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Specialist service charge and ground rent recovery solicitors, J B Leitch LLP has celebrated the opening of their new office in Liverpool City Centre. The firm recently purchased an additional 3,000 sq ft of lower ground floor office space on Kent Street, close to their existing offices in the Ropewalks district of Liverpool. Jonathan Leitch, managing partner of the firm said: “On top of the £250,000 investment in the refurbishment, we are also planning a further IT investment to ensure our IT infrastr

ONE of the North West’s largest independent corporate insurance brokers, Bridge Insurance Brokers Limited, has announced the launch of a London office. Well established as a national and international broker and risk adviser, Bridge is capitalising on 40 years of success in the industry. The Award winning firm have recently designed an exclusive and specialist insurance facility for blocks of flats, called FlatGuard. FlatGuard provides an all round insurance solution incorporating wide-ranging bespoke

The FPRA and The Leasehold Advisory Service teamed up for a Leaseholder Residents Rights Workshop organised and chaired by local Walthamstow MP Stella Creasy. Stella Creasy said: ‘Over the course of the last few months a number of subjects relating to leases have been raised with me by local residents. These include increases in Service Charges, the poor performance of management companies, the requirement to take insurance cover with the management companies preferred insurer, and most recently increas

Over the last 6 months of reported cases, the Ombudsman Services: Property has investigated 9 cases of complaint against managing agents. In reaching its final decision, the Ombudsman required the managing agent to apologise (in three cases), to pay compensation of between £50-100 (in three cases), to take remedial action (in eight cases) and to take no further action (in one case). The complaints presented included: failure to provide a service charge certificate with the accounts, failure to upkeep the

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There has been a steady growth of actions within the Leasehold Valuation Tribunals since the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act of 2002. With the requirements to send section 153 and section 158 notices with any demands or administrative fees to leaseholders explaining their statutory rights and obligations the law has created a system of leaseholder led regulation. In the event that leaseholders believe their service charges are unreasonable they can challenge them through the Tribunal system. Whilst no

[extra:quotes:boxoutcopy=1] The West Sussex Flats Insulation Project In 2008 a Partnership of 6 adjoining Local Authorities formed the West Sussex Partnership, and won a bid for 3 years of funding from the Regional Housing Board to help fund any excess payments required for Warm Front grant applicants. When the Warm Front Grant maximum was increased at the start of 2009, demand for ‘top-up’ funding was greatly reduced and the Government Office for the South East (GOSE) permitted the West Sussex Partne

Auditioning for a replacement managing agent can feel like a time-consuming gamble, and it’s not a process you want to keep repeating. With numerous managing agents to choose from, how do you differentiate between the many hopefuls and make sure you find the one who is exactly right? The standard procedure is to find companies which are members of the Association of Residential Managing Agents (ARMA) or the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), invite a selection of firms to tender, listen to

[extra:quotes:boxoutcopy=1] Recovery of residential service charges is a minefield, particularly for unwary landlords who do not demand or give details of sums due by way of service charge within time limits set by the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. Section 20B of the 1985 Act provides that a landlord has 18 months from incurring a service charge expense to demand or notify the leaseholders of payment. Otherwise, a landlord will be prevented from recovering any sums incurred outside the time limit. There

[extra:quotes:boxoutcopy=1] Ponds can be attractive features for any garden or open space. However, if they are not managed properly they can become polluted, overgrown and attract pests. To prevent this it is important to carefully consider ongoing management and maintenance plans. Good water quality is key to the healthy life of a pond and must be kept clean to provide suitable habitat for animals and plants. Water can be cleaned naturally, through planting special water plants to filter impurities

The role of the managing agent is central to the management of a Residents Management Company (RMC) or Right To Manage (RTM) block. Often the role of director is taken by an unpaid volunteer with little or no prior knowledge of company law, their duties, responsibilities and potential personal liabilities. The board of directors will expect the agent to carry out its wishes and it is therefore imperative that the agent fully understands the relationship and also the company’s constitution. Every company

Property Manager Tony Martin, from Caxtons, one of the largest independent property practices in the South East, and his colleague, Gemma Weighill, took part in the recent British Heart Foundation’s London to Brighton cycle ride. They raised in excess of £300 and said they were following in the footsteps of former Chairman, James Pilcher, a keen fundraiser. Sadly, James died of cancer last November.