Shared Freehold - help

rqmiller

My mother-in-law (aged 77) lives in her own flat which is part of a development of six properties. She is a Director of a management company set up to manage the communal aspects of the properties and she owns one fifth of the freehold. Three of the properties are now owned by young couples working in the City (of London).

They are planning expensive changes, including the installation of electric gates and other items. My mother-in-law has no mortgage, but does live from month to month. She has no means by which to contribute financially to the costs of the changes afoot. The other property owners seem prepared to push through the plans regardless of this.

Does she have any legal protection in these circumstances? If you can help in any way it would be appreciated. recently widowed, she is very distressed by this additional pressure on her doorstep.

phead

If this was a freehold/leaseholder charge I would be tempted to ask http://www.lease-advice.org , they can be quite helpful. This isn't but I would ask anyway.

A normal service charge can be challenged on the basis that it is unnecessary, that may be the case here.

Richard_Webster

The leases will provide the items for which a service charge can be levied. In some cases there will be things the freeholder company must do and a range of things they can do, and if they do them, then they can charge for them.

You will have to look at your mother in law's lease to see what can be charged for and what can't. Sometimes there is a vague power for the freeholder to do new things (modern leases tend have this because solicitors are conscious of how things may change in the future).

If the lease doesn't have vague clauses allowing the freeholder to do new things then the company may not be able to charge for them so your MIL can simply refuse to pay. It will depend on the lease and she would need to see a solicitor to go through it all properly.

Also the company would have to decide by majority vote to do these new things, but I guess your MIL doesn't think she stands much chance of getting a majority against the proposals.