If you own a share of the freehold, you might assume you don’t need to worry about extending your lease. This is a common misconception.
However even when you own a share of the freehold your lease has a fixed term and once it starts running down, it can affect your property’s value, ability to secure a mortgage and saleability.
At The Lease Extension Company, we help share of freeholders understand and manage this process to extend their leases.
Here’s everything you need to know about extending your share of freehold lease. How they work and why they’re still an essential step in protecting your property investment.
What Is A Share Of Freehold?
A “share of freehold” means that the flat owners collectively own the freehold of the building, usually through a limited company or jointly as individuals.
In most cases, each leaseholder owns:
- Their property title is leasehold.
- A share (or percentage) of the building’s freehold.
Although this arrangement gives leaseholders more control and reduces dependency on a third-party freeholder, it does not eliminate the lease itself.
The lease still sets out the terms of ownership, and when it gets shorter, it still reduces the property’s market value, ability to secure a mortgage and saleability – even if you own part of the freehold.
Why You May Still Need To Extend Your Lease
Even as a share of freeholder, you need to extend your lease for the same reasons as any other leaseholder:
✅ To maintain your property’s market value.
✅ To avoid complications when selling or remortgaging.
✅ To prevent your lease term from dropping below 80 years (which triggers marriage value and increases costs).
The difference is that, as one of the freeholders, you and your co-freeholders have the power to grant yourselves new leases and the terms. Often these will be favourable -at no premium cost and for 999 years.
To facilitate the lease extension, it is essential that this is undertaken by a specialist solicitor to ensure it is done correctly, using the appropriate legal process, documentation and legal registration.
How To Carry Out A Share Of Freehold Lease Extension
As a freeholder (or part of it), you don’t need to serve a statutory Section 42 Notice on yourself. Instead, you and the other co-freeholders can agree to grant new, extended leases on a voluntary basis.
The process typically involves:
1️⃣ Agreement among the freeholders – all co-freeholders must consent to the extensions.
2️⃣ Obtaining the legal acceptance from your mortgage lender is required to execute your lease extension.
3️⃣ Legal drafting – a solicitor prepares new leases adding 90 years (or any agreed term) and reducing ground rent to zero.
4️⃣ Execution and registration – each new lease is signed, dated and registered at HM Land Registry.
Advantages Of Extending As A Share Of Freehold
✔️ No premium to pay – you already own the freehold, so there’s no compensation due.
✔️ Flexibility – you can decide together how long to extend your leases.
✔️ Smoother conveyancing – buyers prefer consistency and long leases across all flats.
✔️ Future-proofing – prevents problems with mortgage lenders, valuation and resale.
By extending proactively, all owners maintain their property value and avoid last-minute complications when one leaseholder decides to sell.
How We Help
At The Lease Extension Company, we help share of freeholders through every stage of the process – from the moment you have an agreement amongst leaseholders to extend your leases, we will oversee the process using our specialist enfranchisement solicitors who will undertake your lease extensions and Land Registry requirements.
Our fixed-fee service ensures:
✅ A legally compliant process.
✅ Correctly drafted, registered leases.
✅ Professional coordination between all parties.
✅ Peace of mind that every detail is handled properly.
Whether your leases have 70 years remaining or 125, we’ll help you structure the extensions clearly and efficiently, protecting both your property’s value and your ownership rights within our fixed fee using our specialist solicitors.
Key Takeaway
If you own a share of the freehold, your lease still matters and allowing it to shorten can cause the same financial and legal issues.
Extending your lease keeps your property secure, saleable and protected for the long term.
At The Lease Extension Company, we make the process simple, transparent and coordinated for all freeholders involved.
Speak with a Lease Extension Specialist Today.
Arrange an appointment with our team of specialist lease extension experts and solicitors.
Simply fill out our online Contact Form, send us an Email via [email protected] or call us for free on 0800 098 2770.
