Buying ex council flat

[hairyunicorn]

I am currently looking to buy a new flat, i have found an ex-LA flat that ticks most of the boxes, however i am very, very wary having heard horror stories of people buying ex council flats only to be stuck paying £0000's for 'major works' or 'block refurbs.

The flat i am looking at is in a very small block (around 12 flats) with no lift, no cladding and what appears to be a solid roof.

Looking for advice from those that may have purchased an ex council flat and how that worked out for you. Tbh i have a 2nd viewing on Sat but am thinking it's too much of a risk to take on. I have asked the EA to contact the owner and ask if there have been any 'major works' or 'block refurbs since she has owned the property and i know once i start the process any works planned in the next few years will be highlighted.

I live in London so buying this ex LA flat will would save me over 30k compared to similar properties in the area. It's also a lot bigger than non council flats.

I like everything about the flat and its within budget (which is hard to find in London) I just don't know what to do, any advice would be most welcome. :)

Who’s the managing agent and are any of the flats still tenanted by council tenants. I think if it’s above a certain percentage they can be very very hard to get mortgages on.

Thank you for your reply @Lastqueenofscotland2 I think most of the flats are privately owner and have contacted the EA to find out who the managing agent is.

Just spoke to the EA who confirmed 75% of the flats are owned, the council is the MA and there are no major works planned for the next 2 years at least

I know of someone who bought a flat in a high rise that just this year they were told will be demolished. She's had to accept a payment that (according to her) is not in line with market value and as she's now disabled she will not be able to get another mortgage. As she's a home owner, she also won't be eligible to be rehoused by LA like the other council tenants. This is probably quite an extreme example but just something to consider.

@LisaJool thats really unlucky, i really feel for your friend and it is stories like these that make me want to stay far away from and ex council properties. Thank you for sharing

Following as am debating between ex LA flat and another flat that is further from the station but now in private hands (residents bought the freehold). Latter is similar to my current flat where residents own the freehold (but it has always been private). Ex LA flat is a bit cheaper and in better location in Highgate. Second flat is 20 mins walk from highgate station.

Nothing planned could change rapidly. Say urgent works became necessary ie a new roof then the leaseholders ie you & the others would have to share the costs with LA. They can also put in new windows, fire doors. I'm not sure with all the green upgrades what the government could come up with next that the LA would have to comply with. I believe all this dangerous cladding/insulation was as a result of climate change policy & LAs compliance (but often contractors using substandard materials). I've heard some horror stories of people being hit with huge bills for shared costs. Be wary op. I wouldn't get involved personally.

@LisaJool Good grief, that's horrendous & so unfair! Poor lady, I hope things work out for her.

@socialmedia23 its such a had decision isn't it.

I would normally jump at share of freehold but a 20min walk each way to the station would get old very quickly for me, especially with the weather in the UK.
Wishing you good luck with your choice

@CherryRipe1 this is exactly what worries me, but many people must own these flats with no issue

Yes, there must be those without issues but how to find them? I'm wondering if there are any Fb or Reddit groups etc for people who have bought LA or social housing, but these will probably mostly be disgruntled folk. How long is the lease and as a block of 12 flats, what floor is the flat on?

Thank you. If you are really worried, try to reduce your budget by 10k and bargain hard. then in worst case scenario, you have the funds. I think its why landlords buy ex social housing, its so much cheaper than buying a private flat of the same size that the rental income would cover all the potential problems.

For my first property, i went for a smaller leasehold flat with 2 bedrooms but where the freehold had been bought by the residents (my flat just didn't participate). Its lease was also extended. I now want three bedrooms and there are fewer of those. Also don't to increase mortgage by a huge amount if also paying childcare and don't want to move to the home counties where I would get no help with childcare and have to pay commuter fares. Plus DH is more amenable to moving if its to a 'better area in London' which is more central (as the crow flies). he doesn't mind the 20 minute walk to the station as he cycles everywhere and it is nearer than our current place to central london.

Lots work going on now in council flats....new doors, windows etc for the new fire regs....costly....and remember the 5 year annual works cycle...again could be costly....friend bought her council flat years ago super cheap but dreads the bills and often bodge jobs done by contractors and not being able to refuse works etc.....its a tricky one...avoid if possible.

Thank you for all of the replies, think im going to be sensible and keep looking.

I wouldn't.

