Figures show most leasehold flats in England do not find a buyer within six months, despite slashed prices

‘The market is dead for flats,” says Susan Young*, who has been trying for some time without success to sell her two-bed flat in a popular Devon seaside resort.

The first-floor property is in “immaculate condition”, Young says, thanks to the £15,000-£20,000 spent on renovations. It has “superb views” across the beach. And, perhaps most crucially, it is a freehold flat, so is untainted by the controversies associated with the discredited leasehold system.