Legally, is this a misrepresentation of property?

Question

I own a maisonette that sits above a ground floor flat. The bin store roof, which is the responsibility of the flat below me, is leaking. At present the owner of the ground floor flat is selling the property. It has now been sold, although I assume they have not completed or exchanged yet as it only sold a few weeks ago. I have telephoned the estate agents about the leak (I cannot contact the current owner as he does not live there and I do not have his contact details) and nothing has happened. I am now writing a letter for both the owner and the estate agent about this. The leak has caused some damage to the wall in my hallway. I was wondering if the owner and/or estate agent were legally obliged to tell the purchaser about this leak, or is it expected that the purchaser should identify it? Does the Property Misrepresentation Act come into play here? I want to know where the purchasers stand as the I don't want is to get off on a bad foot with them over a leaky roof!

It is a leasehold, but I have already spoken to the landlord and the bin store is the responsibility of the ground floor flat under the lease.

The bin store is at ground level - the leak affects my hallway on the ground floor at the front door, I then have stairs going up to my property. It is a typical maisonette!

Answer 1

I would guess that the survey should've shown this up. it is did not the the buyer can sue the surveyor for the cost of the work. if the buyer asks the vendor if there are any probs they have to tell them but if they don't ask, they won't know.

I take it then the flats are freehold???? If they are leasehold isn't it the responsibility of the person you pay your ground rent to?

Answer 2

First - you need to clarify what you mean by a "bin store roof" - is this literally the outhouse where your bins are stored? in which case it seems rather high for a bin store, if it comes up to the first floor.

Anyway, to answer your question. Do you have a share of the freehold, or is your flat leasehold? If you are leasehold, check your lease to see who's responsibility the roof is. If you don't have a copy of the lease, write to the solicitor who handled the purchase of your maisonette for a copy.

The Act you refer to doesn't exist. There is the Property Misdescriptions Act and the Misrepresentation Act. The first only relate to the way estate agents describe the property and has no bearing here. The second has no bearing really either. House purchases operate on the principle of buyer beware (caveat emptor). THat's why there is such a long list of buyer's questions on a house purchase.

I'm afraid it sounds like you've done all you can for now. I would write to the estate agents as you say you are doing, and also drop a letter into the flat below, putting them on notice of the leak and advising them to tell the purchaser.

Then sit and wait until the new owner moves in. Whether you choose to enforce your claim for the damage (assuming they're liable to maintain the roof) or suffer the cost of damage yourself to maintain good relations is for you.

Answer 3

If you know the Real Estate Agent, inform him you plan to discuss this with the New Owner, and you want it fixed- if the Agent does not inform the Buyer, he can be sued for misrepresenting the property - HomeOwners Insurance should pay for all damage except the Leak in the Roof, itself- as it is old Negligence unless it is a wind damage.
Also a matter of Latent Defects- As an owner of property that is being damaged by another property owner, you can sue as well. Write a letter and say that is what you intend to do.

Answer 4

It has to be assumed that the buyer's surveyor should have picked up the issue. As the previous answerer said, if the buyer didn't ask the vendor the question, he's not obliged to reveal it.

However, it's worth looking through your deeds or contacting your solicitors to see whose responsibility the leaking roof is. Unless it specifically states in the deeds, the common external envelope of flats in a common stair is the responsibility of the all of the tenants/owners of the property accessed via that stair. This also includes the roof of the top floor being the responsibility of all the flats on all levels, not just the flats on the top floor.

That is also to say that if the leaky bin store roof is a common facility to you and the new neighbour, and any other neighbours, it is common that its upkeep and maintenance is everyone's responisibility. So if it's leaking, then in all fairness everyone should chip in to repair the leak. Unless you can prove that you've done all you can to get everyone to agree on the repairs and that their inaction has resulted in the damage to your property, the damage to your own property as a result of the leak is to your own cost.

Answer 5

Certainly make sure the estate agent knows about it. Put up a notice on the front door of the ground floor flat drawing attention to the roof and the damage it is causing to your property.

Answer 6

put a note through the letterbox of the flat stating that it needs repairing before the damage its causing cost them even more to repair, list any other faults you think they should know about after all you've been in the property longer so you can give them some hints on the property/area without bieng rude so that you get on better long term, you dont know the new owner doesnt know it needs fixing you just know it isnt fixed, or if you see them outside go talk to them and make an arrangement to get it fixed they just might not have had chance yet

Answer 7

It is worth going into he estate agent and making a formal complaint, the buyer could then claim the repair bill from the estate agent if they do not deal with the problem correctly

The buyer can also ask his solicitor to hold backfrom the seller the money needed to pay for the repairs.

Answer 8

Yes, it is up to the agent to let perspective buyers know about the damage. There must be a home inspector b-4 the sale goes through,you could just let the new buyers know about this damage to the storage and tell them you informed the agent about this problem b-4 they sold the place to them(buyers). Let them take care of it. There is a clause somewhere about agents who misrepresent a property they are selling-- check it out. Good Luck!!