Mainstay loses prime Norwich site to right to manage

The 98-unit NU Centrale in the centre of Norwich has dropped Mainstay and opted to be managed by LKP-registered Norwich Residential Management.

The residents had been considering right to manage for more than two years but as 90 per cent of the block is rented out they were making limited progress contacting all the leaseholders.

Norwich Residential Management, which is run by Guy Hudson, became involved in May and achieved a majority for RTM by August.

“It was a question of searching the Land Registry for owners, knocking on doors to speak to tenants, sending out paper fliers and – which was very useful – speaking to letting agents,” says Hudson. “In the end we got there, but it did need a systematic, professional approach to get to the right numbers.”

The freeholder is Freehold Managers plc, based in Southwark in south London, but to Hudson’s surprise the RTM was not resisted. He takes over the management of the three-block site, built by Countrywide in 2006, on March 5 next year.

“Service charges are typically around £2,000 a year, which we would hope to get to around £1,500, and the building insurance is £38,000, which we would hope to bring down to around £16,000, although this depends on the claims history of NU Centrale.”

Norwich Residential Management is an enthusiastic supporter of the principles behind LKP, which seeks to ensure leaseholders are in charge of their own destiny and managing agents are contracted to serve their interests, not those of the freeholder.