Jargon Buster
Financial services
Financial services refer to mortgage and insurance arrangements that are offered to agency customers.
Fixed term
Fixed term refers to the agreed minimum term of a tenancy between a landlord and tenant.
Fixtures and fittings
Fixtures and fittings are any fixed or removable items attached to the property being sold, which may or may not be included as part of the sale. These could include taps, white goods, or fitted wardrobes.
Flying Freehold
In a property where certain floors or storeys are owned by different freeholders, the owner of the freehold for the higher floor or storey wouldn’t own the land beneath the property and this is known as ‘flying freehold’.
Freehold
Freehold is the highest estate in land and when buying a freehold property, the owner is responsible for both the property and the land it’s built on.
Freeholder
The freeholder (or superior landlord) is the person who owns the land on which a property is built. This person also has ultimate responsibility for the building itself.
Furniture and Furnishings (Fire Safety) Regulations 1988 as amended in 1993
Under these regulations, all soft furniture supplied with a rental property must comply with fire safety standards and have a label confirming this.
Any furnishings without the confirmation label cannot be included with the rental property and must be removed before the tenancy begins.
GAS SAFE Registered
GAS SAFE is the organisation that provides the GAS SAFE register – an official list of gas engineers that are legally qualified to work on gas appliances.
Gazumping
Gazumping is where a seller accepts an offer from a buyer before exchange of contracts having already accepted and proceeded with one from someone else.
Gazundering
If a buyer reduces their offer after initially agreeing a price with a seller, this is known as gazundering.
Gazundering typically occurs just before the exchange of contracts, when the seller is left with little choice but to accept the buyer’s reduced offer.
Green deal
The Green deal is a government-backed initiative that enables homeowners to make energy saving improvements and pay for them through their energy bills over time.
Ground rent
Ground rent is charged by freeholders to leaseholders and refers to the passing on of a fee in respect to the land a property is built on.
Ground rents are often small amounts per year over the term of the lease issued by the freeholder.
