How to Buy Your Freehold After Acquiring Right to Manage
If your building already has Right to Manage and you now want to purchase the freehold, start by establishing which leaseholders wish to participate, gathering the leases and freehold title, and obtaining specialist legal and valuation advice.
Right to Manage, commonly called RTM, gives eligible leaseholders control over certain management functions. It does not transfer ownership of the freehold. However, having RTM does not prevent you from purchasing the freehold later.
For many leaseholders, the question is whether ownership would provide enough additional benefits to justify the purchase price, professional fees and ongoing responsibilities.
Your First Steps Towards Buying the Freehold
1. Find Out Who Wants to Participate
Speak to the other flat owners and establish who wishes to explore a collective purchase.
Membership of the RTM company does not automatically commit an owner to buying the freehold. Participation, funding and ownership arrangements need to be agreed separately.
Your legal adviser should confirm the required participation level and whether the building and leaseholders qualify.
2. Gather the Relevant Documents
Obtain the freehold title and copies of the individual leases. Your advisers will need information about lease lengths, ground rents, ownership and any intermediate interests.
Organised building records, accounts and details of outstanding works will also help everyone understand the responsibilities they may be taking on.
3. Appoint Specialist Advisers
An enfranchisement solicitor can assess eligibility, recommend the legal route and handle notices and deadlines. A specialist valuer can estimate the freehold purchase price and explain the factors affecting it.
Ask for a written breakdown of fees, VAT, exclusions and possible additional costs before giving instructions.
4. Agree How You Will Fund the Purchase
The participating owners should enter into a written participation agreement covering:
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Contributions towards the purchase price and professional costs.
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Payment stages and deadlines.
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Ownership shares and voting arrangements.
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How decisions will be made.
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What happens if someone withdraws or sells their flat.
Do not assume that contributions must be equal. Different lease lengths, ground rents and interests being acquired may affect how the purchase price is allocated.
5. Proceed Once the Route and Budget Are Clear
Formal notices and applications should be handled by the appointed specialists.
A realistic funding plan should include the purchase price, professional fees and a contingency for additional work. It should not depend on uncertain cost recovery or an assumed increase in property values.
What Does Buying the Freehold Mean?
Eligible leaseholders can collectively purchase their building’s freehold through a process known as collective enfranchisement.
The freehold is often held by a company owned by the participating leaseholders. Each participant continues to own their leasehold flat and also holds an interest in the company owning the freehold.
The existing RTM company should not automatically be assumed to be the appropriate purchaser. Your solicitor should advise on the ownership structure and how it will work alongside the building’s management arrangements.
Collective ownership can provide greater control over future lease arrangements and reduce dependence on an external freeholder. It also brings responsibilities: the building still needs maintenance, insurance, accounts and effective management.
What If the Freeholder Cannot Be Found?
An absent freeholder can complicate the purchase, but it does not necessarily prevent it.
There is a difference between a freeholder who ignores correspondence and one who genuinely cannot be located. Tracing enquiries, advertising and evidence of attempts to find them may be needed.
Depending on the circumstances, a specialist adviser may recommend a court application allowing the acquisition to proceed. The appropriate route, valuation process and potential recovery of costs depend on the facts.
Do not assume that an unanswered letter is sufficient evidence of a missing freeholder. Ask your solicitor what enquiries and documentation are required.
What Costs Should Leaseholders Budget For?
The budget may include:
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The freehold purchase price.
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Legal and specialist valuation fees.
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Tracing enquiries and advertising.
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Court or tribunal fees where necessary.
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Company formation, conveyancing and registration costs.
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Separately agreed administrative coordination fees.
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Any ground-rent arrears properly payable.
A professional-fee quotation is not necessarily the total acquisition budget. Check whether it includes completion work, registration, hearings and additional enquiries.
If an adviser suggests that some costs might be recovered or offset against the purchase price, obtain a clear explanation. Possible recovery is not a guaranteed refund or an upfront discount.
The building’s reserve or sinking fund should not automatically be treated as money available to finance the purchase. Its permitted use must be checked.
Must Every Owner Take Part?
Not necessarily. Your adviser must establish whether the proposed group meets the relevant eligibility and participation requirements.
Non-participating owners should not be assumed to pay towards the acquisition or receive an ownership share. Their existing lease rights and obligations remain relevant after the freehold changes hands.
The participating owners need to understand what they are buying, how ownership will be recorded and how any future request to join will be handled.
Will a Share of the Freehold Increase My Flat’s Value?
It may improve marketability, particularly where it enables owners to resolve lease issues or establish clearer control. However, an increase in value is not guaranteed.
Buyers and mortgage lenders also consider lease length, building condition, service charges, financial records and outstanding works.
Buying a share of the freehold does not automatically extend your lease or remove ground rent. Any changes require appropriate legal documentation and agreement.
Service charges also continue because the building still costs money to maintain and insure.
How Could Leasehold Reform Affect the Decision?
The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 is being implemented in stages. Some changes are already in force, including removal of the two-year ownership requirement for qualifying individual lease-extension claims. Collective enfranchisement did not have that same ownership-period requirement.
Other measures—including new valuation arrangements, abolition of marriage value and statutory extensions of an additional 990 years—should not be assumed to apply until the relevant provisions take effect.
Separate proposals include a cap on existing residential ground rents. Proposed reforms and suggested implementation dates should not be treated as current rights.
Before deciding whether to proceed or wait, ask your solicitor and valuer how the current rules and forthcoming changes could affect your building. Waiting does not guarantee a cheaper acquisition.
Keep Essential Building Work Moving
While owners consider purchasing the freehold, necessary repairs and compliance work still need attention.
Electrical safety, fire precautions, insurance and maintenance should be addressed according to the building’s requirements. An acquisition proposal is not a reason to postpone urgent work.
Clear accounts and organised records help owners assess the purchase and support the professionals handling it. For an RTM company, these are also part of maintaining effective management.
Discuss the Proposal Before Committing
A meeting with interested leaseholders is a useful opportunity to discuss the estimated budget, participation, responsibilities and timing.
Where possible, ask the appointed specialists to explain the legal route and valuation. Record the decisions and obtain written agreement before committing expenditure.
This is a complex transaction. Errors in notices, deadlines or documentation can lead to additional costs or jeopardise an application. Professional advice and clear agreements are essential.
How MyEstate Luton Can Help
At MyEstate Luton, we support RTM directors and leaseholders with day-to-day block management, contractor coordination, financial reporting and communication.
Where owners wish to investigate purchasing their freehold, we can help organise building information and coordinate communication with their appointed legal and valuation specialists. Any separate coordination service and fee would be agreed in advance.
To discuss your building’s management needs, contact MyEstate Luton on 01582 380330 or email luton@my-estate.co.uk.
Information checked on 9 October 2026. This article provides general information. Eligibility, legal procedures and costs require advice specific to your building.
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