CARLEX Back & On the Attack

Commenting, Melissa explained: “My campaign is now going to be widened to encompass the entire residential leasehold market, so instead of a possible 200,000 campaigners, there will be three million of us.

The leasehold business is entirely unregulated, and self-regulation is clearly not working. Anyone can set themselves up as a Managing Agent, and take money off any resident prepared to give it to them. There are no enforceable penalties for malpractice. As trade bodies the ARHM and ARMA are run for the benefit of their members, not the leaseholder residents themselves. I want to see independent regulation in the leasehold industry start to become a reality.” In this aim, Melissa is already receiving support from the Federation of Private Residents’ Associations (FPRA).  Bob Smytherman, Chairman of the FPRA, explained: ”Working alongside Melissa and her team we can bring real pressure to bear on the Coalition to introduce real protection for millions of leaseholders who are so often exploited by unscrupulous landlords and freeholders operating in an unregulated sector.” Melissa developed her reputation fighting for the rights of retirement leaseholders, particularly those run by managing agent Peverel, for which she received nationwide publicity.  Melissa also stood for Parliament in the 2010 General Election on a platform of Leasehold Reform, the scrapping of compulsory annuities for the over 75‘s and elderly care.  She lost to the sitting Conservative candidate, but gained a lot of new supporters for her campaign along the way.