Leasehold Reform Act 1967

8 Obligation to enfranchise. E+W

(1) Where a tenant of a house has under this Part of this Act a right to acquire the freehold, and gives to the landlord written notice of his desire to have the freehold, then except as provided by this Part of this Act the landlord shall be bound to make to the tenant, and the tenant to accept, (at the price and on the conditions so provided) a grant of the house and premises for an estate in fee simple absolute, subject to the tenancy and to tenant’s incumbrances, but otherwise free of incumbrances.

(2) For purposes of this Part of this Act “incumbrances” includes rentcharges and, subject to subsection (3) below, personal liabilities attaching in respect of the ownership of land or an interest in land though not charged on that land or interest; and “tenant’s incumbrances” includes any interest directly or indirectly derived out of the tenancy, and any incumbrance on the tenancy or any such interest (whether or not the same matter is an incumbrance also on any interest reversionary on the tenancy).

(3) Burdens originating in tenure, and burdens in respect of the upkeep or regulation for the benefit of any locality of any land, building, structure, works, ways or watercourse shall not be treated as incumbrances for purposes of this Part of this Act, but any conveyance executed to give effect to this section shall be made subject thereto except as otherwise provided by section 11 below.

(4) A conveyance executed to give effect to this section—

(a) shall have effect under section 2(1) of the M1 Law of Property Act 1925 to overreach any incumbrance capable of being overreached under that section as if, where the interest conveyed is settled land, the conveyance were made under the powers of the M2 Settled Land Act 1925 and as if the requirements of section 2(1) as to payment of the capital money allowed any part of the purchase price paid or applied in accordance with sections 11 to 13 below to be so paid or applied;

(b) shall not be made subject to any incumbrance capable of being overreached by the conveyance, but shall be made subject (where they are not capable of being overreached) to rentcharges [F1 redeemable under sections 8 to 10 of the M3 Rentcharges Act 1977 and those falling within paragraphs (c) and (d) of section 2(3) of that Act (estate rentcharges and rentcharges imposed under certain enactments)], except as otherwise provided by section 11 below.

(5) Notwithstanding that on a grant to a tenant of a house and premises under this section no payment or a nominal payment only is required from the tenant for the price of the house and premises, the tenant shall nevertheless be deemed for all purposes to be a purchaser for a valuable consideration in money or money’s worth.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words substituted by Rentcharges Act 1977 (c. 30), s. 17(4), Sch. 1 para. 4(1)

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 8 amended by Leasehold Reform Act 1979 (c. 44), s. 1

Marginal Citations

M1 1925 c. 20.

M2 1925 c. 18.

M3 1977 c. 30.