary of Scottish Land Law Terms - Scots Property Law Glossary