Legal Guide
The TA7 Form Explained
The TA7 is the leasehold information form sellers complete when selling a flat in England and Wales. It records the seller's knowledge of building management, costs, disputes, alterations, consents and building safety. This guide covers what it asks, who completes it, and the common pitfalls.
A Practical View of the TA7
The TA7 sits in the contract pack alongside the lease, the title, the LPE1 management pack, the TA6 (general property information) and the TA10 (fittings and contents). Together these documents are what the buyer's solicitor reviews to confirm that the leasehold flat is what it appears to be: legally clear, free of disputes, properly managed, with predictable costs.
The TA7 is the seller's contribution to that picture. It records what the seller knows about how the building works in practice. Some of it is straightforward (who manages the building, who the freeholder is). Some of it is more sensitive (have there been disputes, were any alterations made without consent). The form is a disclosure exercise; honest, careful answers protect the seller from misrepresentation claims and protect the sale from late surprises.
The most common practical advice on the TA7 is to start it early. The form itself is short, but the supporting information often takes weeks to gather from the managing agent. Starting on day one of the sale, before listing, removes the most common cause of TA7-related delay.
What the TA7 Form Is
The TA7 (Leasehold Information Form) is a Law Society standard document used in England and Wales when selling a leasehold property. It is completed by the seller and provides the buyer with the seller's knowledge of the leasehold-specific aspects of the flat: who manages it, what it costs, any disputes, alterations made, consents obtained, complaints made or received, and building safety status.
The form sits in the contract pack alongside the TA6 (covering general property information for any sale) and the TA10 (covering fittings and contents). Together these three Law Society forms are the seller's contribution to the conveyancing pack. The buyer's solicitor reviews them, raises pre-contract enquiries on anything unclear, and uses the answers to advise the buyer.
The TA7 is mandatory for leasehold sales in England and Wales. It is not legally compulsory in the sense that a sale cannot complete without it, but in practice every buyer's solicitor and every mortgage lender will require it. Selling without one is realistic only on cash sales to specialist buyers who accept the risk, and the price impact on those routes is typically material.
Why the TA7 Matters
Three reasons.
- It is the buyer's primary source of seller-side information. The lease is the contract; the LPE1 is the building manager's view; the TA7 is the seller's view. Buyers rely heavily on it when deciding whether to proceed and what to offer.
- Mortgage lenders require it before issuing a final offer. Many of the TA7 sections (building safety, planned major works, lease length status) are directly relevant to the lender's underwriting. A delayed or incomplete TA7 typically delays the mortgage offer.
- It forms part of the contract. Information in the TA7 becomes part of what the buyer is purchasing on. Errors or omissions can give rise to misrepresentation claims after completion. An honest TA7 with appropriate caveats is the best protection.
The combined effect: the TA7 sits squarely on the critical path. The form itself does not take long to complete; the supporting information sometimes does. Treating it as a priority on day one of the sale, rather than reactively when the buyer's solicitor asks for it, removes the friction.
The Ten Sections of the TA7
The form is divided into ten main sections. Each one asks for specific information about a different aspect of the leasehold.
1. Ownership and management
Who owns the freehold, whether the leaseholders collectively control the management (Right to Manage company, residents' management company), and how day-to-day operations are handled (managing agent, freeholder direct, or self-managed).
2. Documents
Confirmation that the seller can provide key documents: the lease itself, recent service charge accounts, building insurance details, management company documents, and any deeds of variation.
3. Contact details
Names and contact information for the freeholder, the managing agent, and any management company. The buyer's solicitor uses these to raise enquiries and to confirm freeholder consents post-completion.
4. Maintenance and service charges
Buildings insurance arrangements, service charge amounts and frequency, any planned major works, history of past increases, ongoing disputes about charges, and any outstanding payments. This section is often the longest because it intersects with the LPE1 supporting documents.
5. Notices
Any formal legal notices received about the building: notices of building sales (Section 5 notices under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987), repair notices, health and safety notices, or maintenance issues.
6. Consents
Any permissions previously obtained from the landlord or management for lease changes, alterations, subletting, or pets. The presence or absence of consents on past changes is critical.
7. Complaints
Disclosure of formal or informal complaints made by the seller about the flat or building (against neighbours, the freeholder, the managing agent) or made against the seller (by neighbours, the freeholder).
