What Is a Tyneside Flat?

Updated: 9 July 2025

Tyneside flats are a distinctive style of property found predominantly in the North East of England, with origins dating back to the 1860s. Often referred to as criss-cross or crossover flats, they are also associated with what’s known as a Tyneside lease.

These flats are typically divided into two categories—North Tyneside and South Tyneside—based on their location and legal structure, which we’ll explore in more detail below.

Buying a Tyneside Flat?

North Tyneside Flats

North Tyneside flats are the more common of the two types. Externally, they resemble traditional terraced houses, often with two front doors positioned side by side. One door leads directly into the ground floor flat, while the other opens into a private hallway and staircase leading to the upper flat. Importantly, there are no shared internal communal areas.

Understanding the Lease

Each flat is sold on a long lease. If only one flat in the building has been sold, the original owner retains the freehold and becomes the landlord of the sold flat. Once both flats are sold, each owner becomes the landlord of the other. This reciprocal arrangement is reflected in mirror-image leases, which grant equal rights and responsibilities to both parties.

This unique structure means you and your neighbour will each have a legal interest in the other’s flat. This is particularly important when it comes to matters such as repairs, structural alterations, and building insurance. It also allows both parties to legally enforce the terms of the lease—known as covenants—ensuring mutual accountability.

If you’re purchasing the upper flat, you’ll typically be responsible for the roof and loft space, while the ground floor owner will usually maintain the foundations.

What Is a Peppercorn Lease?

You may come across the term peppercorn rent in the lease. This simply refers to a nominal ground rent—essentially, it means no actual payment is required.

If you’re buying with a mortgage, your lender will require their legal charge to be registered against both the leasehold and freehold titles associated with your flat.

South Tyneside Flats

While similar in layout to their northern counterparts, South Tyneside flats differ in legal structure. Typically, the ground floor flat is leasehold, but the owner does not hold the freehold of the upper flat. Instead, the upper flat owner usually owns the freehold for the entire building, making them the landlord of the downstairs flat.

This difference in ownership structure can affect how responsibilities and rights are managed, so it’s important to understand the implications before you buy.

Contact our Tyneside Flat Property Specialists

Please contact our experienced and approachable team who can provide you with full advice on a Tyneside flat set up during the course of the conveyancing. We have expert local knowledge on these matters which are unique to our part of the country. We find that clients who instruct a local firm when selling or buying a Tyneside flat experience a much smoother process as often solicitors out of our area do not understand the title set up.

Contact Hayley Baker in our Property Team on 0191 243 8167 or email her at hayley.baker@davidgray.co.uk for more information or a quote if looking to buy or sell a Tyneside flat.