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Developers of mixed use developments who are keen to retain their freehold often seek advice on what steps can be taken to avoid collective claims under the Leasehold Reform Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 (“the Act”). The recent decision in Westbrook Dolphin Square Ltd v Friends Life 2014 is proving to be particularly useful in this respect. A judgment involving one of the largest residential blocks in Europe will obviously cover a lot of ground and Judge Mann’s decision does not disappoint. Runn

There are many blocks of flats in Central London (and elsewhere) where there is an ‘intermediate landlord’ - that is to say a landlord who has a lease that is longer than the flat owner’s lease and sits between it and the freehold. Often these leases exist because of the way that buildings were developed or sold off and allow the landlord to pass on the management obligations to a ‘middle man’ who will also normally collect the ground rent from the building and may have a ‘reversion’ (a longer lease than

It has been an exciting year for leasehold enfranchisement practitioners. There is not enough space in this one article to summarise all of the important reported decisions over the last twelve months, so let’s look at three recent cases. The first concerns a lease extension claim under Part 1, Chapter 2 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing & Urban Development Act 1993 (“the Act”). It is not uncommon for a claim to be issued in circumstances where there are several landlords (e.g. a freeholder and intermedia

Leases are wasting assets and can drop in value as the years pass by. It is vital that you understand why your lease needs to be extended and what you can do to prevent it losing value. There is a lot of information available over the internet but the best thing to do is speak to a specialist solicitor and have a look at their website, as there will often be useful guides that can assist your understanding. First of all, in order to qualify, you must have owned your flat for at least two years.  Secondl

The Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 (“the 1993 Act”) entitles tenants to acquire the freehold of the whole of the building which contains their flats. This will include the common parts which are available for shared used or benefit. The landlord may request 999-year leasebacks of certain units. Mandatory leasebacks are to be made in respect of secure tenancies and lettings by housing associations. Generally the most commonly granted non-mandatory leasebacks are of premises which

This question has been the subject of much debate, until it was recently settled by the Court of Appeal in Triplerose Ltd v 90 Broomfield Road RTM Company Ltd. Prior to this, there had been much uncertainty: could a single RTM company acquire the right to manage more than one building? If so, should there be separate claims in relation to each building? Why does it matter? If you live in a single self-contained building which meets the qualifying criteria, then the so-called “RTM estate controversy” does

Qualifying tenants who meet the requisite criteria set out in the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 (LRHUDA) can act together to exercise the right to acquire the freehold of their building through a Nominee Purchaser. This process is known as collective enfranchisement. Collective enfranchisement does not always mean that the previous Freeholder is unable to retain an interest in respect of property within the building. When the freehold of the building is being acquired by the N

Where a landlord is in breach of an obligation under the terms of a lease, either due to him being an “absentee landlord” or he is quite simply not performing his lease obligations, and his breach is likely to continue, asking the court for an Acquisition Order for the freehold may be another option open to tenants. An Acquisition Order may be applied for by any of the qualifying leaseholders in the building and generally there are two avenues open to them: 1. Apply to the High Court or County Court fo

In a slew of recent cases in the First-tier Tribunal and in several appeal cases in the Upper Tribunal, the tribunal has applied a forgiving approach to consideration of the validity of notices. That approach has included taking into account the consequences of non-compliance and in particular whether any prejudice had been suffered by the receiving party. In Natt v Osman [2015] the Court of Appeal signalled the return to a strict approach in the interpretation of notices. In that case the landlord had

Much has been written and discussed about the High Court decision in Westbrook Dolphin Square Limited and Friends Life Limited and Westbrook Dolphin Square Residential 1 Limited [2014], albeit such was the nature of the litigation any valuation lessons are difficult to interpret, unless you have in depth knowledge of the case. £111.66 million odd had been offered in the notice for the freeholder’s interest at Dolphin Square (‘DS’). The legal argument in valuation parlance at DS is described as the ‘reali

Tenants in large mansion blocks may often find they have to tolerate their landlord undertaking significant development works to the common parts to which they object, such as creating new apartments on the roof, or using redundant storage space or common areas to create new apartments. The landlord would argue that as long as these areas remain within their ownership they can do what they like, as long as the works do not pose a substantial interference with the tenants’ rights. Landlords’ development

The term “placemaking” has been a very fashionable word in the property industry over the last few years. Property investors and developers have discovered that by actively managing an area they can make it a desirable destination for residents, which in turn increases rents and values in the area. While not labelled placemaking, landed estates have been doing this for many years and the approach to enfranchisement and lease extensions forms a part of this. Landlords have to see themselves as the custod