coypondboy Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 Great article in BBC London news tragic for those involved and sadly BOMAD/GAG will have to bale them out as they headed to the big smoke to follow in Dick Whittington's path and looked for those streets of gold via the housing market and were sold a PUP. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ckkvkv32e1ro Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stewy Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 I think this is about the fourth topic on this article. 😴 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freki Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 I think this is not relevant than 90% of the discussions happening usually on this forum Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoHPCinTheUK Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 (edited) Now I understand why all these flats in those new builds look like prison cells. They actually are! What a brilliant business case anyway: you attract people offering all sort of schemes and incentives. After a couple of years you start charging £200 to replace a light bulb and leaseholders’ only choice is to pay. This is another brilliant example of the stupid planning laws in our cities. Rather than building 4/5 floors residential blocks of flats we went down the route of these council flats 2.0, and we already knew that these towers would have come with a huge bill after some years. 30 years ago the councils would pay now it’s private owners. Edited March 20 by NoHPCinTheUK Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shlomo Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 5 hours ago, Freki said: I think this is not relevant than 90% of the discussions happening usually on this forum Do you think Patrick is going out with Lewis because he is a NHS key worker and has easy access to home ownership Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freki Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 @shlomo yeah you are typically falling in the 90% category. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MARTINX9 Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 4 hours ago, shlomo said: Do you think Patrick is going out with Lewis because he is a NHS key worker and has easy access to home ownership Perhaps Patrick Duffy will appear one morning in the shower in front of Lewis - and tell him the last seven years never happened and they never bought that flat with the shocking service charges but moved up north. Having an NHS worker might be more useful if they are a nurse/doctor and you wanted to emigrate to say Australia though - but Lewis is getting on a bit. You don't actually need to be a key worker to get shared ownership homes - anyone can get them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shlomo Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 16 minutes ago, MARTINX9 said: Perhaps Patrick Duffy will appear one morning in the shower in front of Lewis - and tell him the last seven years never happened and they never bought that flat with the shocking service charges but moved up north. Having an NHS worker might be more useful if they are a nurse/doctor and you wanted to emigrate to say Australia though - but Lewis is getting on a bit. You don't actually need to be a key worker to get shared ownership homes - anyone can get them. Money problems break up a lot of relationships I can imagine Patrick Duffy telling Lewis he is a leaving him for Jennifer Saunders who’s parents have a house in Walthamstow Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
desiringonlychild Posted March 20 Share Posted March 20 15 hours ago, coypondboy said: Great article in BBC London news tragic for those involved and sadly BOMAD/GAG will have to bale them out as they headed to the big smoke to follow in Dick Whittington's path and looked for those streets of gold via the housing market and were sold a PUP. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ckkvkv32e1ro Lots of flats in london where residents have bought the freehold. Never understood why people don't just buy something like that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Locke Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 14 hours ago, desiringonlychild said: Lots of flats in london where residents have bought the freehold. Never understood why people don't just buy something like that That's quite an amusing admission of your ignorance. If people can only afford a flat, what on Earth makes you think they can afford to buy out the leasehold? Also, it requires the agreement of all the leaseholders, so an oft-impossible hurdle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
desiringonlychild Posted March 21 Share Posted March 21 (edited) 15 minutes ago, Locke said: That's quite an amusing admission of your ignorance. If people can only afford a flat, what on Earth makes you think they can afford to buy out the leasehold? Also, it requires the agreement of all the leaseholders, so an oft-impossible hurdle. nope it only requires half of the leaseholders to agree. the previous owner of my flat 15 years ago didn't participate (90 year old) but it still went through with 16 leaseholders buying it out. All leaseholders can be directors of the residents management company though and each have a share in it. All pay the same service charge and benefit from the flat being owned by the residents company as its against everyone's interest to overspend If eligible, you can buy collectively buy the freehold to your flat with other leaseholders through collective enfranchisement. To be an eligible lessee, usually you must have had at least 21 years on your residential lease (commercial or business lessees do not qualify) at the time it was originally granted and own less than three of the flats in the building. Additionally: The building must contain at least two residential flats No more than 25% of the flats can be used for non-residential purposes At least two-thirds of the flats must be owned by eligible lessees At least half of the total number of flats in the building must collectively agree to buy a share of the freehold (in buildings with two flats, both lessees must agree) The freeholder cannot be a charitable housing trust and qualifying tenants cannot have been provided the flat as part of the charity’s role You can buy a flat which already has a share of freehold. Probably purchased when london flats were worth far less. its 400k so not more expensive than most of those leasehold flats. https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/143462957#/?channel=RES_BUY Also in places like london, buying out the freehold is far cheaper than buying a freehold house which often is 200k more expensive than the equivalent flat. Particularly when there are many flats like that where freehold already bought by residents or at least in a development where freehold has been bought by residents. Edited March 21 by desiringonlychild Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coypondboy Posted April 15 Author Share Posted April 15 Building safety costs for anyone in a leasehold flat over 3 stories will add a lot to service charges as more buildings are refurbished to meet the new regulations. I expect them to double for most leaseholders which will affect prices as 6-8k for a 2 bed flat is like having a 2nd mortgage in retirement. Just check out this invoice received yesterday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoHPCinTheUK Posted April 15 Share Posted April 15 8 grand to check if the doors open! I might have found a good careers path here! