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What’s in your lease?

The lease is a contract between you and Westminster City Council. When you buy a flat or a maisonette from the council you purchase a leasehold interest and the council keeps the freehold interest. As the freeholder the council owns the land on which the property is built and charges a ground rent. 

Your lease will specify which parts of the property have been sold to you and what rights over communal land you have acquired. This is called the demised premises and will be identified by your address and by a plan or plans attached to the lease. 

Since 1974, there have been various changes to both legislation and council policy resulting in changes to the standard lease. This means that, although the leases follow a standard form, there can be variations. These variations particularly affect how we charge for major repairs and improvements. 

For a guide on what is included in your lease, please refer to chapter 2 of the Lessee handbook. 

If you have lost your copy of your lease and you need a new one, we can arrange for another copy to be sent to you. Please write to Lessee services, CityWest Homes, 21 Grosvenor Place, London SW1X 7EA, enclosing a cheque for £10.00.