I should add I went to my local MP about it. A Conservative. He made all the right noises, but nothing happened. Michael Gove appears to have succumbed to external pressure and as far as I can see and fleecehold estates still won't be able to get Right To Manage in the proposed legislation. That is plain wrong. Let's hope Neil O'Brien doesn't just talk the talk, but walks the walk. Although it looks like on current polling he'll be out at the next election and this is all fine words and no action. If the next government is Labour, there might be some more chance of change and much need justice for people who are being ripped off. As a side bar to some of the article. My experience of conveyancing solicitors is not very good. These are very low quality and do not understand these arrangements, despite claiming they do. As a director of the Management Company I end up having to deal with them whenever there is an equity release or a sale. Equity release companies are very poorly run and from the experiences I've had are clueless about these arrangements - another misselling scandal in the making. Also many conveyancing solicitors are sub-optimal which has surprised me.
It's possible to fight these people....and win. I live on a development of 23 houses built by Countryside around 2000. We had rentcharges with Solitaire group which got bought out by one of Vincent Tchenguiz's companies which subsequently went bust. Then we ended up with FirstPort as our Managing agent who passed through a series of private equity companies. I got all the residents together, bought the common land, sacked FirstPort who were useless and caused some problems by not doing their job for years and then we bought out the fixed rent charge. We now have a company shared equally with all the residents. We manage it ourselves. From having nothing done in 20 years we've ploughed thousands of what would have been management fees into improving the surrounding land . Haven't put up charges for 4 years - in fact they've gone down. People say it can't be done...but it can. Too many people whinge and complain...which I understand as you feel powerless. That's how we started out. But then I got organised and got everyone to back the move. These companies are incompetent and you can beat them at their own game.
Great article! The NLC and LKP have been highlighting this problem for years too so it's fantastic to see MPs pushing for reform. I'd love you to come and see my play Fleecehold, Neil, in the summer which touches upon this particular scam.
Great piece Neil! This scam needs ending. Leasehold needs to be replaced with commonhold if we want densification to work and flat living to thrive. In the meantime, I agree with you: forfeiture must go!
Also worth nothing that FirstPort is in turn owned by the French private equity company Emeria. It's great to hear that the Conservatives are now officially *against* vital communal goods being sold off to foreign asset managers to be mismanaged and neglected, leaving their helpless "customers" to pay inflated bills for services they have no choice but to use, all to make the numbers look good in the short term.
Great piece. I hope those Bill amendments go through (and agree it's already a very good Bill).
Full disclaimer: I've recently moved into one of these estates and do feel somewhat worried about it - though the fact that the company will be put under residency management reassures me a little. Your points on ineffiency are absolutely spot-on though, even if it's not actively abused.
One other possibility is that if local councils become denuded of funds, these estates may become oases of (expensive) privilege. Not as bad for the residents of course, but not great for social cohesion.
I'd argue that behind all of this lies the problem of uncontrollable LA budget pressures, in particular SEND and adult social care. In theory, local authorities should be accountable to residents for their tax and services: if an area wants better services and is willing to pay for them, that's up to them (or the converse). But with statutory requirements to fund certain areas - and in a way that makes it impossible to control balloning demand - we have only the illusion of local control, with other areas (libraries, bin collections) squeezed out even it residents would have prioritised them. Which in turn leads to councils seeking to penny-pinch in other areas - such as this one.
I should add I went to my local MP about it. A Conservative. He made all the right noises, but nothing happened. Michael Gove appears to have succumbed to external pressure and as far as I can see and fleecehold estates still won't be able to get Right To Manage in the proposed legislation. That is plain wrong. Let's hope Neil O'Brien doesn't just talk the talk, but walks the walk. Although it looks like on current polling he'll be out at the next election and this is all fine words and no action. If the next government is Labour, there might be some more chance of change and much need justice for people who are being ripped off. As a side bar to some of the article. My experience of conveyancing solicitors is not very good. These are very low quality and do not understand these arrangements, despite claiming they do. As a director of the Management Company I end up having to deal with them whenever there is an equity release or a sale. Equity release companies are very poorly run and from the experiences I've had are clueless about these arrangements - another misselling scandal in the making. Also many conveyancing solicitors are sub-optimal which has surprised me.
It's possible to fight these people....and win. I live on a development of 23 houses built by Countryside around 2000. We had rentcharges with Solitaire group which got bought out by one of Vincent Tchenguiz's companies which subsequently went bust. Then we ended up with FirstPort as our Managing agent who passed through a series of private equity companies. I got all the residents together, bought the common land, sacked FirstPort who were useless and caused some problems by not doing their job for years and then we bought out the fixed rent charge. We now have a company shared equally with all the residents. We manage it ourselves. From having nothing done in 20 years we've ploughed thousands of what would have been management fees into improving the surrounding land . Haven't put up charges for 4 years - in fact they've gone down. People say it can't be done...but it can. Too many people whinge and complain...which I understand as you feel powerless. That's how we started out. But then I got organised and got everyone to back the move. These companies are incompetent and you can beat them at their own game.
Brilliant. We have been in touch with Richard Fuller who was very helpful. Clearly on a scale of PO case.
Well written Neil, at least you are doing something for your constituents unlike my MP Gary Streeter.
This is nothing more than legalised extortion and this has to stop now.
Great article! The NLC and LKP have been highlighting this problem for years too so it's fantastic to see MPs pushing for reform. I'd love you to come and see my play Fleecehold, Neil, in the summer which touches upon this particular scam.
Great piece Neil! This scam needs ending. Leasehold needs to be replaced with commonhold if we want densification to work and flat living to thrive. In the meantime, I agree with you: forfeiture must go!
Would be FirstPort, my mother's management company. All fine talk & mission statements, but limited action
Unsurprisingly % of their Trustpilot reviews are one star:
https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/www.firstport.co.uk
Also worth nothing that FirstPort is in turn owned by the French private equity company Emeria. It's great to hear that the Conservatives are now officially *against* vital communal goods being sold off to foreign asset managers to be mismanaged and neglected, leaving their helpless "customers" to pay inflated bills for services they have no choice but to use, all to make the numbers look good in the short term.
Great piece. I hope those Bill amendments go through (and agree it's already a very good Bill).
Full disclaimer: I've recently moved into one of these estates and do feel somewhat worried about it - though the fact that the company will be put under residency management reassures me a little. Your points on ineffiency are absolutely spot-on though, even if it's not actively abused.
One other possibility is that if local councils become denuded of funds, these estates may become oases of (expensive) privilege. Not as bad for the residents of course, but not great for social cohesion.
I'd argue that behind all of this lies the problem of uncontrollable LA budget pressures, in particular SEND and adult social care. In theory, local authorities should be accountable to residents for their tax and services: if an area wants better services and is willing to pay for them, that's up to them (or the converse). But with statutory requirements to fund certain areas - and in a way that makes it impossible to control balloning demand - we have only the illusion of local control, with other areas (libraries, bin collections) squeezed out even it residents would have prioritised them. Which in turn leads to councils seeking to penny-pinch in other areas - such as this one.