No one wants to experience financial difficulty. However for flat owners in the UK it can often be the case that a short period of financial difficulty can result in a long term financial gain.

Why? How? What? Where? When?

If you lease your property you need to get familiar with and learn the knowhow about enfranchisement. This is the correct term for the process by which you buy the freehold on your flat from the landlord. If your flat is part of a block then you are unable to do this soley, you must have the support of your fellow flat owners and this is referred to as 'collective enfranchisement'.

When you purchase the freehold you effectively turn your leasehold property, in which you are the tenant, into a freehold property. It is you - or a team of tenants - who are then the freeholder(s) and they consequently own the property and the land upon which it is situated.

One of the advantages of pursuing collective enfranchisement is that you and your fellow flat owners can manage your own block. So, if your flat is not well managed you can see how this can be of immense benefit and ease stress.

Unfortunately things never come for free and this is the case with enfranchisement of your leasehold home. It can also be a lengthy process. You would be well advised to consult a lawyer who is a specialist in this specific area to guide and support. The Law establishes how much compensation is due to the landlord when you enfranchise so this is not an area where you haggle or pitch in your own ideas.

If your lease is less than 80 years you, as the tenant, will be required to pay 50% of what is known as 'the marriage value' to the freeholder. Bear in mind that the shorter the unexpired term of the lease, the higher the reversion.

Your legal expert will sort all this out for you and smooth the path. You will also need to ascertain that you meet certain 'eligibility' criteria at the outset. The right to enfranchise isn't simply yours for the asking so check that your case is applicable before you begin. If you have any doubts, speak to your solicitor before acting.

Short term pain may yield a high dividend of long term financial gain...so if you find things difficult, repeat an old slogan to yourself: 'if it hurts a little, it is doing you some good'.