Bellway is the latest developer to have a public demonstration against leasehold houses on its doorstep.
Protestors from the National Leasehold Campaign Facebook group, led by Katie Kendrick and Cath Williams (pictured above) are protesting today outside Bellway’s King’s Hill site in Bromborough, The Wirral, in Cheshire.
The demo follows that in March outside Redrow’s Ledsham Garden Village, where 2,000 leasehold houses are being built.
The protestors are joined by former MP and Labour parliamentary candidate Justin Madders.
Mr Madders made several interventions in Parliament on behalf of leaseholders.
The continuing protest indicate the level of anger at the developers turning homes into complicated investment assets.
The leasehold houses will give the freeholder’s numerous income streams, as well as all future development potential.
Many come with excessive ground rent terms, which are causing alarm among mortgage lenders over future saleability.
In most cases, the freeholds of leasehold houses have been sold on to anonymous investors hiding behind nominee directors.
Offshore companies also own the freeholds to the homes of hard-working families, according to freehold manager Homeground … and can anonymous forfeit them in the event of a monetary debt.
Homeground is owned by Will Astor, half brother of Samantha Cameron, who runs a fund of £1.2 billion of residential freeholds.
One leasehold house buyer, Adele Cooke, has asked Bellway:
“Can I ask why you are still selling houses on any site as leasehold not freehold!!!
“I have just lost the sale of my property due to this leasehold scandal and so have lost the beautiful house I had just bought.
“Bellway are just as bad as all the other big building companies in this rip-off, leasehold nightmare.
“Yes, you say you have not broken the law! But you have: by us using your solicitors, who never informed us of any onerous clauses.
“You never told thus you would sell the freehold on. So now to buy it costs us £1,000s. It is one big con!
“I hope you never sell anymore houses so long as they are leasehold.
“And if you advertise homes as freehold, then they should have no onerous clauses or restricted covenants remaining.”
Related posts:
Ground rent protestors stage ANOTHER demonstration against leasehold houses and charges
Here we go … Bellway porkies to talk up leasehold
Developer recommended solicitors could face £500m bill, says Daily Mail
Bellway fears backlash over leasehold houses may eat into profits
Ripped-off leaseholders bring protest to central Manchester
Telegraph and Mail attack Nationwide for £54 million ground rent investments
Thank u LKP
We will continue to demonstrate.
This needs to be relentless !!!
I urge everyone to get out there and spread the word to NOT BUY LEASEHOLD.
Thousands remain totally unaware of this scandal. And it’s up to this campaign to enlighten them.
Please join the national leasehold campaign facebook group
Katie kendrick
Well done, Katie! And your dad and Cath and the others.
It is excellent that people are protesting about these injustices and it most certainly is having effect.
Leasehold house owners, and those thinking of buying, should join the Facebook group.
But please continue to make PUBLIC comments here: it is the site media, politicians and civil servants look at.
I would therefore via LKP invite the media, politicians and civil servants to also lurk a few hours on the Long Leasehold Questions forum on the Landlordzone website and be amazed at the horror stories daily posted by leaseholders.
The forum is not in ‘competition’ with LKP as it does not offer advocacy or campaigning action and all names are redacted.
A constant theme is ‘professional’ agents hijacking RMC and RTM companies.
Company law assumes directors and members together have some clue how to operate the checks and balances available. Sadly leaseholders seem singularly ill-equiped to exercise member or even directorship authority. Agents must love RMCs and RTMs for this reason?
Spot on Paddy.
Well done Katie et al. Continue to be relentless in pursuit of the campaigns goal, These developers, Ground rent portfolio operators , dodgy solicitors venal Freeholders and their questionable managing agents need to be brought to heel!!!! I shouldn’t be surprised if some of the motley crew involved in this scandal end up banged up! Look what happened to the dodgy HSBC crooks not so long ago. I think some demos should be staged in London. These Rachmanist spivvy practices must cease and leasehold must be abolished.
Not much chance of that happening under this Government.
After seven years campaigning, hundreds of letters and e.mails to everyone from the Prime Minister downwards I am convinced that little will change.
Plenty of promises to look into the issue but they come to nought.
If there appears to be any light at the end of the tunnel the DCLG will always put a damper on it.
Change, if it does come will be as a result of direct action from the victims and the Facebook campaign shaming the perpetrators into submission.
Maybe then the Government will be forced into reform, and organisations like LEASE, ARMA, RICS and Developers trade organisations will join the Band Wagon.
And let’s hope that those MPs who are working hard for reform all get re-elected, whichever party they represent.
Sorry, one big omission from my previous comment.
When I stated that leasehold reform is only likely to come from the actions of the leaseholder victims, they will of course be led and advised by Campaign against retirement leasehold exploitation/LKP, the one organisation which has wholeheartedly supported them for all of these years.
