A lease regulation

AdrianC

wherestheremote said:
Are you referring to laminate flooring? The flooring is not laminate. It’s real wood flooring with soundproofing.

Makes no difference whether it's lam or "engineered" strip or the original structural floorboards stripped and sanded.

The requirement is...
"Not to live in the Property unless all floors are covered in good quality carpet and underlay or such other equivalent sound deadening/absorbing material providing the same level of sound protection for the benefit of the Other Flat Owner and or occupiers of the flat comprised in the Other Lease"
If it's the original boards, it's the least likely to meet that test. Engineered or lam, same difference.

wherestheremote

AdrianC said:

wherestheremote said:
Are you referring to laminate flooring? The flooring is not laminate. It’s real wood flooring with soundproofing.

Makes no difference whether it's lam or "engineered" strip or the original structural floorboards stripped and sanded.

The requirement is...
"Not to live in the Property unless all floors are covered in good quality carpet and underlay or such other equivalent sound deadening/absorbing material providing the same level of sound protection for the benefit of the Other Flat Owner and or occupiers of the flat comprised in the Other Lease"
If it's the original boards, it's the least likely to meet that test. Engineered or lam, same difference.

It’s not laminate or engineered wood. It’s real wood flooring which I believe makes a difference. 

eddddy

davidmcn said:

eddddy said:

wherestheremote said:

I think I’ll just clarify if the wooden flooring is sufficient before proceeding. 

That approach probably won't work.   A sensible freeholder would not comment whether the floor conforms to the lease - they would simply say "read the lease".

Otherwise, the freeholder could say "yes - the wooden floor is ok", but then another leaseholder takes legal action and the court says "no - the wooden floor is not ok". You would then want to take action against the freeholder for misleading you. To avoid this, a sensible freeholder would refuse to comment.

If it were an existing lease, yes. But they're negotiating a new one, so why can't the current freeholder confirm whether or not they're satisfied with the current floor? 

If the freeholder changes the wording in the lease to clarify that a wooden floor is acceptable, that would be fine.

... but the structure of the leases will probably require the other flat's lease be changed to match. If there's a mortgage on that other lease, then the lender's consent will also be required.


If the wording of the lease isn't changed... whilst the other current leaseholder/joint-freeholder might confirm that they 'don't mind' about the wooden floor, they might sell to another leaseholder who does mind, and believes that the wooden floor is a breach of the lease. 

And most leases allow leaseholders to (directly or indirectly) have action taken against other leaseholders who are breaching their leases.

Jatinder34

wherestheremote said:

The property is a 1st floor maisonette on top of a ground floor flat. It has wooden flooring with soundproofing material underneath and the stairs are carpeted. 

1. Does the above mean that I need to change all the flooring to carpet? 

2. Could the current wood flooring with soundproofing quality ?

I think it is not required to change the flooring to anything until the beneath ground floor flat landlord has any complaint or has asked to do so.