'Is this why my flat is only worth £5,000?’

Day 1: ABC were contacted by a Landlord who owned an apartment constructed in 2007 within a block of 21 properties, Landlord reported that the condition of the communal areas was uncontrolled and the tenancy type within the apartments were of a type that he was unable to let the property and that on having the property valued by his current Lender the condition of the site was such that it was determined the flat was only worth £5,000.

Day 2: A number of ABC staff attended site to find a van had been driven into the central block where one of the front doors should have been, various meter cupboards had been tampered with, electrical supplies being re routed, gardens had been damaged and at this point in time the condition of the flats were on simple visual inspection uninhabitable and that full investigation was required to ascertain the cause for these serious issues.

Month 1 – 6: Initially land registry searches were undertaken by ABC to determine ownership of the leaseholds and ultimately the freehold too. These checks determined that the Freehold owner was uncontactable and that no working Management Company was in situ.

The Local Authority, Police, Social Services, Environmental health and Housing Options were contacted by ABC and brought on board to form a steering group who could work as a team with the Leaseholders and Freeholder to rectify the condition of this site.

Years 1 – 3: During this period in time, Freehold was secured, new Management team brought on board, flats were forfeited or re possessed by the Lenders, tenants were evicted and the site overhauled and ABC are delighted to the part they have had to play in this programme of works to the extent that we were thanked by Wirral Council within their Wirral Landlords Linkup Magazine. The site is now in full habitable condition and the market values are in the region of £55,000.