‘The DCLG has released the “Social landlords reduction of service charges: mandatory and discretionary directions 2014“, in force as of today, 12 August 2014.’
NearlyLegal, 12th August 2014
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
‘Terrorism insurance is an increasingly contentious issue in service charge cases; in short, many leaseholders think it is unnecessary and simply serves to increase the their service charges (and, potentially, acts as an additional source of commission for landlords, itself a very contentious issue). Well, in Qdime Ltd v Various Leaseholders at Bath Building (Swindon) and others [2014] UKUT 261 (LC), the Upper Tribunal has given an unqualified endorsement of terrorism insurance and, in the process, may well have greatly extended the number of properties which are now required to obtain such insurance.’
NearlyLegal, 13th June 2014
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
‘In Ground Rents (Regisport) Ltd v Dowlen [2014] UKUT 144 (LC), the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) had to – once again – grapple with s.20B, Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. The facts are quite straightforward. Imagine, if you will, that there is a modern development of three blocks of flats. It was developed by Countryside Properties (UK) Ltd, who were also the original landlords under all the long leases. Once the leases had been created, the freehold was transferred to the appellant.’
NearlyLegal, 13th June 2014
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
‘Windermere Marina Village v Wild [2014] UKUT 163 (LC) is an important decision about the vexed question of apportionment that arises in many residential service charge disputes.’
NearlyLegal, 2nd June 2014
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
‘I admit that SS v Birmingham CC [2013] UKUT 418 (AAC) has been on my to do list for a while and that, possibly, the main reason for finding the time to write it up is because I’m on a two hour strike (#fairpayinHE). But, it is a really quite important case about the application of the unreasonably high rent rule for “exempt accommodation” in Reg 13 and Sch 3 of the 2006 Housing Benefit regs. The principal question of law concerns the meaning of “suitable alternative accommodation” in those regs.’
NearlyLegal, 23rd January 2014
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
‘Before I come to the facts of Scriven and others v Calthorpe Estates [2013] UKUT 469 (LC), I need, I think, to give a fair bit of background. Even by the comprehensive standards of NL, this is pretty obscure.’
NearlyLegal, 8th January 2014
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
‘At a case management hearing in the LVT (as it then was) back in March 2013, the chair said that, whilst normally he would direct that the parties to that dispute should attempt mediation, he was aware that it was “usually pointless” doing so where public funds are at stake as public bodies generally cannot justify the arbitrary reductions that can be necessary for a mediation to succeed, and fear creating some form of precedent. Misguided as I thought the chair was, it did seem likely that he might have been speaking from many years of experience.’
Hardwicke Chambers, 3rd December 2013
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
“Generally, any landlord who wishes to enter into a qualifying long term agreement (‘QLTA’), viz. an agreement for a term of more than 12 months (subject to certain exceptions) as a result of which any tenant will pay a service charge of more than £100 (‘the appropriate amount’) for the relevant service charge period, must either consult in accordance with the Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003 (SI 2003/1987) (‘the Regulations’) or obtain a dispensation from the First-Tier Tribunal (Property Chamber) (‘PC’). Failure to consult will result in the relevant service charge being capped at the appropriate amount.”
Hardwicke Chambers, 13th August 2013
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
“Sometimes the draftsman gets it wrong. Sometimes his only mistake is to fail to predict the future. Either way a landlord can face a serious shortfall if the combined percentages of service charges payable under the leases for the block do not add up to 100%. While at first blush, the landlord’s shortfall is the tenants’ windfall, defective leases can seem a much less attractive prospect if the result is that the landlord is reluctant to provide services.”
Full story (PDF)
Tanfield Chambers, 27th July 2013
Source: www.tanfieldchambers.co.uk
“There are those who say that service charges are a dry subject. To them I say, welcome to Wallace-Jarvis v (1) Optima (Cambridge) Ltd (2) Khazai [2013] UKUT 328 (LC).”
