Freeholder varying lease without authority

thingsmustchange

Hi
I wonder if anyone could help me with my lease please?

I am a leaseholder of a flat in a block of 4. Another of the flats is also owned by a leaseholder, the other two were retained by the freeholder.
It is a large house that was extended and converted on a busy main road so in coversion they made the garden out back a carpark with 4 spaces - one each. Other houses along the road have this sort of set up along with garages at the end of the gardens as there is a road giving access at the end of the gardens. Basically as you look past our carpark there seems to be three garages, in actual fact there are two garages that the freeholder lets out, the third has a garage door front but no back, we drive through it which is how we access the carpark. There is no other way to get to the carpark as the alleyways are too narrow.

Sorry that is hard to explain. But basically I have just been down to pot a plant and found a notice inside the 'fake' garage saying the freeholder is converting it into a proper garage ie taking away our access and effectively remmoving the use of a parking space.

My lease gives me the right to a parking space and the right to access it.
When the 'fake' garage door broke last October the new one was paid for out of our service charges as it forms part of the property we are liable for.

Where do we stand with this?
No formal notice has been given to us, I certainly wouldn't have paid quite as much for my flat with no parking space nor bought a flat with one of the views being a carpark that can't be used as one.

Can anyone please give me any advice, I feel like the value of my flat has just plummeted in a few short seconds eek!

Thanks

G_M

What exactly does your lease say
a) about access
b) about parking?

What does the Plan attached to the lease show? Does it indicate where the parking spot is?

Once you've established what your rights are, you can write a friendly note to the freeholder, enclosing a copy, and saying that as you have seen the the notice you thought you would remind him of what your lease entitles you to.

thingsmustchange

Hi
Thank you so muuch for replying, I'm v.worried!

a)
'Rights granted with the property':
For acces to the property, the right to use at any time the pathways driveways and main enterances to the building and the right to use the common parts of to obtain access to the property.
b)
'The Property' is Flat 3 XXXX, XXX Road aforesaid shown edged red on the plan attached and the car parking space shown edged in blue on the plan both being part of the building.

The plan attached is marked as per the lease above. My flat plus the parking space in the car park.

The freeholder is a big company, owns quite a few properties in our area, is known for cutting corners and doing what they want, I guarantee the most attention he will pay to a note will be to drop it in to the shredder.....

Now I know I sound negative and I know I need to start somewhere. Hmmm maybe a recorded letter!

olly300

http://www.lease-advice.org/

And yes send all your letters by recorded delivery and keep a copy plus the receipt. The company then won't be able to argue you didn't send them.

thingsmustchange

Thank you

G_M

olly300 wrote: »

...And yes send all your letters by recorded delivery and keep a copy plus the receipt. The company then won't be able to argue you didn't send them.

Assuming they sign for/accept the letter.....

G_M

thingsmustchange wrote: »

Hi
Thank you so muuch for replying, I'm v.worried!

a)
'Rights granted with the property':
For acces to the property, the right to use at any time the pathways driveways and main enterances to the building and the right to use the common parts of to obtain access to the property.
Being negative, from your description you do not currently use a 'pathway, driveway or main entrance' to get to the parking space. You go through a garage.... !?
b)
'The Property' is Flat 3 XXXX, XXX Road aforesaid shown edged red on the plan attached and the car parking space shown edged in blue on the plan both being part of the building.
Being positive, if you are allocated a car parking space, there is a strong implication that you must be given access to it - otherwise it could not be described as such - it would merely be a piece of land.

The plan attached is marked as per the lease above. My flat plus the parking space in the car park.

The freeholder is a big company, owns quite a few properties in our area, is known for cutting corners and doing what they want, I guarantee the most attention he will pay to a note will be to drop it in to the shredder.....

Now I know I sound negative and I know I need to start somewhere. Hmmm maybe a recorded letter!

You seem to have a clear case.

As yet, all you have is a rather vague notice.

You need to seek clarification of the freeholder's plans, without, at this stage, being confrontational.

ValHaller

thingsmustchange wrote: »

a)
'Rights granted with the property':
For acces to the property, the right to use at any time the pathways driveways and main enterances to the building and the right to use the common parts of to obtain access to the property.

A little bit of research now may make things easier.

I suspect the freeholder will try to claim that the mock garage is not part of the access. If you can establish that the mock garage postdates your lease, that argument can be more easily knocked on the head.

G_M

ValHaller wrote: »

A little bit of research now may make things easier.

I suspect the freeholder will try to claim that the mock garage is not part of the access. If you can establish that the mock garage postdates your lease, that argument can be more easily knocked on the head.

I agree.

Though that is why I made the point that for a piece of land to be described as 'a car parking space' it must by definition have a means of access for a car. Otherwise it is a garden. Or if paved, a patio. Not a car parking space.

Sinceyou say "There is no other way to get to the carpark as the alleyways are too narrow" that just leaves the garage.

You also mention:

When the 'fake' garage door broke last October the new one was paid for out of our service charges as it forms part of the property we are liable for.

Where/how in the lease are you made liable for the garage maintenance? Is it described as 'common parts'? Doesitappear on the Plan (in red? blue?).

olly300

G_M wrote: »

Assuming they sign for/accept the letter.....

Nope makes no difference with companies and large organisations.

Though company/organisation must not be a sole trader.

I've been to court and had disputes that were resolved with various regulators.

Some of the companies involved tried to claim they didn't receive the letters and weren't believed. (Oddly those regulated by the FOS don't if you send a recorded delivery letter once.)

Basically companies have an legal address for the service of notices. The Post Office and Royal Mail are neutral third parties.

So if you send a letter to a company to their address for notices, use the Post Office and RM, and can prove it the judge/adjudicator decides it's highly likely you sent it.

If you send more than two letters about the matter reasonably spaced apart and can prove it which are then not answered or declared not received, the judge/adjudicator normally decides the other party are playing a dirty game.

thingsmustchange

You are all very kind to reply, thank you so much.

My OH is going to call the manaegement company and see what details he can get tomorrow but we will write a letter.

I have managed to find the file with the plans for the whole building. Our flat is edged in red. Our parking space is edged in blue - although in practice no-one gives a fig which space is which, just that there are four in the carpark plus two in the 'proper' garages which are rented by the freeholder. This is all shown on the plans together with the third 'mock' garage with the following details on the plans:

'Rear Access'
'Dotted line indicates existing garage, roof continued over, vehicular access under'

It shows a movement arrow going under the third garage and to the left and right (indicating you can exit the garage either way).

The two proper garages are edged in thicker pen to show they are a building (like the flats) whereas the third mock garage is just dotted lines.

These are the plans from when the original building was convered from a house (which was an old fashioned hardware store) in to flats. We were given a copy with the lease when we bought.

I'm hoping this along with the lease clauses will be enough to stop any action, as I think it will affect the price of our flat.... although I can see the freeholder causing trouble or just going ahead with it because he has the money to pay legal fees and we don't!!