The National Leasehold Campaign has organised a demonstration to take place outside Westminster on Wednesday July 18 at 11am-2pm.
Katie Kendrick, founder of the NLC, states: “It’s such a crucial time in the campaign. As decisions are being made about our futures in Parliament we feel it’s paramount government do not forget existing leaseholder’s who are caught in this feudal outdate abusive system. We felt the time was right to take our voices to the capital to be heard.
“Banning leasehold moving forward is a positive step but this will certainly create a 2-tier system. We would like to urge the government to address this and ensure they help existing leaseholder’s escape this nightmare we are living in.”
The demonstration will commence at 11am until 2pm. Many Leaseholder’s have also contacted their own MP’s and invited them out to meet leaseholder’s during this time and we would encourage all leaseholder’s attending to do the same.
After the demonstration outside Westminster we will be moving to Richmond Terrace outside Downing Street where the Leader’s of the NLC will be hand delivering a petition to Number 10 at 3pm.
The NLC petition ‘Abolish Leasehold & Introduce Strict regulation for residential managing agents’ currently has 12,000 signatures.
The petition also calls for a Select Committee Inquiry into the Leasehold Scandal.
The NLC would like to invite All Leaseholders to come together for this event. Leaseholder’s have found their voices and we are determined to use them.
We would also appreciate media coverage of this event. There will be plenty of leaseholder’s who would like to share their personal stories.
Related posts:
10,500 leaseholders demand select committee hauls in housebuilders over rip-off ground rents
Ripped-off leaseholders bring protest to central Manchester
Free leaseholders’ conference in Worthing on July 25
Leaseholders’ meeting in Worthing this evening (July 25)
Fill in our survey to demonstrate the new-build ground rent scandal
Ground rent speculators Pemberstone seek £3m tribunal ruling over Grenfell cladding
So, a petition is going to be handed in to 10 Downing St.?
A house that was originally a leasehold, built by a property speculator so shoddily that the maintenance bills proved so ruinous for “owners” that on many occasions it came close to being demolished,
It was only saved when the state stepped in and took it over.
Anything sound familiar?
Well done to Jo Derbyshire of the National Leasehold Campaign who gave a clear, eloquent and very direct speech yesterday at the APPG for leasehold & Commonhold reform. The figures quoted by Jo related to her ground rent increases and the TW so called “compensation “ offer were shocking and illustrate so well that RPI linked leases are no better and possibly worse than doubling.
What the developers and perhaps some MPs ( with some notable exceptions) don’t seem to realise is that these lucrative business models impact directly upon ordinary people and are ruining lives and livelihoods.
The other thing probably not yet understood by some is that the NLC will keep shouting out – we are not going away- we are getting increasingly angry at the lack of redress available for those already scammed AND we will take every opportunity in media and forums like the APPG to expose this horrendous scandal! In addition we will not rest until a formal select inquiry is set up to question developers on their rationale behind creating onerous lease terms. They must be brought to task – enough is enough!
Never mind caveat emptor- I say CAVEAT ELIT
Saying we need to compensate freeholders for cutting off their income from scamming leaseholders is like saying we should have compensated the people selling “bath salts” on dodgy websites when the law changed to make those illegal. Ground rent is wrong. Huge fees for permission to make changes to your own house are wrong, Being charged hundreds of thousands of pounds and being threatened with losing your home because you challenged your service charges is wrong. Changes shouldn’t be dependent on whether freeholders feel hard done by about making less money.
I will never, ever, tire of quoting Tory MP Crispin Blunt –
“Present-day “onerous ground rents” are, more likely than not, the resultant of UNCONSCIONABLE conduct carried out by one sector of society who have superior information flow (developers, freeholders’ funds, financiers, solicitors) at the expense of an unsuspecting and more naive part of society (consumer homebuyers).”
He (Crispin Blunt) urges that leasehold houses be transferred to freehold immediately, and that leasehold flats become commonhold.
“I advocated there should not be any ground rent as property title should be either freehold or commonhold in the future.”
And this which illustrates perfectly the decency of the man –
“Titles to people’s home is demonstrative of their ownership to their home that is to serve as a physical shelter and emotional safe haven for the family. Shelter and security is a fundamental need.”
“Government can support existing leaseholders with onerous ground rents by passing legislation to unwind and nullify those payment obligations.”
Now which part of Crispin Blunt’s representation does government not understand?
I wish Katie and the NLC well with their demo.
The BHS inquiry on Sir Phillip Green came about because ordinary people were going to lose their jobs and pensions over greed. Well we’re going to be losing our flats and homes if this leasehold scandal isn’t sorted out. We need that inquiry to grill these developers and find out the ugly truth. Enough is enough!
Maybe it will take a few innocent families to lose their homes, before we see any Government action.
Unfortunately this is already happening “behind closed” doors in Country Courts and Property tribunals; We need the truth of forfeitures of Leasehold homes;w e want the truth on Freeholders using their lawyers to intimidate leaseholders. MPs must stop “paying lip service” ; People simply want new legislation; This is why MPs get elected.