Leasehold query

rhetse1

I live in a block of four flats, I bought the flat 2 years ago, we each pay the freeholder £10 per year ground rent & we pay for our own buildings insurance. At some point in the past, (long before I moved in) they decided to split the responsibility for maintenance in half so that the ground floor & first floor flats were responsible for their side & vice versa on the other side, however, the lease clearly states that the building must be maintained & each “pay a proper proportion of costs for maintenance"

My elderly neighbour has a problem with water ingress and the roof needs some work, the current estimate is in excess of £2000, I am perfectly happy to pay my share of the costs but I know we will have problems getting the other 2 leaseholders to pay, I have to assume they think the terms of the lease don't apply to them. the building is 70 years old & maintenance will be ongoing.

I know my neighbour finds this situation very worrying & I want to help her, we also need to set a precedent & make the other leaseholders aware of the fact that they are equally responsible for the entire building not just their half, it doesn't help that they are in their late 70's & are contrary people.

My thoughts are to give them copies of the estimates along with a request for cleared funds before work can commence, they are entitled to get their own estimates if they wish. Does the freeholder have any input into this situation? I would be grateful for any advice.

Fire_Fox

Are you in England or Wales, or in Scotland? What does the long lease say about who organises the repairs, maintenance and buildings insurance? What did your conveyancing solicitor have to say about the current as hoc arrangements? Did you appoint someone specialising in leasehold?

In England and Wales it is usual for the freeholder to be organising all this and splitting the costs according to the lease. If so a formal consultation is supposed to be carried out if the costs are more than £250 per flat, you can't just randomly ask your neighbour for cleared funds! In fact would strongly recommend you don't given their ages - remember it could look like elder abuse/ manipulation of a vulnerable person. If there is nothing in the long lease about the freeholder's input you would be best seeking legal advice (specialist in leasehold disputes, not any old solicitor).

Also in that eventuality consider setting up a 'business' type/ tenants' bank account requiring dual signatures for any funds towards repairs and maintenance. Someone may also need to do prepare an annual statement of accounts which is another reason not to have other people's money passing through your bank. Sorry to seem cold but you should consider what happens if one of your neighbours passes away, property can sometimes be in probate for months or years, and it won't be easy to get money towards repairs and maintenance during that period.

Again assuming you are in England or Wales read as much of this as you can alongside your long lease http://www.lease-advice.org/publications/

propertyman

If the freeholder is responsible under the lease to carry out those repairs, and flat owners to repay as service charge, then it is the FH's responsibility to arrange.

Read your lease and see what it says, then contact the FH.

rhetse1

Thank you for taking the time to respond. Property is in England. Looking through my solicitors letters when buying the flat this is an edited version of a letter referring to the lease – While this is a leasehold it is slightly different, there are no service charges, insurance payments & no managing agents as such, Mr Anybody is the freeholder, ground rents are payable to him.

The previous owner took care of his external decoration as do the ground floor flat, they shared the cost of replacing the guttering, there have been no expenses relating to the driveway & path, Such arrangements have been in place for more than 20 years. The landlord is only involved with regard to payment of ground rent & nothing else.

The original lease – Lesee/s are responsible for buildings insurance against fire, storm tempest etc any damages must be repaired to the satisfaction of the Lessor or his agent.

Clause 3 - The Lessee Hereby Further Covenants with the Lessor and with the owners & Lessees of the other flats
(i) To maintain the building, keeping it in good repair etc
(ii) To pay a proper proportion of the costs of maintaining, repairing, renewing etc

There is a paragraph relating to what constitutes “proper proportion” Clause 3 (ii) if the lesees fail to agree proper proportion then the Lessor has a say, if this fails then surveyors decision shall be final & binding on all parties.

Essentially, can the terms of the lease be changed to this Ad Hoc arrangement, is it legally binding?

I feel sad for my neighbour since it seems to me we are all legally responsible for the repair to the roof, looking at Clause 3 (ii) the freeholder should be involved if there is a dispute about payment. I have offered to share the cost of a visit to the relevant solicitor if neccessary, I think the way forward is 2 further estimates, ( the FH has already sent his workman to give an estimate) and give the relevant paperwork to the people concerned, consulting the FH if there are disputes.