I believe that people have woken up to the great injustices in this society and are finally prepared to take action to change the status quo. It is quite shocking that spivs in the property field have been getting away with this legalised extortion for years, crooked managing agents committing fraud and intimidating vulnerable Leaseholders into paying monies not due presumberably so the thieving agents can ‘trouser’ it and relatively recently the spivvy wheeze of , TA DA’- ‘Leasehold houses’! I truly believe that the days are numbered of these spivs, their filthy Rachmanist practices and LEASEHOLD. We need a poll tax style demo in London. I will be willing to help arrange it in anyway I can. PS. This scandal has made me think about very seriously about who to cast my vote for on 8th June……
PPS..I always think seriously about casting my vote but I am thinking of switching allegiance-Quel Horreur!!!!!
The world of leasehold in some cases is such a dark and murky place, controlled by wealthy, powerful and devious individuals it will be difficult for any Government to dismantle it.
The issue of new leasehold houses is different. It is more out in the open and the Developers do have to maintain a public image.
This can be seen by TW being pressurised into discarding leasehold and coming up with proposals (although unsatisfactory) to remedy the situation.
As a former long serving employee of the old Taylor Woodrow I have been trying to persuade them to go the whole way and use that £130million to buy back all the leaseholds. Then sell them to all occupiers of their leasehold houses at a fair price.
This would help restore some reputation and divert all potential buyers in their direction, as so far many other developers are dodging the issue.
Possible problem is that the new owners of the freehold may not want to sell it back. Even if they wanted to be seen as co-operating (and why should they as they are dark murky companies that the public has never heard of ? ) they could hold out for an unjustifiable high price. Perhaps not that easy for TW to buy it back.
Is it not the case that some of the Freehold owning companies have a very close connection with the Developers.
And in some cases have been set up by the Developers in order to promote this scandal.
If it is the case that they are all in it together (including some Solicitors) then it is up to all of them together to get it sorted fairly.
I believe the sum of £130million should be enough to resolve the issue fairly and restore some reputation.
The way they are handling it now will not do this and sadly will only cause prolonged anxiety and expense to their customers who should be the priority.
We already know the amount that these finance companies are asking for the freeholds. The leaseholders have been informed when they have requested a quote.
TW should be able to get a discount for bulk purchase.
In my opinion the difference between the cost for TW to purchase and the fair price they could be sold back to the leaseholders by TW would be covered by the sum of £130million which has been put aside.
MH I must confess that I can find no fault with your proposal. I have no idea how much clout you wielded at Taylor Woodrow back in the day….. However, if you have the ear of revelant persons at TW then I do hope that you are successful in your quest. TW will look very much like the ‘Good Guys’ and will receive favourable media coverage. They and others should realise that he party is over and the first one to have a public Damascene conversion gets the cigar!!!!!
Ian, Whether a new freeholder wants to sell or not is irrelevant.
The law is clear. after two years a leaseholder has the legal right to purchase the freehold. The problem for the leaseholder is the outrageous cost to exercise their right to purchase.
This is why the only solution as I see it is for the developers who engineered this scandal to finance the total cost of the freehold and all associated expenses.
The developer cannot buy the freehold without the agreement of the freeholder. Only the leaseholder can do this.
Yes MH it may be difficult for Government to dismantle the murky world of Leasehold -crooked Freeholders and their crooked agents however it is possible for them to do so. The ‘Leasehold House’ scandal has for many,lifted the lid on the simmering stew of the venality that is ‘Ground rent portfolio ‘ Crooked Agents’ ‘ crooked solicitors’ ‘crooked surveyors’ and how they all sup together from the vat of venality. Flat leaseholders that have been ripped off for years will be emboldened by he highlighting of this scandal by Campaign against retirement leasehold exploitation\LKP and take action.
Kim, I have little clout with Taylor Wimpey, but it makes sense that having put the money aside then to resolve the issue properly.
Unless the leaseholders are satisfied with the result the dispute will drag on forever at great cost to all parties.
The method I have been encouraging TW to follow should satisfy all parties.
Unhappy leaseholders become happy freeholders, TW reputation is restored and sales boom, and the finance companies get paid a fair price in negotiation with TW. They could be forced to sell up in the future anyway.
What’s the problem?
MH I stated that I could NOT find fault with your proposal EG -TW buying back the Freehold and selling at reasonable price to the leaseholders.. I suggest you read-read my previous post.
Kim , when I said “what’s the problem, I was not referring to yourself.
I meant why do TW find it a problem to undertake the solution which would solves all the parties problems.
It keeps me awake at night wondering why.
Oh ok I misunderstood! I too cannot phantom why TW does not rectify this in the manner that you suggest- other than they do not want to retrace their steps / act altruistically at personal cost or ????? I don’t know.