How to buy a flat by Liz Hodgkinson

 Commenting on these figures, property expert, Liz Hodgkinson said:

“Over 72 per cent of all properties bought in London are now flats, and in 2004, 40 percent of all homes built by Barratt, Britain’s biggest housebuilder, were flats. This is more than twice as many as ten years previously.

 Flats can be safer, warmer, cleaner, easier and cheaper to run and also friendlier than houses. They are ideal for single people, young couples, busy workers, older people downsizing, or in fact anybody who does not want the fuss and bother of looking after an entire house”

 Buying a flat to live in or to let is different from buying and living in a house. For example, apartments are sold leasehold rather than freehold which means buying a length of tenure rather then the property itself. This can have serious implications when the freeholder suddenly hikes up the service charges or lands tenants with a six figure sum for exterior decoration.

 A new book How to Buy a Flat has just been published to help buyers avoid the common pitfalls when purchasing a new home. This highly accessible guide explains the complicated leasehold laws governing flats and gives expert advice on how to live amicably in an apartment building. It covers:

n          Understanding the laws that govern                               multiple occupation

n          The different types of communal

            housing available

n          How leases work

n          Management and Articles of Association

n          Common problems and their solutions

n          Choosing an ideal apartment

n          Buying the freehold

n          Dealing with nuisance neighbours

The ideal handbook for first time buyers, flat owners and property developers, this book provides all the information they need to know in order to avoid making a serious and expensive mistake.

Liz Hodgkinson is an experienced property developer, landlord and journalist. Over the past decade she has bought, renovated and rented out or lived in many flats of all kinds, from new-build to Victorian, from purpose-built 60s and 70s blocks, to conversions and mansion blocks. She contributes a regular landlord and tenant column to the Evening Standard and also writes for the Mail on Sunday, The Lady, Saga, The Independent and Daily Mail. She is a regular broadcaster on radio and television.

Price: £10.99 in major bookshops and online retailers