Leasehold
If a block is under the Right to Manage, has the flat stopped being leasehold?
No. GOV.UK says that if the leaseholders succeed, the landlord still owns the building and the RTM company manages it. The flat remains on its lease. Ground rent, if the lease reserves it, is still a lease question. A home survey does not convert the tenure because the hallway is well kept.
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?
People mix this up with buying the freehold or with commonhold. The Right to Manage guide is about management: service charge, communal parts, and the structure such as the roof. It is not a new lease and not a share certificate. Your solicitor reads the lease and the company. The survey reads the plaster, the windows and whatever common parts it was allowed to see.
A rating on the roof still matters, because the company is responsible for that upkeep and the cost can still be a service charge. The survey does not calculate your share. There is no RICS price for a freehold purchase hidden inside an RTM story. Do not tell a lender the flat is freehold.
What should you ask your surveyor?
- Are you describing condition only?
- Did anyone give you a company document? If not, say so.
- Are you calling the flat freehold? You should not be.
What are the typical next steps?
- Ask the solicitor to confirm the tenure in writing.
- Ask who instructs repairs to the roof the survey rated.
- Do not drop the lease questions because a neighbour said “we run it now”.
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 the landlord still get a vote?
The guide says a landlord can be a member and that their votes are capped. That is company law in the guide, not a line in the survey.
Does RTM cancel ground rent?
No. Ground rent comes from the lease. The management change does not rewrite it.