Terminating Lease for Landlord's Failure, and Small Claims Court for Financial Loss?

AdrianC

fly_pips said:

AdrianC said:

fly_pips said:

I would like to know if I can have my lease terminated on the grounds that my Landlord has not allowed me peaceful enjoyment of my property, and if I can take my landlord to the small claims court for financial loss.

Here are my reasons why:

1 - I purchased a percentage of a new-build shared ownership leasehold flat, in March 2016 (before the Grenfell Tower fire), and after 2 months I was informed that it was not adequately fire safe. I was told I would have to move in to temporary accommodation while they turn it in to a building site again, and demolish walls and ceilings. I complained through the housing association's complaints process (got no where), and the housing ombudsman and nothing came from it.

The day came when I had to pack everything and move for many months - and I then returned, the interior was ok, but there were some defects, but beyond that, I then got a letter saying they will now work on the outside of the property. I have been excluded from my terrace (I no longer have access), and this has been going on for months and months, and I have no idea or concrete date for when this will be complete. Every day there is constant noise, drilling, hammering and banging. It's a nightmare.

I am not legally allowed to sell my share due to the fire safety defects, so I am essentially trapped in the lease. For the reasons stated above (not being able to peacefully enjoy this flat from the very beginning of my occupancy, and that fact that I can't legally sell), I asked the landlord to purchase my share back. They refused, and I am trapped in the lease. Can I have the lease terminated for the above reasons?

2 - I have had my first child and plan to have more, and as this was a small flat I wanted to sell and move in to a home. I wanted to use the Help to Buy Equity Scheme which has now come to a close for home movers in December 2020. As I was unable to legally sell my share, I was not able to use this scheme, because it is not open to anyone owning two properties at once (so I lost the government's financial support, 5 years no payments on up to 40% of a £600,000 home in London). I probably won't have the chance to buy a home in London now without this support. Additionally the Stamp Duty holiday is now coming to a close and I will lose £15,000 tax savings also. I want to know can I use the small claims court to sue for financial loss?


Again, sorry if this is not the right place for these questions, please guide me to any more appropriate subsections or sites.

Any help and advice would be much appreciated, whether that means seeking legal advice (recommendations welcome), or just a general it's not worth it, or yes you can but etc...

It's been a nightmare living here since 2016, I hope it ends one day.

So let me get this straight...

You are in a block that has cladding issues.
The freeholder are currently fixing that cladding.
You want to walk away from the property BECAUSE they're fixing it?

There is a difference between "legally unable" to sell, and "not easy to sell to anybody with a mortgage".

Do you read or just say what comes to your mind?

Perhaps you'd be so kind as to clarify, if I've misunderstood you.

Cakeguts

I don't understand what you need advice about.  You have a flat that is being repaired by the freeholder and you want to hand the keys back to the lender and walk away from the situation without any comeback from being able to get another mortgage because you can't use your balcony? How often in the last month have you wanted to sit on your balcony? 

SpiderLegs

fly_pips said:

SpiderLegs said:

fly_pips said:

Cant sell also doesn’t mean ‘won’t sell at a loss’. I don’t have a mortgage on my share and the value of the home would be more or less break even or a few % above. So I’m not sure why people make assumptions. 

I asked for any advice or guidance, not criticism. 

You can initiate a claim for your financial loss if you believe it has been caused by the freeholder
since you won’t sell at a loss then you clearly have nothing to claim for.

Again, some one who does not read or comprehend well.

This post was for help or advice, not unfounded assumptions or criticism. You do not need to post here. Please save your time for something more useful.

Oh lord we’ve got one of those posters have we.

ok then , yes you can sue and are due at least 250k in compensation.

Is that more like you were hoping to read?

greatcrested

SpiderLegs said:

fly_pips said:

SpiderLegs said:

fly_pips said:

Cant sell also doesn’t mean ‘won’t sell at a loss’. I don’t have a mortgage on my share and the value of the home would be more or less break even or a few % above. So I’m not sure why people make assumptions. 

I asked for any advice or guidance, not criticism. 

You can initiate a claim for your financial loss if you believe it has been caused by the freeholder
since you won’t sell at a loss then you clearly have nothing to claim for.

Again, some one who does not read or comprehend well.

This post was for help or advice, not unfounded assumptions or criticism. You do not need to post here. Please save your time for something more useful.

Oh lord we’ve got one of those posters have we.

ok then , yes you can sue and are due at least 250k in compensation.

Is that more like you were hoping to read?

Come on spiderLegs - you've been around the forum a while now and know better than that!

OP asked about 'small Claims'. OP can certainly sue and claim £250K but that would exceed the Small Claims Track limit of £10,000.

SpiderLegs

greatcrested said:

SpiderLegs said:

fly_pips said:

SpiderLegs said:

fly_pips said:

Cant sell also doesn’t mean ‘won’t sell at a loss’. I don’t have a mortgage on my share and the value of the home would be more or less break even or a few % above. So I’m not sure why people make assumptions. 

I asked for any advice or guidance, not criticism. 

You can initiate a claim for your financial loss if you believe it has been caused by the freeholder
since you won’t sell at a loss then you clearly have nothing to claim for.

Again, some one who does not read or comprehend well.

This post was for help or advice, not unfounded assumptions or criticism. You do not need to post here. Please save your time for something more useful.

Oh lord we’ve got one of those posters have we.

ok then , yes you can sue and are due at least 250k in compensation.

Is that more like you were hoping to read?

Come on spiderLegs - you've been around the forum a while now and know better than that!

