Leasehold

The lease mentions forfeiture. Why must the survey not be asked to explain that remedy?

Because forfeiture is a lease remedy, not a defect a survey can explain. It is the landlord's route, in the circumstances the lease sets out, to bring that lease to an end. A home survey looks at the flat. It does not interpret remedies, notices or the steps a landlord must take. Asking the surveyor to explain forfeiture asks for advice the report was not instructed to give. Your solicitor reads the clause. The survey, even if it noticed the word, has not advised you on what the remedy means.

Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Written for buyers in England and Wales unless this answer says otherwise. No named surveyor has signed this page. It is general guidance, not a report on your house, and not legal advice.

What is the fuller explanation?

Lease clauses can look stark when they are read alone. Forfeiture is one of them. Whether it could be used depends on the alleged breach, the wording and the procedure that applies. None of that appears in a cracked ceiling or a tired window. The surveyor may have been shown the lease, or may not. Either way, comments on condition are not a commentary on remedies. If you want the clause explained for this purchase, that question goes to the solicitor with the lease, not into a survey addendum.

Send the forfeiture wording to your solicitor and ask for an explanation in the context of this flat. Do not expect the survey to rank the clause, delete it, or promise it will never be used. The report has not read the landlord's intentions. Keep the legal meaning and the building condition in separate conversations. A lender's conveyancer will also look at the lease. They will not take a surveyor's aside as the explanation of the remedy.

What should you ask your surveyor?

Have you sent the forfeiture clause to your solicitor rather than to the surveyor?
Does the survey mention forfeiture at all, or have you seen it only in the lease?
Are there other lease remedies your solicitor should explain alongside it?

What are the typical next steps?

Ask your solicitor to explain forfeiture from the lease.
Do not ask the survey to interpret that remedy.
Keep the survey for condition and the solicitor's note for the clause.

Costs vary with the building and with who you instruct. Where this page does not cite a published figure, ask the surveyor, a relevant specialist, or your solicitor for a written quote. Do not treat a forum average as the price.

Also asked about this

Does a well-kept flat mean forfeiture cannot be used?

No. Forfeiture is about the lease and an alleged breach, not about how tidy the rooms looked. The survey has not advised that a neat flat switches the clause off. Condition and the remedy are separate. Only the solicitor, reading the lease, can explain when the wording could matter to this purchase.

Can the surveyor confirm the landlord has never used the clause?

No. The survey has no record of the landlord's past actions and did not investigate them. A condition report cannot confirm a history of enforcement. Ask the solicitor what enquiries are usual. Do not add a comfort line the visit had no way of knowing.