Leaseholder information

You should always check with us before carrying out any substantial building work to your home as you may need our permission to:

• carry out any alteration that affects or extends the structure of the building
• change the way any of the external areas are used
• alter the layout of the property
• knock through internal walls

You must also seek permission if you wish to change any part of the property that we are normally responsible for, such as doors and windows. 

We may recharge the costs of putting right any defective or dangerous work and legal action may be considered for breach of the lease or restrictions if any unauthorised alterations are carried out.

Contact your Neighbourhood Manager to discuss whether permission is needed for any work you intend to carry out.

As a leaseholder of the council, you will still have access to our estate management services and Neighbourhood Management team.

Your Neighbourhood Manager is still responsible for responding to any concerns about other council tenants or council-owned blocks and areas.

They are also responsible for carrying out statutory consultation processes with our maintenance teams regarding any major repairs or improvement works to be carried out and to which you will be asked to contribute through your service charges.

We consult all leaseholders if we intend to carry out major repair works to your property or block, or change any of the communal services we provide to which you are required to contribute under the terms of your lease. This is called section 20 consultation. 

Section 20 consultation is required if in any one year:

• day to day repairs or major repair work will result in charges of more than £250
• service or contract for services entered into under a long term agreement will result in charges of more than £100

Consultation 

The following actions will be taken during the consultation period. 

Once the consultation processes have been completed, the work will commence. 

A Contract Surveyor and a Neighbourhood Manager will be responsible for all day to day contact during the period of the work. They will resolve all day to day issues arising out of the work and liaise with tenants and leaseholders to arrange access.

Once the works have been completed the final cost of the works will be added to your service charge account and depending on the type of work we may collect your contribution over 1, 3 or 10 years. This spreads the repayments for major repair work over a period of time and is interest-free.  

Examples of instalment recovery for major repair work include: 

Apply

You can apply to renew or extend your lease after you have owned the property for at least 2 years. You will be required to cover costs incurred as part of the process including the the cost of evaluating the property, solicitor and other legal fees.

Next Steps

The extending of a lease can give the council the opportunity to review the terms and conditions to take into account any changes it has made to its' lease agreements; services that are provided to the property; or other terms and conditions that have been updated since the original lease was granted.

Ending a lease

Even if an extension is granted, the council still has some rights to end a lease early if the block or property is required for redevelopment purposes. After a lease has ended and if it has not been extended, there is no automatic right to a new one.

You will still be able to occupy the property until such time the council has decided whether to either grant you a new lease, grant a periodic tenancy to make you a council housing tenant again, or commence legal proceedings to recover possession of the property.

In any event, you will not be forced to leave the property until the council has obtained a court order.

You should seek independent legal advice about your housing situation if you are approaching the end of your lease agreement.

As a leaseholder, you take over nearly all day to day repair responsibilities for inside your home.

You are responsible for keeping:

• the property clean and tidy
• the property in good decorative condition and repair 
• any communal areas and grounds free from stored items and rubbish

We are responsibility for:

• external walls and the roof
• window frames, locks and mechanisms (does not include lost window keys, cracked or broken glazing)
• entrance door and outhouse storage doors (does not include internal doors or lost keys)
• communal areas
• pipework running through the building serving all flats

We may, at our own discretion, agree to carry out certain repairs that you as the leaseholder are responsible for to protect the safety and security of the property and other residents within the block. Any such repairs will be recharged to you upon completion.

Refer to your lease agreement for details on repairs if you are unsure as to who is responsible. 

As a leaseholder you will be required to contribute towards certain costs called service charges. 

At the beginning of each financial year we will set your quarterly invoices. The amount charged is the amount it costs to provide the service.

Services may include:

For both freeholders and leaseholds, If you were the first purchaser under the right to buy scheme, there are time limits on when you are able to sell the property.

These are:

Within 5 years: You may have to pay back some, or all, of the discount you were given as part of your application to buy the property

Within 10 years: You must offer to sell the property back to the council first before being allowed to put it on the open market. The council has the right to nominate another registered provider to purchase the property in its place.

If we do not wish to buy the property back, or nominate another registered provider to buy it in our place, we will consent to you putting the property for sale on the open market.