Balconies under attack because of EWS1
When i bought my apartment with a balcony i never imagined that it could come under attack, after all its high-up and only accessible from my apartment. However, as a result of the ongoing issues of EWS1 at MQ it appears even the ownership of balconies is now in the firing line of Rendall & Rittner (R&R), with little support from the boards or chairs of MQ A-G who are eager to charge Leaseholders upwards of £4.5k to replace the wooden decking to meet the requirements of EWS1, which the latest RICs guidance shows our balconies are deemed to be safe
Who owns the balconies at MQ Freeholders or Leaseholders?
For the proposed work on the balconies to be carried out at leaseholder expense it would be important to know who is actually responsible for doing the work.
The leaseholder vs freeholder responsibilities & ownership for the apartments are defined in each property lease & title plan. Accessible for a small fee at the land register. The leases which have been seen by this author, clearly show that the balconies are demised to individual leaseholders, the MQ Freeholder only having responsibility for painting the metalwork on the underside.
R&R and Chair of MQ A-G at the open meeting on 9th March 2021 indicated that they were seeking legal advice on ownership of the balconies and, if required, will go to the First Tier Tribunal (FTT) to vary the leases so that they can carry out the proposed work. No details were given as to how the legal advice was being paid for and how the cost of going to the FTT would be covered. Could R&R and Chair of MQ A-G use leaseholders funds held in reserve of the companies to actually take away parts of property demised to them?
In the opinion of this author – the balconies are demised in a legally agreed lease to leaseholders. If the regulation around their safety has changed necessitating their replacement, then leaseholders at their own expense should be free to meet these requirements. Just like they do for other parts of their apartments, e.g. Electricals. However, as the RICs guidance now clearly states these types of balconies are out of scope leaseholders are well within their rights to state they are compliant with all current regulations and refuse this work being done. Any legal expenses that may now being incurred to investigate this issue by the chair of MQ A-G or R&R are inappropriate use of leaseholder funds.
What are other developments around London doing?
We are currently in contact with other large developments around London to understand how they are now dealing with the balcony issues in particular the updated guidance from RICs on EWS1. What we have heard so far is that the application of the guidance is leading to varying outcomes and results depending on how old your apartment building is. Generally, those that are less than 10 years old, and covered by NHBC warranties, meaning the developer would be liable to replacing defects are receiving a B1 rating. As an example, a large 5-8 year old Berkley Homes Development, where Rendall & Rittner are managing agents, with timber decked balconies as per the below picture, has received a B1 EWS1 and unsurprisingly do not need any works, at the expense of the developer, to remediate.
If you have any further examples of how developments around London are dealing with EWS1 guidance write in to independentmqra@gmail.com – and we’ll update and add to our blog:) and remember to subscribe to imqra.com to get further updates.
Note: this article is the honest opinion of the author and based on available known facts at the time of writing.