Legal Advice

G_M

AdrianC wrote: »

Should council tax also include the common areas of flats?
Apart from the lack of a roof, is there a big difference between those and the common areas of estate developments?

Indeed. In fact all 'shared' buildings should really be maintained by the council (or some other state bureaucracy), with costs coming from one or other of the taxation systems.

Ideally of course, this would extend to non-shared property too, which would also be owned/maintained by the state, with the occupants having nothing to worry about apart from living in them.

AdrianC

G_M wrote: »

Ideally of course, this would extend to non-shared property too, which would also be owned/maintained by the state, with the occupants having nothing to worry about apart from living in them.

...in a state-approved (and monitored for compliance) manner, of course.

libf

AdrianC wrote: »

Should council tax also include the common areas of flats?
Apart from the lack of a roof, is there a big difference between those and the common areas of estate developments?

That's different. The streetlights and open green spaces are usable by those on the new estate and others living in the town if they so choose. The roof is only usable by the block of flats.

PaulC5

Is it worth asking to buy the freehold and is there any advantages in doing so other than the saving I would make from not paying the yearly £250 to Redrow?

Edit.. Just reading up here now - http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/mortgages/buy-freehold-right-to-manage

AdrianC

How many people will be needed to get to 50% of leaseholders? The freehold is going to be for the entire development, not just your house.

PaulC5

AdrianC wrote: »

How many people will be needed to get to 50% of leaseholders? The freehold is going to be for the entire development, not just your house.

So I cant ask to buy the freehold for the land just my house is on unless at least 50% of the estate agrees to buy there freehold that there houses sits on?

I understand this in blocks of flats but my house is on its own not sharing any land with clear boundaries.

I think they plan to build 130 houses in total, mine is plot number 11 with no houses being occupied yet.

wastedtalent

From what I've seen in Manchester leasehold seems fairly standard for Taylor-Wimpy developments.

AdrianC

PaulC5 wrote: »

So I cant ask to buy the freehold for the land just my house is on unless at least 50% of the estate agrees to buy there freehold that there houses sits on?

There isn't currently a freehold for just your house. The developer own a freehold for the entire development, and they lease a bit of it to you - just as the developer would own a freehold on an entire block of flats, and lease a bit of it it to a flat owner.

Think of your development as being a large and sprawling block of flats with a lot of open corridors, and you've got the basic legal situation of it.

If they sold off all the freeholds of the individual properties, what would happen with all the common areas? The council aren't responsible for maintaining them, because they're unadopted.

PaulC5

AdrianC wrote: »

If they sold off all the freeholds of the individual properties, what would happen with all the common areas? The council aren't responsible for maintaining them, because they're unadopted.

Is that not what the Maintenance Charge is for at £186.73 per year?

libf

PaulC5 wrote: »

Is that not what the Maintenance Charge is for at £186.73 per year?

In the current situation where all house owners are leaseholders, yes. In the situation where you all buy individual freeholds, then there is no-one left to maintain the unadopted areas.