OP asked about 'small Claims'. OP can certainly sue and claim £250K but that would exceed the Small Claims Track limit of £10,000.

Silly me!

fly_pips

Cakeguts said:

I don't understand what you need advice about.  You have a flat that is being repaired by the freeholder and you want to hand the keys back to the lender and walk away from the situation without any comeback from being able to get another mortgage because you can't use your balcony? How often in the last month have you wanted to sit on your balcony? 

'Hand keys back to the lender?'
As I said I do not have a lender. You could take the time to read, instead of posting. 

I've wanted to use my terrace everyday to exercise as there are no gyms open. 

Why do you narrow what I say to a balcony, and ignore all other information?

A new build flat should not be sold as fire safe if it is not, just for a developer to gather funds and then drop on the buyers that 'oh really it's not fire safe, we just said that to make a sale. Now comes the building work which will last 5 years +'.

Really I don't know what the experiences are of the people on this forum, but clearly just that fact that some one is repairing the external cladding would be enough to make them happy. I sympathise with those who do have a cladding issue and are facing the costs, but that also should not be happening to them. Regardless of this, my situation is not confined to a cladding crisis, and has gone on longer than that.

fly_pips

SpiderLegs said:

fly_pips said:

SpiderLegs said:

fly_pips said:

Cant sell also doesn’t mean ‘won’t sell at a loss’. I don’t have a mortgage on my share and the value of the home would be more or less break even or a few % above. So I’m not sure why people make assumptions. 

I asked for any advice or guidance, not criticism. 

You can initiate a claim for your financial loss if you believe it has been caused by the freeholder
since you won’t sell at a loss then you clearly have nothing to claim for.

Again, some one who does not read or comprehend well.

This post was for help or advice, not unfounded assumptions or criticism. You do not need to post here. Please save your time for something more useful.

Oh lord we’ve got one of those posters have we.

ok then , yes you can sue and are due at least 250k in compensation.

Is that more like you were hoping to read?

No it's not what I was hoping to read, I am not after excessive compensation - or anything far-fetched. 
I would seek the difference between borrowing government funds at 1.75% and what I would find on a standard mortgage, and a stamp duty tax saving of around £15k. It's nothing like what you are suggesting.

numbercruncher8

Look, you aren't going to get the advice you want here, and the nice way of putting it is because nobody would think that what you are suggesting is possible.

It may be easier for you to seek advice in a more appropriate way - there are plenty of solicitors out there who may give you a free initial consultation to ascertain whether you have a case or not.

If you do get progress that way, why not update it here then? There are hundreds of thousands of people presumably in the same position that you are in and I'm sure it would be most useful for them.

AdrianC

fly_pips said:

Cakeguts said:

I don't understand what you need advice about.  You have a flat that is being repaired by the freeholder and you want to hand the keys back to the lender and walk away from the situation without any comeback from being able to get another mortgage because you can't use your balcony? How often in the last month have you wanted to sit on your balcony? 

'Hand keys back to the lender?'
As I said I do not have a lender.

That makes "just handing the keys back and walking away" even stranger.

First off, not many people buy a %age of a shared ownership outright. It's a strange thing to do - if you have the equity to put down 40%, you'd usually be looking at using that alongside a smaller mortgage to purchase entirely.
 
You've already said the HA won't buy your share back - so where would you get your equity back from if the lease was "cancelled"? If it was cancelled, your %age ownership would cease to exist - because that's what you've paid your money for.

I have to admit to being completely baffled about what you want. No, there's no way to force the HA to compulsorily purchase your %age back. They have first refusal, and they've declined to exercise it. So you would need to sell your %age on the open market. It may not be mortgageable, until the cladding is resolved, and - as already stated - cash purchasing a shared ownership is unusual. Also, while the work is ongoing you would have to take a further hit on the price.

A new build flat should not be sold as fire safe if it is not

At the time it was sold, it was believed to be, to the best of everybody's knowledge.
Understanding of the products used changed in the aftermath of Grenfell.
Those products are currently being replaced on your block. A bit of patience, and you will have a saleable flat again.
There are many people in a far worse position than you.

[Deleted User]

fly_pips said:

Cakeguts said:

I don't understand what you need advice about.  You have a flat that is being repaired by the freeholder and you want to hand the keys back to the lender and walk away from the situation without any comeback from being able to get another mortgage because you can't use your balcony? How often in the last month have you wanted to sit on your balcony? 

'Hand keys back to the lender?'
As I said I do not have a lender. You could take the time to read, instead of posting. 

I've wanted to use my terrace everyday to exercise as there are no gyms open. 

Why do you narrow what I say to a balcony, and ignore all other information?

A new build flat should not be sold as fire safe if it is not, just for a developer to gather funds and then drop on the buyers that 'oh really it's not fire safe, we just said that to make a sale. Now comes the building work which will last 5 years +'.

Really I don't know what the experiences are of the people on this forum, but clearly just that fact that some one is repairing the external cladding would be enough to make them happy. I sympathise with those who do have a cladding issue and are facing the costs, but that also should not be happening to them. Regardless of this, my situation is not confined to a cladding crisis, and has gone on longer than that.

There are threads on the forum from posters who would pee their pants with delight if the freeholder was addressing fire safety issues.  I understand that the work being done is incredibly disruptive but it could be worse, a lot work.  Whilst the rental tenancy portion of your contract might entitle you to quiet enjoyment that is not an absolute right that trumps everything else.  The landlord also has a duty of care to ensure the property is safe.