Bastard retirement village payments

[Makemineamediumone]

Can't sell it as no-one wants it. Can't rent it as not allowed. Not using it as live elsewhere. Still have to pay the bastarding service charge EVEN THOUGH THE HOUSE WAS INHERITED and watching the equity slip away. Fucking bastarding money grabbing bastards.

My family are in a similar position except grandparent is now in a nursing home so they're still paying fees on the retirement flat, unable to sell, and care home fees. Madness.

I’m not sure anyone except the original developer is making lots of money out of these, the reality is that paying wardens, maintaining lifts, gardens, communal areas etc is expensive.

In my town you can buy a one bed as shared ownership in a fairly dated development for 70k, but the service charge is over 200 a month. Someone who only has 70k to spend is unlikely to then have the income to pay the monthly service charge.

It is also a niche market being only over 55s who would benefit from a warden etc - my mum is early 70s and doesn’t need that level of support yet.

My mum rents a housing association flat for over 55s, there’s no warden and the rent is under £400 - we need more like this (decent social housing) and less overpriced blocks.

Thank you @titchy and @MrsWobble3 and @Makemineamediumone for posting this in the first place. It is a real minefield, isn't it. My daughters are justifiably concerned that having to pay maintenance charges will affect any mortgage offers they get in the future but I'm now thinking that "the estate" can pay those without them having to take that into account. I'm hoping that the more people talk about these issues some of the concerns being expressed here may be alleviated. Conversely, the more people hear about potential pitfalls the less likely they will be inclined to buy.....and so it will continue!! I intend to dig out the lease on "our" property and have a thorough read though.

@BitterTits

Can I ask *@MurielSpriggs*, are you a solicitor or legal professional?

Hello @BitterTits

Yes, I'm legally qualified, although none of this is my area of expertise. But the legal principles involved are mostly fairly straightforward for anyone with legal knowledge.

I'd really like to say though that non-legal people cannot be expected to understand this stuff, especially elderly and possibly vulnerable people. This is why you have a solicitor involved with conveyancing. The buyer needs a solicitor acting on their behalf. And they're not there just to send you some forms, do a search and take their fee. Their job is also to advise you in plain language of the obligations that you enter into when you sign up to a lease like this (and leasehold conveyancing is more complicated in all cases). If you sign up to something that turns out to be a bit shit, and your solicitor didn't clearly point out that it was a bit shit, then you have a professional negligence claim against the solicitor. Similarly any family member entering into a guarantee should be legally advised separately from the buyer (and incidentally if they were not then judges are often willing to rule guarantees to be void and unenforceable.)

At the other end of the transaction, if the flat ends up being left by will: if a solicitor is involved, either as executor or advising executors, then that solicitor should also spot the difficulties that will be caused by transferring the lease to the beneficiaries while charges are still due, and consider keeping the flat within the estate and selling directly from the estate. If a solicitor is involved and those issues were not considered and advised on then again the solicitor has been negligent.

(Beware, by the way, of the management company which is selling you the flat offering to let you use a solicitor of their choosing. Let's just say that solicitor may well not be as diligent as they should be because they will not want to annoy the company and lose the stream of business. Although you are still their client, it's you to whom they owe a professional duty, and if their breach that duty by not advising properly and in your best interests then they are responsible.)

@MurielSpriggs, thank you so much for your posts on this thread. Fortuntely neither of my elderly parents are in this type of accommodation (though I am dealing with some big care funding issues instead!). But as I get older myself, it's good to be aware of these pitfalls, so that I don't get my own daughters caught in this mess, and I can also advise friends of mine who DO have parents who are in, or considering buying one of these places.

Not old enough by several years to move in no. I did ask today what exactly they would do if I couldn't afford it and got the response that they would force a sale and deduct the fees and interest from any equity. Should have asked what would happen once the equity is gone bit didn't.

Send them the feckin keys and tell them to crack on then and you look forward to the cheque.

Surely this happens with all flats that have communal areas etc so have service charges not just retirement flats.

our local RV is £1000 per month service charge, its much higher than a normal apartment setting

Not sure that they make relatives pay it though after the residents death

We have one of these opening soon where I live, I honestly think people who buy these now want to torment their children after death.

@Makemineamediumone

Not sure that they make relatives pay it though after the residents death

They would if the relative had title to the property. That is the reason you're having to pay. I appreciate you can't do anything about that now. I really would reduce the price even further - if you go low enough someone will buy it.

[Or if you had actually voluntarily agreed to pay, such as becoming a guarantor whilst the deceased was alive]

Yeah, fair point @normaigai. I'm just really sore about it. At least with a regular flat I'd be able to live in it.
The model is great for the person living there @disfordarkchocolate it's just the aftermath.

Girlings is the company my Mum rents hers through. They must buy them. Worth a try?

Thx not heard f them, will have a look now