ABSTRACT
The owner of a freehold property enjoys maximum ownership rights in perpetuity. The owner of a leasehold property enjoys restricted ownership rights for a limited term, namely for the length of the lease. The owner of a leasehold property is a tenant of that property, bound by the terms and conditions of the lease and required to pay rent for those restricted rights. The value of a leasehold estate in a specific property will generally be less than the value of a freehold estate in a similar property, the actual difference will depend upon the length of the lease, the extent to which the ownership rights are restricted by the terms and conditions of the lease and according to how much rent is payable to the landlord or freeholder as a condition of the lease and upon the relationship of that rent to the market rent that would be paid for the right to occupy that property.