8. Alterations
Any alterations made to the flat (knock-throughs, kitchen replacements, bathroom changes, structural modifications) and whether the relevant landlord consent was obtained at the time. Alterations without consent are a common issue and need handling carefully.
9. Enfranchisement
Rights to extend the lease or to acquire the freehold (collective enfranchisement). Whether any formal notices have been served. Whether the seller is in the middle of a Section 42 lease extension that could be assigned to the buyer at completion.
10. Building safety, cladding and deeds of certificate
The post-Grenfell building safety section: any fire safety concerns, status of EWS1 forms, any remediation works in progress or planned, and any leaseholder certificates needed under the Building Safety Act 2022 leaseholder protections.
Who Completes the TA7
The seller completes the TA7 with guidance from their conveyancing solicitor. The solicitor explains the questions, reviews the answers for accuracy, and helps gather supporting documents from the managing agent and freeholder. The seller bears ultimate responsibility for the accuracy of the information.
The solicitor's role is to help, not to substitute. Solicitors can advise on the legal effect of an answer (what counts as a complaint, whether a particular alteration needed consent), but they cannot answer questions about what actually happened during the seller's ownership. That part has to come from the seller's own knowledge.
Where the seller is unsure (the flat was bought a long time ago and records are incomplete; alterations were made by a previous owner; the seller is selling on behalf of a deceased owner under probate), the standard practice is to use phrases such as "to the best of my knowledge" or "the seller is not aware of any" rather than guessing. Honest uncertainty is materially safer than a confident wrong answer that surfaces post-completion.
Timeline for Completion
The form itself takes 1 to 2 hours for a simple flat where all the supporting information is to hand. For complex or older properties, completion can take several weeks because of the time needed to gather supporting documents from the managing agent.
The bottleneck is almost always the supporting paperwork rather than the form completion itself. Service charge accounts, insurance certificates, fire risk assessments, and any historical consents typically come from the managing agent, who may take weeks to provide them. The TA7 questions can often be answered provisionally at first, with the supporting documents added as they arrive.
Practical sequence:
- Day 1: Solicitor instructed; LPE1 ordered from managing agent; TA7 started by the seller.
- Days 1-7: Seller answers what they know; supporting documents requested.
- Weeks 2-4: Supporting documents arrive; TA7 finalised; uploaded to the contract pack.
- From listing onwards: Buyer's solicitor reviews the contract pack including the TA7. Pre-contract enquiries follow.
Common Problems on the TA7
A handful of recurring issues come up on the TA7 across most leasehold sales.
- Managing agent delays. Service charge accounts, insurance certificates and fire risk assessments often take weeks to arrive. The TA7 cannot be finalised without them. The fix is to order them on day one rather than waiting.
- Vague or missing answers. Unclear responses (such as a blank field, or "n/a" where a substantive answer is needed) trigger pre-contract enquiries from the buyer's solicitor. Each round of enquiries adds days to the conveyancing.
- Historic disputes. Even resolved disputes need disclosing. Concealing them in the hope they will not surface is risky; the buyer often discovers them through the LPE1 anyway, and concealment damages trust mid-conveyancing.
- Service charge surprises. A planned major works programme that the seller had forgotten about, or a recent service charge increase, can prompt the buyer to renegotiate or withdraw. Disclosing and pricing in upfront is the safer approach.
- Alterations without consent. Many sellers are surprised to learn the alterations they made (or that previous owners made) required formal landlord consent. Retrospective regularisation is usually possible but takes time and a fee.
- Building safety uncertainty. An ambiguous EWS1 status, or remediation works that are planned but not yet started, can pause mortgage offers. Clear documentation, or a deed of certificate under the Building Safety Act 2022, is the resolution.
Short Lease and Building Safety: Particular Care
Two areas of the TA7 attract heightened scrutiny: lease length (where short or close to thresholds) and building safety (where post-Grenfell regulations apply).
Short lease
The TA7's enfranchisement section (section 9) covers the seller's lease length, whether they qualify to extend, and whether any extension notice has been served. For a flat with a lease close to or below 80 years, this section is critical because it determines mortgage availability for the buyer.
The 31 January 2025 abolition of the two-year ownership requirement for statutory lease extensions means any leaseholder can now begin the extension process from day one. Where the seller is part-way through a Section 42 notice, the benefit can be assigned to the buyer at completion. Where extension is realistic but not yet started, the seller may want to consider whether to begin it before listing. For more on the calculation, see our marriage value guide.
