News design award


aglamorousaward ceremony,heldin nottingham’s newest £1m-plus penthouse apartmentinmay,celebratedthe effortsby sixdesign students fromalloverthe country whowere shortlisted for thenational design academy’s(nda) recent competition.the studentswere askedtodesign theinterior of thepropertyatnottingham’sprestigious rivercrescentdevelopmentfromthe layout and furniturerightdowntothe accessories and final touches. thecompetitionwaswonby 21 year oldgrace moulder,aninteriordesign studentfromdarlingtonwhoscoopeda£3,000 cashprize and thechancetokickstart her career in style. theeveningalso celebratedtheluxury


award-winning penthouseavailable forrent


penthousenowbeingavailabletorent. boastingpanoramic views of theriver trent, nottinghamshirecountrysideandbothofthe city’s football stadiums,it ishopedthat alocal sports celebritymay takeonthelease.thelast bigprofilenameto rentoneof thepenthouses wassven-göranerikssonduringhis brief stint as director offootball fornotts county. thenational design academy (nda) is


part of thendafoundation,anot forprofit organisation that is committed to providing further and higher educationaccess to all, regardless of their educational background. ndaisalsotheuK’s largest interior design school,offeringawide varietyofaccredited diploma, degree andmasterscourses in interior design.


campaign


Flatlivinglaunches ‘Knowyourlease’campaign


Flat Living is launchinga campaign to encourageflat owners to use properly qualified andexperienced professional advisers. Our ‘Knowyour Lease’ campaign,isall aboutgetting practical, straightforwardadvice froma leasehold specialist solicitor fromthe start of the homebuying process. A properly qualifiedexpertwithknowledge of leasehold can explain the finer points of your leasetoyou,guide yousuccessfully throughthe homebuying process and help you avoid any unexpected problems cropping up in the future.


Understanding


leasehold Leasehold is a form of property ownershipthatdates back to the feudal system.Leases areoften complexand writteninhardto understand legal language. This


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means that leaseholders are often left confused anddon’t always know theirrightsorobligations as flat owners.Most flats in England andWales are owned under‘long leases’( longer than 21 years) with the flat owner effectively rentingthe property forthe length of timespecified in the lease froma freeholderwho owns the building that houses theindividual flats.The leaseis thelegal documentthatoutlines everyaspectofthe relationship between the leaseholder and the freeholder,including therights andobligationsofeachofthe partiesand theway that service charges will be divided between theflats. Leaseholdconveyancing is


morecomplicated than freehold conveyancing andattracts higher fees. A solicitormust check that the lease a flat buyer is entering into has been correctlydrawnup


and does not include terms that may be unacceptable either to the purchaser or the mortgage lender. The solicitormust also checkthe detailsand accounts of anymanagementcompany or tenant’s association and the wayyourprospective property is managed.


askanexpert To promote abetter understandingofleasehold among flat owners, Flat Living isemphasising the importance of understandingthe leaseyou arebuyingand gettingthe right advice fromthestart.Knowing your leasemeans-when professional advice is sought - always using a solicitor with expertiseinthe leaseholdmarket. Flat Living is calling on


organisationsdealing with prospective flat owners to promote the use of appropriately qualified


professionals to their clients, for example estate agents promoting the use of solicitors that specialise in leasehold. This will helpmake leaseholdamoretransparent form of tenure to thebenefit of everyonewho lives in a flat. Other organisations are already workingtowards this,withthe London Assembly’s Planning and Housing committee calling for conveyancing solicitors to provide more information upfront to leaseholders andthe Devonand Somerset LawSociety recently updating theirpre-contract enquiriesformtoensureall the relevantinformation required is available to flat buyers and their solicitor. At Flat Living we would like to see all LawSocieties and otherorganisations around the countryfollowing suit,ensuring that all flat owners have access to solicitorswho specialise in leaseholdconveyancing.


Summer 2012 Flat Living


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