Housing law news and comment
We have had confirmation that the appeal of the decision in Richardson v Midland Heart (our detailed note here), on shared ownership, assured tenancies and leasehold interests, has been discontinued.
Rumour has it that there is another appeal in a similar shared ownership case due fairly shortly, so this may well not be the end of the matter.… Read the full post
The lights go on, the lights go off, the lights go on, the lights go off. Such was Martin Creed’s Turner Prize winning installation (and I will not hear a word against Creed – I warn you now, any objection will be met with a lengthy analysis of late modernism seen through the lens of the the utopian failure of early 19th century German Romanticism. You don’t want to risk that). However, lights going on and off are apparently at the root of a dispute between a leaseholder and the management company at Embassy Court in Bournemouth.
The problem was the installation of motion sensitive light controls in the common … Read the full post
Now, this is a bit of an oddity. Mohammadi v Shellpoint Trustees Ltd & Anor [2009] EWHC 1098 (Ch) was an appeal from the Supreme Court Costs Office. It concerned when a person should have the protection from liability for costs under s.17 Legal Aid Act 1988.
Mrs Mohammadi was a leaseholder who had pursued a disrepair claim, beginning in about 1993, reaching trial on disrepair and forfeiture in 2002, at which she was successful and an appeal to the Court of Appeal, at which she was partially successful, with an order for 75% of costs overall.
Mrs Mohammadi, in the course of this litigation, had had no less than … Read the full post
Yesterday, the Lands Tribunal – so beloved of those of us who practice in the field of leasehold property law – ceased to be. It has been replaced by the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) which, confusingly, is known as… the Lands Tribunal.
There is currently a major re-organisation of tribunals in England and Wales and, broadly, the intention is to bring them all together in one structure whereby there will be a number of different “Chambers” with first-tier and upper-tier tribunals.
The Lands Tribunal has become the “upper-tier” of the Lands Chamber. Strangely, the LVT has not become the first-tier tribunal. That, we suspect, will come later.
What does this … Read the full post
Since the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993, leaseholder owners of flats in certain categories of building have been able to “collectively enfranchise” and force the freeholder to convey the freehold of the building to a nominee purchaser, normally a company formed by the leaseholders for this purpose. One of the (many) weaknesses in the 1993 Act is that it is possible for an otherwise qualifying leaseholder to be excluded from the enfranchisement process by other leaseholders.
The Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002 was supposed to prevent this problem by creating the “Right to Enfranchise” company. In outline, any attempt to enfranchise would have to be … Read the full post
Leaseholders who purchased their properties from local housing authorities under the Right to Buy (and those persons who subsequently bought on from those original purchasers) are currently facing huge service charge bills (up to £40,000 in some London Boroughs) for their alleged share of the remedial works to their buildings which is being carried out as part of the Decent Homes Initiative.
Whilst the Government has resisted calls to cap those service charges, they have, from 6 April 2009, introduced two reforms which may be of some benefit to leaseholders in England.
The Housing (Service Charge Loans) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2009 SI 2009/602 amends the Housing (Service Charge Loans) Regulations … Read the full post
A couple of things to leave you with on a Friday afternoon.
Leaseholders who are dissatisfied with the management of their properties are entitled to apply to a Leasehold Valuation Tribunal (LVT) for the appointment of a manager – Part 3, Landlord and Tenant Act 1987. The LVT may appoint a manager in a number of prescribed circumstances including, where there has been a failure to comply with the provisions of a relevant Code of Practice – s.24(2)(ac), LTA 1987.
The relevant Codes of Practice are prescribed by the Secretary of State (or the Welsh Assembly) pursuant to s.87, Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993.
As … Read the full post
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