The Upper Tribunal’s decision in Mountview Estates Plc v W8 Property Ltd [2026] UKUT 196 (LC) provides useful guidance on the condition in which a flat is to be valued when calculating the premium payable for a statutory lease extension.

The case concerned a flat which both parties’ valuers described as “uninhabitable”. The landlord argued that the valuation should nevertheless assume that the flat had been brought up to a clean, modern and readily marketable standard because the lease required the tenant to keep it in “good tenantable repair”.

The High Court decision in Bennets Courtyard Limited v Bennets Courtyard Airspace Limited [2026] EWHC 1119 (Ch) provides an important warning for anyone preparing a collective enfranchisement claim where the freehold has recently been sold.

The case confirms that, during the period between completion of a transfer and registration of the purchaser at HM Land Registry—the familiar “registration gap”—the relevant freeholder for the purposes of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 remains the registered proprietor.

A section 13 initial notice served only on the purchaser awaiting registration will therefore be invalid.

That may appear technical. In practice, however, getting this wrong can cause the entire claim to fail.