The family of a woman, aged 93, who died in her ex-council leasehold flat blames the council causing her death by submitting a “guesstimate” £50,000 bill for a new roof. It now appears that an LVT has accepted a surveyor’s report that the roof might have lasted another 40 years. Florence Bourne died in her […]
Archives for 2013
Metcalfe Court: Residents laugh at Fairhold “bullying” accusations
June 6, 2013 By
UPDATE: Fairhold ballot papers came with franked addressed envelopes dated May 23, but it is now an open question whether all the replies will be received. In a farcical turn of events, one resident went to the post office today to post her vote by registered post and was told that the franked envelop was […]
Retirement leasehold flat falls £119,000 in two years
June 3, 2013 By
Never, EVER buy property like this! Never use part-exchange schemes Don’t use a developer’s solicitor – that in itself is a disqualification If you absolutely insist on buying retirement leasehold – as opposed to renting first – then buy a re-sale property, not a new one with a “value” that’s just a salesman’s try-on Campaign […]
Trapped in a Retirement Villages site: once you are in, how do you escape?
June 1, 2013 By
The following is from residents in a Retirement Villages site, who are trapped as exit fees are a staggering 12.5 per cent. Selling up in such circumstances is very difficult, leaving aside the likelihood that capital values have almost certainly taken a hard hit. It is difficult to advise in these circumstances. Retirement Villages are […]
We need ten new Manchesters to house elderly, says McCarthy and Stone. Fine, so long as you don’t build them
May 31, 2013 By
UPDATE June 8: McCarthy and Stone has no ongoing relationships with Lloyds Bank It is a fantasy figure which Housing Minister Mark Prisk has already consigned to the bin: 10 Manchester sized cities over the next 20 years is required to house the ageing population. This nonsense comes from McCarthy and Stone, which is in […]
Poisoned chalice of a retirement leasehold inheritance
May 31, 2013 By
The inheritance of a retirement leasehold flat has proved a mixed blessing for one Campaign against retirement leasehold exploitation reader: who now faces demands for £10,000 in unpaid service charges to Peverel with the dreaded F-word – forfeiture – also being mentioned. In March last year retired academic Michael Welch, 64, inherited his father’s one-bedroom […]
AgeUK to wind down retirement leasehold service
May 31, 2013 By
AgeUK is winding up its small department that looks into retirement leasehold affairs headed by Mark Spall. It is a bitter blow to retirement leaseholders, 300-350 of whom contacted the department last year seeking advice. Many leaseholders have been assisted by Spall and his team, and his mediation efforts have won back significant sums of […]
Fairhold holds secret ballot over in-house manager at ‘bullying’ retirement complex
May 29, 2013 By
Residents at a retirement development in Cheshire are in the midst of carrying out a second – secret – ballot over whether they wish to have a live-in house manager re-appointed. The vote has been insisted upon by freehold-owner Fairhold, part of the Tchenguiz Family Trust, even though the residents at Metcalfe Court, in Romiley, […]
Leasehold Advisory Service annual conference 2013 … where, this time, leaseholders are invited
May 24, 2013 By
What a difference a year makes. In 2012 LEASE, the Leasehold Advisory Service, held its “annual conference” in a Mayfair hotel charging £310 a head and the event was a blatant trade show for the vested interests in the leasehold sector. Leaseholders themselves – apart from an emotional gatecrasher, read here – were entirely absent. Yesterday, the […]
Peverel response to £70,000 fire safety overhaul at Homepine House
May 20, 2013 By
Campaign against retirement leasehold exploitation received the following email from a reader (name withheld), and Peverel’s explanation. It appears the site requires re-wiring: My mother has recently bought retirement flat in Homepine House, Folkestone. The managing agents, Peverel, have just sent out a Notice to All Residents setting out their intention to install fire alarms […]
Campaign against retirement leasehold exploitation campaigner seeks house manager’s job description
May 18, 2013 By
A “well known” Campaign against retirement leasehold exploitation campaigner is seeking a house manager’s job description, presumably a Peverel one. Could anyone provide us with one? Absolute discretion guaranteed. sok@leaseholdknowledge.com
Tchenguiz / Peverel meltdown left my bungalow behind a ransom strip
May 17, 2013 By
It was not only thousands of retirement leasehold owners who were tossed in the swell after the Tchenguiz were arrested in March 2011 and Peverel went into administration: a small-scale builder was as well. Des Clark, a self-employed builder in Rochester, Kent, thought building a couple of freehold retirement bungalows on a site with access […]
