flat - who is responsible for wall repairs?

[philv]

Hi,

i own a flat in a converted 1900 building.

There are 3 flats, over 3 floors.

The guttering around the roof blocked, resulting in water cascading down the wall.

The brick mortar has washed away causing leaks into my property, damp and mould.

The guttering/roof issues/costs are obviously shared between the 3 flat owners.

The external wall affected is only against my flat..

As the walls hold up the building, is that wall a common wall?
Is it a shared costs or just down to me?

The lease says -

In common \nth the Lessee of the Adjoinin? Property or
the Lessor (if possession of the Ad1oinln~ Property is
retained by the Lessor) to keep in ~ood repair and (as a
separate covenant) to nay one thirrl of the cost of repalrin~
anything (including the roof foundation dividing joists and
beams pipes drains walls and easements) used in COMmon with
the occupie.r of the Adjoiniul' Pro,erty all "irlhich shall be
party matters to be repair~d ."It the equally shared expense of
the Lessee and the Lessee of the Adjoining Property and also
to pay a nroportionate part of the cost of repairing anvthinr,
used in comrr.on with adjacent occupiers other than the occupier
of the Adjolnin~ Property

The flat is leashold but there is no service charge.
We usually get together and decide things with the land owner.

Any help much appreciated.

Thanks

[philv]

It seems to say that all 3 flat owners are responsible if repairs are needed to anything that affects our building and an adjacent building.

Our 3 flats are on top of each other, with other buildings joined to each side.

It also seems to say that all 3 owners should share costs for anything used in common.

So, obviously the roof and guttering and foundations etc are used in common.

So.....the question is......

Are all the walls used in common as they are holding up the roof etc?

The part of the wall that is damaged is only damaged on the parts directly exterior to my lat, although it there is a door in that wall that is used by 2 flats.

Thanks

Edited by philv on Thursday 28th January 15:48

[philv]

photo attached.
My flat is where the blue door is and all the wall above and around it. Several floors.

The blue door is a shared door going through to 2 front doors for the neigbour and myself.

Shared door in wall, so shared wall?

[KTF]

I assume you have buildings insurance covering all the flats that each owner pays towards annually?

Do you also have a slush fund that people pay in to each month to cover the cost of repairs if needed?

[philv]

We each have our own buildings insurance.
But prefer not to use this.
No slush fund.

[Countdown]

In my experience repairs & maintenance to communal areas are a shared cost. For example the cost of a re-roof would be shared equally between all the occupants even though it affects only the properties on the top floor.

[anonymous-user]

philv said:

The lease says -

In common \nth the Lessee of the Adjoinin? Property or
the Lessor (if possession of the Ad1oinln~ Property is
retained by the Lessor) to keep in ~ood repair and (as a
separate covenant) to nay one thirrl of the cost of repalrin~
anything (including the roof foundation dividing joists and
beams pipes drains walls and easements) used in COMmon with
the occupie.r of the Adjoiniul' Pro,erty all "irlhich shall be
party matters to be repair~d ."It the equally shared expense of
the Lessee and the Lessee of the Adjoining Property and also
to pay a nroportionate part of the cost of repairing anvthinr,
used in comrr.on with adjacent occupiers other than the occupier
of the Adjolnin~ Property

That extract is so badly cut and mangled that it's meaningless.

It's highly likely the main structural walls are dealt with in exactly the same way as the roof, shared between all flat owners. It's possible the cost of repairing interior partition walls separating flats or walls benefitting only some flats are shared only between owners of the relevant flats. But without seeing the full text it's impossible to tell.

[ooid]

I would suggest all responsible. Get a certified/registered contractor and go ahead with the job. Ask for a warranty too. If you go for insurance route (individual or collective) it might create more queries if one of you ever try to sell your flats, as any insurance work has to be declared during sale.