Crazyface
Tour Winner
We own the freehold to the property next door to us. Do we have any magic powers we can exert on them? 
Owning Freehold
- Thread starter Crazyface
- Start date
Bunkermagnet
Journeyman Pro
Charge a ground rent or sell the land to a developer?
SocketRocket
Ryder Cup Winner
Sell them the freehold
Crazyface
Tour Winner
Never!
D
Deleted member 21258
Guest
Look at your leasehold agreement, all the answers are there.
Crazyface
Tour Winner
Don't know if we have one. When we bought the place the solicitor just said "oh and you own the freehold for next door as well"
They will be with your deeds or perhaps the land registry, although I am quite probably wrong on that one. If you can't find anything then perhaps your solicitor was not correct. There should be a record somewhere.
GB72
Money List Winner
Sounds an odd situation but not impossible. You can download your title deeds, next doors and the lease for nextdoor for £3.00 per document from the Land Registry. It is easy to do. You really do need to check the lease as it may have obligations on you as the freeholder, entitle you to rents, a premium if the lease needs extending as well.
jim8flog
Journeyman Pro
As the solicitor gave you this information he must have read it somewhere, so even if your house and next door are not registered it it must be part of the title deeds so read them. If you have a mortgage the title deeds will be lodged with the mortgage company or their appointed solicitor for all the legal work during the conveyancing.
It is very easy to check with the land Registry to see if both properties are registered. However they may not hold all the paperwork (they do not for mine as I have got it).
If not registered you can do it but you will have to pay a 1st registration charge.
If your neighbour has an original 999 year lease (quite common) you may well consider selling it to them.
My last leasehold property only gave the the landlord a ground rent of £30 a year so he kept trying to sell the freehold to me.
It is very easy to check with the land Registry to see if both properties are registered. However they may not hold all the paperwork (they do not for mine as I have got it).
If not registered you can do it but you will have to pay a 1st registration charge.
If your neighbour has an original 999 year lease (quite common) you may well consider selling it to them.
My last leasehold property only gave the the landlord a ground rent of £30 a year so he kept trying to sell the freehold to me.
jim8flog
Journeyman Pro
PS re the OP, the lease may well mean that the leaseholder may well have magical powers that they can hold over you e.g. repairs and renewal costs on the building.
GB72
Money List Winner
Mortgage companies do not hold deeds any more if the property is registered, the electronic record at the Land Registry is your title deeds if registered.
If the property is unregistered, the mortgage company will not release the deeds to anyone but a solicitor giving undertakings.
If you purchased less than 7 years ago, the solicitor will have the old file with copies of the deeds (some hold files for longer) but chances are they will charge an admin fee for copies and it is cheaper and quicker to use the Land Registry website.
If you want to DM me the address, I can at least look on the land registry map search service through my work account so see what is registered, what is not and whether there are both freehold and leasehold titles.
