My problem is that I own and live in a flat in a converted terraced London house, and the owner of the only other flat in the house is a 19-year-old who lets the flat, doesn't live in London and neglects all her duties as a landlord (and even as a good neighbour).
For example, she doesn't seem to have read her lease, which requires both me and her to share equally the costs of all external and common parts repairs. It has taken nine months to get the simplest but important roof repairs done because she refused to co-operate. Nor has she read the part of the lease restricting noise: although she doesn't live in London, when her flat was empty between tenants she held an all-night party in her flat and garden which continued from 3pm one afternoon to 10am the next day, and kept half the street awake for most of the night. Then, before going home to wherever she lives, she dumped 20 bin bags of rubbish in the front garden, which the council won't collect as they only collect from wheelie bins placed on the pavement on the right day. The garden has been filled with all this rubbish for two weeks now, and she clearly doesn't intend to move it and nor will the Council.
Before anyone mentions mortgage lenders - I am pretty certain she bought the flat for cash from an inheritance (she was 18 when she bought it, drives a sports car and has a lowly clerical job, so is unlikely to have got a mortgage on a £400,000 flat).
And the freeholder is no use either. He is pretty much absent, and has told me my home is "too small a part of [his] property portfolio" for him to spend any time on it.
So I'm wondering if there is a minimum age at which someone can be a landlord?
And can anyone suggest anything that would get her to fulfil her legal obligations in terms of sharing communal repairs and maintenance, abiding by the terms and covenants of the lease, etc?
Thanks very much for any suggestions or advice you can give.
For example, she doesn't seem to have read her lease, which requires both me and her to share equally the costs of all external and common parts repairs. It has taken nine months to get the simplest but important roof repairs done because she refused to co-operate. Nor has she read the part of the lease restricting noise: although she doesn't live in London, when her flat was empty between tenants she held an all-night party in her flat and garden which continued from 3pm one afternoon to 10am the next day, and kept half the street awake for most of the night. Then, before going home to wherever she lives, she dumped 20 bin bags of rubbish in the front garden, which the council won't collect as they only collect from wheelie bins placed on the pavement on the right day. The garden has been filled with all this rubbish for two weeks now, and she clearly doesn't intend to move it and nor will the Council.
Before anyone mentions mortgage lenders - I am pretty certain she bought the flat for cash from an inheritance (she was 18 when she bought it, drives a sports car and has a lowly clerical job, so is unlikely to have got a mortgage on a £400,000 flat).
And the freeholder is no use either. He is pretty much absent, and has told me my home is "too small a part of [his] property portfolio" for him to spend any time on it.
So I'm wondering if there is a minimum age at which someone can be a landlord?
And can anyone suggest anything that would get her to fulfil her legal obligations in terms of sharing communal repairs and maintenance, abiding by the terms and covenants of the lease, etc?
Thanks very much for any suggestions or advice you can give.
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