NearlyLegal, 29th July 2013
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
BDW Trading Ltd and another v South Anglia Housing Ltd [2013] WLR (D) 282
“Section 20 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, which provided for consultation requirements to apply to ‘qualifying long term agreements’ (‘QLTA’), had no application to a long term agreement entered into in relation to buildings which had not yet been constructed, or which were not let at the time of the agreement.”
WLR Daily, 15th July 2013
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
“Morshead Mansions has been involved in a quite astonishing amount of litigation. Bailii throws up 13 hits, cases in the LVT, Lands Tribunal, High Court and Court of Appeal. It’s really must be the most awful burden on all those involved. And now, there is another case to add to the list, Di Marco v Morshead Mansions Ltd [2013] EWHC 1068 (Ch).”
NearlyLegal, 14th May 2013
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
“Those with good memories will remember that a year or so ago the Upper Tribunal gave judgment in a case called Om Property Management Ltd v Burr (our note here) in which the issue was at what point in time does a cost became incurred for the purposes of s.20B, Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. It decided that costs became incurred on the presentation of an invoice or on payment. Mr Burr appealed against that decision and the Court of Appeal recently gave its judgment on the subject.”
NearlyLegal, 10th May 2013
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
Burr v OM Property Management Ltd: [2013] EWCA Civ 479; [2013] WLR (D) 164
“When determining the amount of any service charge payable by a tenant for services supplied, on the natural and ordinary meaning of the words of section 20B of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, ‘costs’ were not ‘incurred’ on the mere provision of the services or supplies made to the landlord or management company.”
WLR Daily, 3rd May 2013
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Burr v OM Property Management Ltd [2013] EWCA Civ 479; [2013] WLR (D) 164
“When determining the amount of any service charge payable by a tenant for services supplied, on the natural and ordinary meaning of the words of section 20B of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, ‘costs’ were not ‘incurred’ on the mere provision of the services or supplies made to the landlord or management company.”
WLR Daily, 3rd May 2013
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Daejan Investments Ltd v Benson and others [2013] UKSC 14; [2013] WLR (D) 94
“Where a landlord’s failure to consult fully with tenants before carrying out major repairs to a block of flats would preclude recovery from the tenants of the full cost of the works unless a leasehold valuation tribunal granted a dispensation under section 20ZA(1) of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 from the relevant consultation requirement, dispensation was not to be refused as a punitive measure solely because a landlord had breached the consultation requirements in the Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations (SI 2003/1987)) but rather the tribunal could grant the dispensation on terms which reflected the actual prejudice which the tenants had suffered.”
WLR Daily, 6th March 2013
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Supreme Court, 6th March 2013
“On 21 December 2012, Sir Andrew Morritt, then Chancellor of the High Court, handed down judgment in Phillips & Goddard v Francis & Francis [2012] EWHC 3650 (Ch), a case which has dramatic ramifications for residential landlords and managing agents. The state of the legislation and its most recent judicial interpretation will see landlords bogged down in consultations and applications for dispensation, and at risk of being unable to recover legitimate expenditure. ”
Hardwicke Chambers, 30th January 2013
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
Phillips and another v Francis and another: [2012] EWHC 3650 (Ch); [2013] WLR (D) 7
“On the true construction of the meaning and effect of the scheme relating to service charges imposed by sections 20 and 20ZA of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, as amended by the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002, section 151 identification of one or more sets of qualifying works was not required. The emphasis in the current legislation had shifted from identifying and costing the works before they started to notifying an intention to carry out the works and limiting the amount of the individual contributions sought to pay for them after their completion.”
WLR Daily 21st December 2012
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
“Gala Unity Ltd v Ariadne Road RTM Co Ltd [2012] EWCA Civ 1372 is important for those doing long leasehold work. I’m not entirely sure it’s right (or, perhaps a better way of putting it, I’m not sure it’s a good decision, it may be right within the statutory framework), but I’ll save that for the end. Since this is the first Right to Manage case to reach the Court of Appeal, I’ll set out some of the relevant background.”
NearlyLegal, 27th October 2012
Source: www.nearlylegal.co.uk
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