Building safety
The TA7's building safety section (section 10) is where post-Grenfell regulation lands directly on the seller. EWS1 form status, any cladding remediation in progress, and any leaseholder protections under the Building Safety Act 2022 all come up here. For buildings within scope, this section can determine whether mortgage buyers can proceed at all.
Where the EWS1 is not yet available, or where remediation works are being scheduled, the seller's solicitor can advise on what to record. Where the building qualifies for leaseholder protections (cost protections under the Act), a deed of certificate may be needed; the freeholder's building safety team typically issues these.
Practical Tips for Sellers
Six practical points across the TA7.
- Start it on day one. Before listing, in parallel with instructing your solicitor and ordering the LPE1.
- Use "to the best of my knowledge" where unsure. Honest uncertainty is safer than confident error. Your solicitor can advise on phrasing.
- Treat it as disclosure, not marketing. The TA7 is not a place to soften, downplay or omit. Buyers expect honesty; the form is part of the contract basis.
- Gather supporting documents proactively. Service charge accounts, insurance schedules, fire risk assessments, consent letters, EWS1 forms. Each request to the managing agent takes time; making them all in parallel saves weeks.
- Disclose what is true even if uncomfortable. Past disputes, alterations without consent, complaints. The cost of disclosure is a buyer who may renegotiate; the cost of concealment is a sale that fails or post-completion liability.
- Where the answer is genuinely complex, talk to your solicitor first. Some questions (such as those involving Building Safety Act protections, or Section 42 lease extension status) need careful drafting. Your solicitor will know the right wording for your specific situation.
Related Reading
The legal hub covers the wider legal side of selling. The LPE1 guide covers the management pack that sits alongside the TA7 in the contract pack.
Frequently Asked Questions
The TA7 (Leasehold Information Form) is a Law Society standard document used in England and Wales when selling a leasehold property. It is completed by the seller, with their solicitor's guidance, and provides the buyer with the seller's knowledge of the leasehold-specific aspects of the property: who manages it, what it costs, any disputes, alterations, consents, complaints, and building safety status.
The seller completes the TA7, with guidance from their conveyancing solicitor. The solicitor explains the questions, reviews the answers for accuracy, and helps gather supporting documents from the managing agent and freeholder. The seller bears ultimate responsibility for the accuracy of the information; incorrect answers can give rise to misrepresentation claims after completion.
The form itself takes 1 to 2 hours for a simple flat where all the supporting information is to hand. For complex or older properties, completion can take several weeks because of the time needed to gather supporting documents from the managing agent. The bottleneck is usually the supporting paperwork rather than the form completion itself.
Use a phrase such as "to the best of my knowledge" rather than guessing. The TA7 is a disclosure form, not a marketing document. Where you do not know an answer, ask your solicitor; where the information needs to come from the managing agent, request it. An honest "I do not know" is materially safer than an inaccurate confident answer that turns out to be wrong post-completion.
Yes. Even resolved disputes need disclosing if the question asks about them. Buyers need to understand what has happened in the building's recent history; the disclosure protects you from later claims of non-disclosure. Resolved disputes rarely cause sales to fall through; concealed disputes that the buyer later discovers do.
Post-Grenfell building safety regulations (the Building Safety Act 2022 and the EWS1 form for external wall systems) are central to mortgage approval on many buildings. The TA7 captures whether an EWS1 has been provided, whether remediation works are in progress, and whether any leaseholder protections under the 2022 Act apply. Lenders rely on this information; missing or unclear answers can stall the mortgage offer.
Disclose them on the TA7. The freeholder typically retains the right to require retrospective consent (often called regularisation) at this stage. The seller's solicitor can apply for retrospective consent, which usually involves an application fee and sometimes a deed of variation if the alteration is significant. Concealing alterations can derail the sale if the buyer's solicitor discovers them, and creates personal liability for the seller post-completion.
On the day you decide to sell, ideally before listing. Starting the TA7 pre-listing means the supporting information is being gathered while marketing runs, so by the time an offer arrives the form is largely ready. Starting it after offer acceptance is the standard pattern but adds weeks to the conveyancing timeline; getting ahead of it is one of the simplest ways to keep a leasehold sale on track.