freehold

/ˈfriːhəʊld/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈfriːhəʊld/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈfrē-ˌhōld/ (ame, mw) · /ˈfriː.həʊld/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈfriː.hoʊld/ (ame, ipa)

freehold — noun

  • freeholdsingular
  • freeholdsplural

1. in property law, full and permanent ownership of a house, flat, or plot of groun

1.名詞C1
釋義

in property law, full and permanent ownership of a house, flat, or plot of ground, with no end date and no rent owed to anyone above — the owner keeps it forever and may leave it to heirs, unlike a leasehold which expires after a set number of years.

例句

Hugo and Padma finally bought the freehold of their north London flat after years of negotiation.

buy the freehold of [property] — the typical purchase pattern

The landlord still holds the freehold, so the tenants pay an annual ground rent.

hold the freehold — possession by an entity other than the resident

同義詞
  • fee simple

    the technical US legal term for the same concept; more common in American legal writing

  • outright ownership

    everyday paraphrase; less precise but understandable to non-lawyers

反義詞
  • leasehold

    ownership for a fixed term with eventual reversion to the freeholder

文法句型

hold the freehold of [property]

buy/sell the freehold

用法筆記

Distinguish from leasehold: a freehold lasts forever and includes the land beneath the building; a leasehold runs for a fixed term (often 99 or 125 years) and reverts to the freeholder when it ends. The term is core vocabulary in UK and Commonwealth property markets.

常見錯誤

❌I rent a freehold apartment.
✅I own a freehold apartment.
💡a freehold means you own outright, not rent.
❌The freehold expires in 99 years.
✅The leasehold expires in 99 years.
💡freeholds have no expiry; leaseholds do.

freehold — adjective