I remember a colleague buying a 2 bed council flat in a nice part of London only to receive a bill for thousands of pounds a few months later from the council for various remedial works. She tried to challenge the costs but in the end she had to move out and back with family and rent the flat out to afford the repairs.

Not me but a friend, owned in a block run by HA. One day got an £8k bill through the door with 30 days to pay for works. Called the HA and they wouldn't allow any kind of payment plan or anything, so you would need to make sure you had a good pot of savings

Turns out the bill was split between the private owners so they ended up subsidising the HA!

We had owned an ex council flat, not in London but situation sounds similar. Ours were 1930s build, very solid brick. Leasehold and it's normal for the council to retain the leasehold.

On the plus side, the maintenance charge was very reasonable, way less than private ones locally. The estate got a minor refurb, cleaned up and all new windows, you have no choice but to pay. For the general refurb and 2 large and 2 small windows we paid 5 grand.

We sold not long after, I have since heard the fire escapes need replacing, lord knows how much that will cost the leaseholders, glad we got out.

To be fair, even private flats can incur large maintenance bill or they drop to bits, there are some near me built in the 1960s which desperately need work which isn't getting done.

Yes I'm not 100% sure that a lot of this couldn't apply to private blocks as well, right? I've heard of similar stories about sudden bills for a refurb/new windows from owners in non-council blocks...?

My good friend who bought a gorgeous ex-Council flat in quite a big block had issues with the upstairs neighbour who was a Council tenant - she had quite a few MH issues and used to run a bath and forget about it - resulting in flooding my friend's flat below - roughly twice a year :(

But then we've had floods from the upstairs neighbour (non Council) who is a super-wealthy solicitor who just bought a flat with bodgy plumbing in the bathroom! So you can never tell.

I'd go to the second viewing if I were you OP.

bought a beautiful ex local in 2011 in east London. Major works had already been completed but bill not yet paid. People who sold me the flat left me a £15k retainer to pay the bill as that’s what they were told it would be. It took the MA 3.5 years to produce the final bill. Came in at £21k and I had to foot the bill myself.

I would research the MA in depth before deciding. Maybe ask them to disclose to your solicitors all the major works on all the properties they own in the last 5 years to see if they’re likely to order Something outlandishly priced? Don’t know if they’d do that for you but worth a try?

Sorry had to foot the 6k increase myself

We currently live an ex council flat. It's a small block on a road of HA flats.
Our flat is huge for a 2 bed flat in London and is in a beautiful/ most desirable part of town.

Service fees/ charges are much cheaper. We do have an obligation to chip in with major repair fees but we haven't paid in the 4 years we have been here.

Surely this is the same regardless if council or not? If you buy in a block of leasehold? Obviously the HA have insurance like others for major issues like subsidence etc.
If anything I'd assume there are more thorough cost checks/ spending controls with HA rather than a private leaseholder? And only essentials will take place as HA will have to cover HA tenants? But maybe I'm wrong 🤷🏻‍♀️

I am in a leasehold flat in a private 1930s block where the freehold is owned by the residents. My DH is director of the management company even though we aren't a freeholder. The residents decide what to do but of course one person cannot overrule the rest lol. But what I think is that most people wouldn't want to impose unnecessary costs on themselves.

I think the problem with ex LA is that you would be subsidizing the council tenants who wouldn't be paying service charges. That was why they sold off the council properties as the government didn't want to maintain them. However in the estate I am looking at, there are so many that have fallen into private hands- majority. In fact the other flat I am looking at which is share of freehold used to be ex LA but all the flats turned private and so they managed to buy the freehold.

@Nolongera
@catlady1234

this is what has me in a dilemma, not every block is going to incur major work bills otherwise they would never sell. Also private blocks must also incur charges when works ned completing. TBH the not knowing is what is putting me off, but it such a nice flat its hard to let go

A good block would have a sink fund. We had our communal hallways done and no charges were incurred as we have a huge sink fund even when the quotes were super high due to covid shortages..Honestly though no one is put off converted maisonettes and many of them have no meaningful service charge. So it's the same situation when works need doing.

No similar experience to share but what jumped out at me from your post is the ‘no major works for two years’ - that’s a v v short period of time in such a long term thing. I would be v wary of buying in a block tbh and 2 years is really naff all! I’m assuming that could change aswell. Is there any guarantee of no work?? I expect not.. would be better if you had a lot more say than I think you’ll have in this block x