welcome Toby!
You probably already know, but your freeholder cannot make you pay more than ?250 in any one year for building works, unless they have properly consulted with all leaseholders - in a specific way set down by law (S20 of Commonhold & Leasehold reform Act 2002).
And sinking funds for future works are fine, but you should be given details of what the sinking fund will be used for (ie a 10 year works forecast) - and funds held in sinking funds must be held in a special, interest bearing, bank account.
If you ever have any queries or problems to do with being a leaseholder, service charges etc, I recommend the Leasehold Advisory Service - a government funded service providing free and impartial advice. http://www.lease-advice.org

Thanks very much for the advice - I'll look into it!

Well that is useful information on what they can 'claim' from us.

Does it make a difference if we have a share of the freehold?

I would agree with lots that has been said so far as I too live in Forest Croft and have done for almost 4 years.

Quiet, great views and always a little oasis on top of the hill.

There are even some lovely people living there who will stop and chat and be friendly which is all against the London steriotype!

We paid the lump sum as part of our purchase of the flat so that the outside could be done up.

I was told that there is a large lump of money in a sinking fund for the interiors but that there were some tennants who had not paid any service charge for years!

All in all it's a cracking place to live and would recommend it to anyone!

Bring on the summer bar-b-q !!

Hi there, I have lived in Forest Croft for almost 2 years now. I have too say that the block is not looking its best at the moment! It is true that the values of the flats have increased considerably in the past 24 months and yes the increase would probaly cover any repair bills that we may incur but that does not excuse the poor management of the block. (And with the gloom in the housing market we could be hit with a double whammy, falling values and a large repair bill!) Can we not take retrospective action against KFH for their failure to maintain the building?

There has been a sign on one of the rear doors telling us it is out of order since 6th March! I now see that ther is a sign on the front door saying that that is also in need of repair. When was the last time anyone from the management company visited the block? If the management company can't repair a door lock can they be trusted with any major repairs?

Can anyone tell me when the next residents meeting is and will the management company be represented?

I don't normally have a moan, honest!

I've heard on the grapevine that the managing agent is planning to do up the stairwells in the not-too-distant-future, and that a grand plan is in place to complete the various repairs that were botched/neglected three years ago.

No idea when the next residents' meeting is planned, but it would be good to find out from the managing agent if the above is true...

I lived in Forest Croft for over 30 years, both as a tenant and as an owner occupier and in all that time I think I can honestly say there has never been a time when it was managed properly. I was glad I had the opportunity to 'Jump ship' as it were due to being made redundant and coming into a sum of money that enabled me to move out of London all together.

KFH were voted in by a clique of owner occupiers who then promptly moved away, either selling or renting out their flats. It was almost impossible to get in contact with KFH even by the residents committee. All they were interested in was collecting their not inconsiderable Management fee and doing as little as possible to earn it.

I wish you all the best of luck and hope you can remedy the management situation without it costing you all the earth to put things right.

I live in the Forest Croft block up at the top of Taymount Rise, and just wondered if anyone had any info on the repair works that have been started in the past couple of weeks to the inside communal area?

Much work is needed to the block as a whole - does anyone know what the current works are expected to cover? Thanks in advance for any responses.

Surely you should be asking the freeholder these questions. I assume you are a leaseholder.
Try not to be grumpy when asking them. Friendly approach much better

Correct Brian, I am a leaseholder. You're right - I will enquire with the managing agent re. the works - just wondered if any other residents visited this forum and happened to know about these repairs (and/or the bigger plans for years to come)...

Good Evening Mr Grumpy,

The AGM for Forest Croft Residents is at the Christian Fellowship centre on Honor Oak Rd opposite Fairlawn school at 7.30pm on Wednesday 5th November. The management company will be in attendance. You should have had notification of this within the last month.

Brian, never assume, it makes an ass of u and me, the flats in Forest Croft are share of freehold.

My understanding of the situation with freehold/leasehold at Forest Croft is that it is complex: company called 'Forest Croft Ltd' is the 'Freeholder' but ~60 of the 63 flat owners own an equal share in this company and are referred to as 'Leaseholders'. However, as you point out, this essentially constitutes 'share of freehold'.

If I am mistaken in any of this, please let me know!

I am unfortunately unable to attend the AGM tonight, but if anyone on this board does, and feels there are any particularly pertinent issues raised, I'd be most grateful for a run-down of these (the minutes will of course be distributed in coming months, but I suspect will focus on the business-as-usual elements of director-election, yearly accounts etc).

Just out of interest, how many of the residents of Forest Croft visit these boards?

Cheers!

MrGrumpy
I lived in Forest Croft for many years and you are right in your assumption that the flat OWNERS each have a share of the Freehold. This came about when we bought the Freehold from the previous freeholder, and each flat was allocated a new 999 year lease hence the Leasehold status. For obvious reasons a flat by definition cannot be Freehold, but the very long lease gives the advantages of freehold when it comes to buying and selling as you do not get the disadvantage of a lease that has only a few years to run and its influence on the price. The leaseholders have a share in the freehold of the building as a whole. You should have been made aware of all this by your solicitor when you bought your flat.

As far as the Companies are concerned
Forest Croft Ltd is the Freeholder
Forest Croft Management Ltd is the company that runs the block via the Managing agent.

BT thanks for your explanation.
I assume the management agents were voted in by the lease/free holders and likewise can be voted out by a majority if they are not happy with them

I understand new managing agents were appointed recently, but as I no longer live in the block I'm not aware of the conditions of their appointment. I'm sure you can find out more by speaking to the members of the Residents committee.

I am looking to buy a flat inthe Forest Croft block. I was wandering if any one who lives/lived there could give me any information about the building. I read there have been some problmes with poor management and high service charges and would be grateful for any updates on those issues.

Hello chat. Welcome (nearly) to Forest Croft.

The new management seem to be very on the ball. A tiddly rise in service charges (?9 a month), repair of the stairwells and a call for email addresses so we can be in touch with them all point to a promising future as far as I'm concerned.

It's a very friendly block with young professionals, older residents and young families all mixed in and the views are amazing, especially from the top floor. Plus as you go up the hill the noise from the South Circular dies behind you... so it's really very quiet for a London residence (and certainly quieter than many of my family's homes in the country.....).

(I'm in the "young family" category and my only issue is the space in our particular flat!)

Any other questions don't hesitate to ask....

And whatever happened to these brilliant BBQ ideas?!?! First sunny day this year I expected to see all you menfolk outside wearing your shorts and poring over hot coals........

thank you for you reply. it does sound like a lovely place to live! one more thing about service charges...what exactly is included in it? My estate agent said maintanage and insurance, then she added hot water and heating...Not sure what to belive! Any info will be greatly appreciated.

Certainly NOT hot water and heating. This used to be the case about 25 years ago but all flats now have their own independant boilers. I suggest you make sure your estate agents to get up to date with their information.

Chat, Bt is right about the heating and water. Your service charge payments cover buildings insurance (NOT contents insurance) and maintenance: but only the maintenance of the shared parts of the building, not maintenance of the interior of your flat itself. This is a usual arrangements with flats. I've lived at Forest Croft for three years and have never regretted moving there.

It appears that half the forum live in Forest Croft!