Inherited Macartney&Stone retirement flat - anyone rented one out?

[damemaggiescurledupperlip]

We inherited a one-bed retirement flat from DH's parents over a year ago. It has been listed for sale since then, but no real interest.

An alternative would be to rent it out. Has anyone done this in a Macartney and Stone development?

(I don't want to be a landlord, but the ground rent, service charges and double council tax do stack up. We have lowered the price twice, but nothing in the block is selling.)

Renting it out is not beyond the realms of possibility but …

Being a LL is a minefield of legislation so get familiar with it asap. It might put you off.

Secondly you might prefer to use an agent. Be an arms length LL? Shop around some agents. Charges will vary.

Finally, check the lease! Theres probably a clause or two to consider?

Tread with caution. Pay attention to detail.

It makes a difference where you are. Some areas have specific schemes for registering Landlords. All of Wales, and parts of Nottingham for example.

The estate agents are strongly advising it - they say there is next to no pre-admin.

They are specialists in retirement flats too, so ought to know what is needed by the freeholders, etc..

We are in Surrey,

Brilliant if the estate agents know their stuff. DM find it very hard being a landlord, but that’s partly a her problem! For you, the pro of offloading the site fees outweighs the cons!

I’d also advise using a letting agent to manage the rental for you. For 10% of the income, it’s well worth it.
You’ll need to do an annual tax return to with the additional income.

I also have an elderly DM in a M&S property that’s unlikely to sell when she pops her clogs. There’s a bailiff’s notice on one of the flats in her block so difficulty in selling them obviously isn’t uncommon.

I find it bizarre how these places are hard to sell, you'd have thought there was sufficient 'churn' in the market to make it viable. Yet I hear all the time they don't sell. Very odd. Yet also you'd think there would be a market to rent - though again would people want them to be long or short term?

It's the service charges that put people off.

They’re very hard to sell as new blocks keep getting built.

Please check your lease. We were told the same but the lease prohibited it and we were subject to 200% council tax whilst it was on the market. We also couldn’t live in it as we were too young. Nightmare.

What is the breakdown you are paying on it each month?

You might not break even after tax.

I think you need to look closely at McCartney and Stones T&Cs.
I know that the development near me doesn’t allow renting out and it doesn’t even allow some else ( such as a family member) moving in temporarily while it waits to sell but all the time the astronomical rental charges still apply in full.
A lot of these flats end up back with M+C for selling on, they seem to have it all stitched up.

How much have you lowered the price by? Is it worth giving it a good percentage drop (say 15%) just to see if it then garners interest?

Your situation fills me with dread OP, as we have an Aunt currently living in a 1-bed M & S flat, which I know will ultimately become our problem. Having said that, it has been the most perfect home for her over the last few years.

The one that my Aunt is in doesn't allow renting, or staying unless it's in the lodge visitors appt which obv cost money.

The one that sold recently (the only one that's not new in 3 years) went for 85k when the new ones they are still trying to flog are 300k. There's 7 on the market apart from the new ones which are never going to sell.

Cousins have decided when they need to they'll try and sell back to McCarthy even if it's a massive loss just to get rid of it

Great idea to rent it out if you possibly can. Nobody wants to buy these flats because if tge huge service charges for not much, but they could be good to live in as a tenant.

Well no because they would have all those charges passed onto them. Making it unappealing in the first place. The ground rent, charges etc would still be under owners name so if tenant stops paying enough to cover it then owner still must pay.

These retirement flats are such an expensive stitch up and @Gloriousgardener11is right. I can totally see the temptation but the experience of @Terryscomboveris not unusual. My late DF ran a large sheltered housing charity and housing association focussed on independent living for elderly people, providing flats managed discreetly by a warden. He did this for many years and I remember him being very vocal about the unclear process and financial risks of buying M&S and similarly set up properties. I hope you find a solution OP as it’s really not the kind of millstone anyone needs after a bereavement.

True but is there a better alternative? At the moment OP is paying these costs and getting nothing back . Rent might cover them even if little profit is made. It's a bad situation. I think if I was left one of these flats I would refuse the inheritance.

Well done your DF!

This happened to me. I was able to negotiate with the council on the council tax fee, but ended up selling at a huge loss. We paid the monthly fees (£695) for approximately 3 years, while it stood empty, and we also paid nursing home fees. M&S are the only winners here. I would never recommend buying one. At one point we were so desperate we were going to give the keys back to M&S to avoid continuing to lose money every month.

Would you mind sharing please in what ways it has been perfect for your Aunt, please? I am thinking of a similar kind of property for my own old age and I'd like to hear a positive account, as so often they are really negative.

I am pleased to hear she is happy, and I hope when the day comes for you to sell it on, it turns out to be not too much hassle.

Yeah that's totally true. She should at least try. Those bloody things are like an albatross round the neck of whoever gets lumbered with them.

M&S just want you to sell it back to them for 10p while they churn out more and more of the bloody things and try and sell it for £400k. It's one big scam I swear.

For all the people having trouble, were the apartments purchased new? Or are these issues still prevalent in apartments that are on their third and fourth sale?

I rent out a flat using an agent. I used to manage it myself, but it was a pain in the neck and not really sustainable once I had children. When I was looking for an agent I paid close attention to the reviews and made sure I went with one who had really good reviews from tenants as well as owners and it has really paid off. He knows his stuff, keeps me right on all the regulatory stuff, deals with any emergencies and has an excellent contact book for tradespeople for any work that needs done, and they always do it at a really competitive price because he is able to put so much work their way.