&quot;this is the standard (only?) way of &quot;owning&quot; a flat in the UK&quot;<p>Maybe in England - its never worked like that for any flat I&#x27;ve owned here in Scotland, we have completely separate legislation covering such things:<p><a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.gov.scot&#x2F;Topics&#x2F;Justice&#x2F;law&#x2F;17975&#x2F;11023" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.gov.scot&#x2F;Topics&#x2F;Justice&#x2F;law&#x2F;17975&#x2F;11023</a>