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Flat-Living.co.uk RTM

COVER THE COST

On paper the leasehold system sounds reasonable. Tenants pay the

landlord a modest ground rent for the land on which the building stands and a service charge to cover the cost of maintenance of the structure and the common parts. Unfortunately too many exploitative landlords see fit to take advantage of their monopoly position and introduce commissions and handling fees on top of the services provided to the extent that they can commonly double or triple their income. Then there are landlords who totally neglect their responsibility for maintaining the building, which rapidly falls into disrepair devaluing the properties of all leasehold owners. In 1997 the Labour Party published a policy document entitled

S

ince William the Conqueror the common people of this country have suffered un- der the feudal system he introduced. Originally the

crown bestowed land on favoured bar- ons who leased it to peasants whose daily toil generated exorbitant rents for the lords of their land. Almost a thou- sand years later not much has changed. Wealthy landlords still control much of our property and continue to demand

ground rent. The system is known as leasehold and the peasants paying the rent are lease-holding tenants.

’An End to Feudalism’ and Parliament subsequently introduced The Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act (2002). Due to pressure from landowners, transferring to commonhold requires 100 per cent leaseholder approval and unsurprisingly this aspect of the legislation has been a dismal failure. However all was not lost because the same legislation introduced another option for leaseholders known as the ‘Right to Manage’ or RTM. In a nutshell, RTM legislation entitles leaseholders in blocks of flats

to take control of their building and either manage it themselves or more commonly employ a professional managing agent to manage it on their behalf. It is a no-fault process, it does not require landlord approval neither is it necessary to prove landlord deficiency or negligence or pay the landlord any compensation. As long as the RTM claim is supported by at least half the leaseholders in any individual block the landlord cannot legally obstruct the process.

STATUTORY QUALIFICATION

In order to be eligible for the Right to Manage both the building

and the applicant leaseholders must meet a statutory qualification. A qualifying tenant is a leaseholder whose lease was originally granted

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