Sell your house fast in London, from terraces to leasehold flats
If you want to sell your house fast in London, Resolute Estate Solutions can buy it directly, whether it is a Victorian terrace, a flat in a converted house or a tired ex-local-authority maisonette. We are based in Gravesend, Kent, and we buy across all 32 London boroughs. Our offers are below open-market value, and we explain exactly why before you decide anything.
The London homes we buy, from Hackney terraces to outer-borough semis
London housing is unusually varied, and the type of building shapes almost everything about a sale: who can lend on it, what a surveyor will look for and how long the paperwork takes. As London property buyers, we look at the building first and the postcode second.
These are the main kinds of London home we consider:
- Victorian and Edwardian terraces. Found right across inner London and in older suburbs such as Walthamstow, Leyton, Tooting and Forest Gate. Many have seen generations of piecemeal alterations, from rear extensions to loft rooms.
- Houses converted into flats. Many of London's flats sit inside former family houses in Hackney, Islington, Lambeth, Camden and Haringey. Each flat is usually leasehold, with its own lease and sometimes a share of the freehold.
- Ex-local-authority flats and maisonettes. Homes bought from councils over the years, often in larger blocks with a council or housing association still acting as freeholder.
- Interwar semis and terraces. The outer boroughs, including Enfield, Barnet, Harrow, Bexley and Havering, have streets of 1930s houses, many still with original layouts.
- Purpose-built blocks, old and new. From mansion blocks to newer developments along the river and in east London, where building safety questions sometimes come up.
We consider homes in any condition, lived in or empty. If the property is occupied, it needs to be empty by completion: we do not let sellers stay on as tenants.
Short leases, service charges and cladding forms on London flats
If you want to sell a flat in London, the lease is often the thing that decides how the sale goes. Buyers who need a mortgage are limited by what lenders accept, and GOV.UK notes that lenders are typically less likely to lend where a lease has less than 80 years remaining. That can shrink the pool of buyers for an otherwise ordinary flat.
Lease length and extensions
Under current law, a qualifying flat leaseholder can extend the lease by 90 years, and the cost rises significantly once 80 years or fewer remain. You can read the official explanation in the GOV.UK guidance on extending a lease. The Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024 is expected to make extensions cheaper and longer in future, but its main changes are not yet in force, so nobody can plan a sale around them today.
Service charges, ground rent and management packs
Any buyer's solicitor will ask the managing agent or freeholder for a leasehold information pack: service charge accounts, planned major works, ground rent terms, insurance and building safety details. These packs can take longer than sellers expect, so asking for one early helps whichever route you choose.
EWS1 forms
Some lenders ask for an EWS1 form on taller buildings with cladding. It is an industry form used for mortgage valuations, not a government requirement, but where a block does not have one, buyers who need a mortgage can find it hard to proceed.
Because we are not borrowing against the flat, a short lease or a missing form does not stop us making an offer. It does affect the price, and we show you how in writing. Our page on selling a leasehold flat as it is goes into this in more detail.
Alterations, damp and clay soil in older London houses
A century or more of use leaves its mark on a London terrace. When we view a house, these are the questions that most often shape our figures:
- Undocumented works. Knocked-through rooms, loft conversions and rear extensions sometimes lack the paperwork a buyer's solicitor will ask for.
- Conversions without matching leases. Flats created long ago can have lease plans that no longer match the layout.
- Movement and cracking. Much of London sits on clay, which shrinks and swells with the weather, and mature street trees add to it. Surveys regularly flag cracks that need investigating.
- Damp and roofs. Solid walls, old slate roofs and blocked gutters are common in period stock.
None of these rule a house out for us. You do not need to fix them first, because we can buy as seen. If a property has serious problems, our page about selling a derelict or unmortgageable house explains how that works.
Our base in Gravesend and how we cover every London borough
We do not have a London office. What we do have is easy access to the whole capital by road and rail, and a way of working that does not rely on a high-street branch.
