2nd floor flat 100% responsible for roof ?

richimgd

Hi there,

I have seen a nice looking 2nd floor flat (which is in the roof). Its had new roof put on it in 1998 and it looks like it is in great condition currently.
The rule is the owner of this flat is responsible for the roof whereas the bottom flat is responsible for the lower part of the building and foundations. Has anyone heard about this type of arrangement before? I'm not just concerned that the major roof problems in future but even the small problems that may be encountered could be annoying. Because the flat its self is pretty big (950ft2) the roof is pretty massive too so inevitably expensive to work on relative to the cost of the property, potentially. From what I normally see everyone is jointly responsible for any building work by means of paying a 20% contribution for instance.

Can anyone make any suggestions? Is this unheard of or has anyone encountered it before?

What kind of ongoing maintenance expense is there likely to be on a roof? I know that a vague question, but if anyone has any suggestions that would be great. It is a 2 bedroom flat.

hazyjo

What does the middle flat contribute towards, if anything? If this is a 2nd floor flat, and there's a ground floor, does the middle one get away with paying nothing?

Are you going by what the lease says (or your solicitor), or word of mouth from owner/EA? I'd double check.

It's not uncommon for the top floor to be responsible for the roof and the ground floor to be responsible for something else. I would have thought that was more common in house conversions. Not sure if this one is.

When you say this one is 'in the roof' - is it basically a loft conversion then, or originally built like that?

If the roof's that new, presuming a 'normal pitched roof', it's not likely to incur huge expense/ongoing maintenance. More important to check gutters are clear. Obviously if a tile slips/comes off, it will need sorting. Same for any rotten facia boards, damaged flashings (is that the word?), etc. Same for leaks - common sense stuff really, unlikely to happen, but you never know after heavy rain/wind/snow, etc...

Jx

sirmosh

It's certainly more common for all occupants to share in works which affect the whole building but I've heard of strange arrangements like this before.

richimgd

Thanks for your reply. I'm just in the process of finding out. I think the middle flat would probably be escaping quite a lot of responsibility by the sounds of it, what I understand is each flat is responsible for any immediate building work connected to their flat directly. I have been speaking to the estate agent who is also a surveyor with 20 years experience. I have asked him numerous questions about the arrangement and currently waiting to hear back from an email. Any subsidence and drainage problems will be the problem of the garden flat - dont have that in writing yet though! As you say the middle flat would probably escape a lot of potentiol issues by the sounds of it. If this is the case I'm not sure if a full survey of the entire builing would be required?

I haven't spoken to a solicitor but by the sounds of it there is a lot of detail to cover. As the property would also be a big investment for me, I'm quite concerned with the resale potential if a future buyer has to accept responsibility with the roof.

cattie

I certainly wouldn't consider purchasing a flat where the middle flat has to make no contribution to essential works at all. Many decent solicitors would advise clients to think twice before buying such a property & it will be much more difficult to sell because of this odd arrangement.

It's one thing if it were just a 2 storey property, with the lower having responsibility for ground level & upper having responsibility for roof, which while not ideal or anything I would risk buying, is a lot fairer than 2 out of 3 occupiers having to cover the costs of major works.

hazyjo

Do not take what the EA says as gospel - chances are they won't have even seen the lease and will be going by what the vendor tells them (which could be anything - I doubt the EA would be held responsible for feeding you incorrect information!).

I'd only be discussing things like this with my solicitor.

I doubt you'd be able to get a full structural survey anyway as it's a flat. Homebuyer's report is the more likely option.

Jx

richimgd

@ cattie - I totally agree with you. I don’t really know much about the other flats - I assume there are 2 flats and since there is the ground floor and first floor - I need to clarify this!

@ hazyjo I have emailed the questions so I will see what I get back in writing as they are quite direct questions so will have to see how they are answered. Surely I could have some potential legal comeback or at least would be good to show a solicitor? I don't know how best to approach this now since I don't yet have a solicitor / contact. I do have a mortgage advisor who will be able to have all these contracts. He seems quite keen to negotiate deals for me regarding putting offers on properties on my behalf, but it to me sounds like he wants to claim some kind of commission. I think I am capable of negotiating a price myself but need help with talking over the legal issues for sure – would I be able to get some free initial advice about this would you say with your average solicitor?

One option could be to attempt to get in touch with the owner of the other flat and see if they wouldn’t mind talking to me about how things are with their property...

I think if I am concerned with the responsibilities with major building work, any future buyer will be also. This is the only negative as the rest of the property looks really nice and is in a good location etc.

propertyman

Sorry but there is not a lot of point debating it- you need to read your lease and the lease of the flat bellow to ensure adequate arrangements are in place for you.

jee

What kind of flat is this? Converted house or purpose built?
I am in the process of buying a top floor flat which also owns the roof space and the roof- therefore responsible for repairs. It's a converted house- split in the 70s.
Purpose built blocks often have a service charge which is split equally with leaseholders.
All leases are different and the only reason I even looked into the roof and who owns it is because it needs repairs.
Is there a freeholder or does the flat have a share of the freehold? If it has share of freehold it's easier to carry out repairs etc.

Uk_Lover

Maybe the owner lives in the middle flat ?

richimgd

Thanks for the replies.

@propertyman - thanks that's a fair comment - I have asked if I can have a copy to look at.

@jee -its an old converted semi detached house. I'm probably quite an old building not sure exactly how old but it looks to be in very good condition externally. This isn't the property, but the style of building is very similar: http://www.tpjsean1.co.uk/resize/RM953/0/500

@Uk Lover - that's a good point, would make sense if true! I think the EA has so far been quite evasive with answering the questions in person and my email hasn't been answered yet, but I only sent it a few hours ago so will give them a chance to get back to me properly.