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Housepricecrash91 Posted April 15 Share Posted April 15 It's over for London leasehold. £400-£500 per month service charge on top of your overpriced tiny shitbox was the final nail in the coffin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crowed Posted April 16 Share Posted April 16 Back in 2008 when I bought a crappy east London house for £900 a month my mates bought a very nice flat in Stratford for £800 a month, which was less than the rent we had been paying on a worse flat near by. But it came with a £3000 a year service charge - I couldn't believe they thought it was worth it - but then I guess in my first two years I spent about £5k fixing my house, so in some ways when they came to sell a couple of years later we were pretty even - that said I can't imagine what the charge is now... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crowed Posted April 16 Share Posted April 16 Just now, Crowed said: Back in 2008 when I bought a crappy east London house for £900 a month my mates bought a very nice flat in Stratford for £800 a month, which was less than the rent we had been paying on a worse flat near by. But it came with a £3000 a year service charge - I couldn't believe they thought it was worth it - but then I guess in my first two years I spent about £5k fixing my house, so in some ways when they came to sell a couple of years later we were pretty even - that said I can't imagine what the charge is now... Just checked and it has stayed the same, £250 ground rent and £2700 service charge - I assumed it would be loads more now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Casual-observer Posted April 16 Share Posted April 16 On 4/15/2024 at 5:15 PM, Housepricecrash91 said: It's over for London leasehold. £400-£500 per month service charge on top of your overpriced tiny shitbox was the final nail in the coffin Plus the train costs to get into London are equally becoming farcical. Somethings got to give. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bartelbe Posted April 16 Share Posted April 16 The market for flats is already imploding in places. There are stories of right to buy buyers who bought flats and have been forced to sell at a loss. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regprentice Posted April 16 Share Posted April 16 On 15/04/2024 at 16:34, NoHPCinTheUK said: 8 grand to check if the doors open! I might have found a good careers path here! they only need doing every 4/12 months as well. According to the Fire Safety Act 2021, in residential buildings over 11m, fire doors should be inspected quarterly in common areas and annually on flat entrance doors. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Angry Capitalist Posted April 16 Share Posted April 16 5 hours ago, Crowed said: Just checked and it has stayed the same, £250 ground rent and £2700 service charge - I assumed it would be loads more now Probably pushed it to its limits. That's what the freeholders are doing. Keep putting up the charges until serious push-back. Then you have the sweet-spot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Angry Capitalist Posted April 16 Share Posted April 16 2 hours ago, bartelbe said: The market for flats is already imploding in places. There are stories of right to buy buyers who bought flats and have been forced to sell at a loss. Yes. A buyers strike on leaseholds is around the corner. Watch how quickly the politicians get a new law passed then once the market freezes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regprentice Posted April 17 Share Posted April 17 Not just London.... Also being reported as a problem for shared ownership properties generally as well. link She bought 30% of it (a flat in colchester) through the shared ownership scheme as an affordable route to home ownership, even if it was only partial ownership. But her enthusiasm started waning when after just six months, the housing association increased the building's service charges by 138%, from £85 to £202 per month. While she had anticipated small annual rises, this unexpectedly large jump was unaffordable Sky News has been approached by dozens of other shared owners facing soaring costs and other issues, including difficulty selling. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NoHPCinTheUK Posted April 17 Share Posted April 17 This is a national scandal. Leaseholders are now being milked by a brunch of parasites, aka managing companies, most of which I’m sure have a double link with the freeholders of the land. This country has a serious issue with a rentier economy which seems to be the main factor dismantling any hope of a bright future for hundreds of th of families now. You have to wonder why, if HMG know that there are people out there charging 8k to check if a dozen doors open, they do nothing, even if this is obviously a scam. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lie to bet Posted April 17 Share Posted April 17 On 15/04/2024 at 14:14, coypondboy said: Building safety costs for anyone in a leasehold flat over 3 stories will add a lot to service charges as more buildings are refurbished to meet the new regulations. I expect them to double for most leaseholders which will affect prices as 6-8k for a 2 bed flat is like having a 2nd mortgage in retirement. Just check out this invoice received yesterday. How many dwellings (doors) in that inspection? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Huggy Posted April 17 Share Posted April 17 7 hours ago, regprentice said: Not just London.... Also being reported as a problem for shared ownership properties generally as well. link She bought 30% of it (a flat in colchester) through the shared ownership scheme as an affordable route to home ownership, even if it was only partial ownership. But her enthusiasm started waning when after just six months, the housing association increased the building's service charges by 138%, from £85 to £202 per month. While she had anticipated small annual rises, this unexpectedly large jump was unaffordable Sky News has been approached by dozens of other shared owners facing soaring costs and other issues, including difficulty selling. At least she can say her house price is going up. HPI4EVA! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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