We buy in every London borough, including:
- East: Newham, Tower Hamlets, Hackney, Waltham Forest, Redbridge, Barking and Dagenham, Havering
- South East: Greenwich, Lewisham, Southwark, Bexley, Bromley
- South and South West: Lambeth, Wandsworth, Croydon, Sutton, Merton, Kingston upon Thames, Richmond upon Thames
- West: Hammersmith and Fulham, Kensington and Chelsea, Ealing, Hounslow, Hillingdon
- North: Camden, Islington, Haringey, Enfield, Barnet, Brent, Harrow
- Central: Westminster and the City of London
Across the river, Dartford, Gravesend and the Medway towns are covered on our page about selling in Kent and the South East. For the rest of England, see every region where we buy homes.
When selling a London home to us makes sense, and when it does not
London has plenty of buyers for a well-kept house with a clean title. If that describes your home and you have time, an estate agent will usually get you a higher price than we can offer. We would rather tell you that now than have you regret it later. The case for selling your house fast in London to a direct buyer is strongest when time or condition rules the open market out.
A direct sale tends to suit London sellers when:
- the flat has a short lease, a difficult freeholder or a missing building safety form;
- the house needs substantial work that mortgage lenders will not accept;
- you are an executor and would like to sell a probate property in a calm, straightforward way;
- the property is standing empty and costing money each month (our page on selling an empty house to us covers this);
- a previous buyer withdrew and you want certainty, as explained on our page for sellers whose sale fell through;
- you are a landlord winding down and the flat will be empty by completion, because we buy rental properties with vacant possession (see our page for landlords selling up).
Our offers are below open-market value. In return, you pay no fees, we pay your legal fees, and you do not have to repair, redecorate or wait for a chain. For a side-by-side view, read our comparison of selling to a buyer, through an agent or at auction.
Selling a London property to us, from first call to handing over the keys
The steps are the same wherever you are in London. The details below are specific to flats and houses in the capital.
Tell us about the property
Use the form or call 0203 746 5656. For a flat, it helps to know the lease length and the name of the managing agent, if you have them.
A short call
We ask about the building, its condition, who lives there now and your timing. We do not ask you for documents at this stage.
A viewing at a time that suits you
We arrange a visit or a video walkthrough. For flats we check access to shared areas and meters, and whether parking permits are needed nearby.
A written offer
You receive a written offer, with our reasons and the terms. You are free to say no at no cost.
Solicitors and checks
You instruct your own independent solicitor, or we can recommend one to you, and we pay the legal fees. We carry out identity and title checks, described on our page about why we check identity and ownership.
Exchange and completion
Contracts are exchanged, and then the money is sent to your solicitor on completion. The property must be empty by completion, and you hand over the keys.
For the full picture, including what happens between exchange and completion, read our step-by-step selling process.
Questions from London sellers
Do you have an office in London?
No. Our registered office is in Gravesend, Kent. We travel into London for viewings and handle the rest by phone, email and through the solicitors, so you do not need to visit us.
Will you buy an ex-local-authority flat in a high-rise block?
We will consider it. We look at the lease, the service charges, any planned major works and the building safety information. Those things affect the price, and we explain how in the written offer.
Can I sell a flat in London with a short lease?
Yes, we consider short-lease flats. You can extend the lease first or sell as it is and let the price reflect the lease. Our page on selling a leasehold flat as it is sets out both options.
How do you work out what to offer for a London home?
We start with comparable sales nearby. Offers are below open-market value, and our page on how our offers are calculated shows the workings.
The flat has tenants. Can I still sell it to you?
Only once it is empty. We buy rental properties with vacant possession, so the tenancy must have ended and the flat be empty by completion. Speak to a solicitor about your obligations to your tenant, and see GOV.UK for the official guidance, before you decide.
Do you pass my details to other London property buyers?
No. We are the buyer, and your details stay with us. You can read more about the company.
Page last reviewed on by the Resolute Estate Solutions team.