Court appointed manager – a brief guide

Where the landlord has management responsibilities or has the powers to appoint their own managing agent, it is possible for leaseholders to apply to the First Tier Tribunal for a management order under section 24 of the landlord and tenants act 1987

The grounds for making an application are;

• The landlord is in breach of an obligation owed to the tenant, under the terms of the lease, in the management of the building
• That the landlord has demanded, or is likely to demand, unreasonable service charges
• The landlord has failed to comply with any relevant provision of a code of practice approved by the Secretary of State under section 87 of the Leasehold Reform, Housing and Urban Development Act 1993 (codes of management practice).
• That unreasonable variable administration charges have been made, or are proposed or are likely to be made
• that such other circumstances exist for it to be just and convenient for an order to be made; and
• That it is just and convenient for the order to be made in all the circumstances.

The appointment is made under section 24 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1987. The application can be made by a single leaseholder in a building, or a group of leaseholders acting together.

Exceptions

The right to apply for the appointment of a manager is not available if the leasehold property is a single dwelling or if the landlord is the Crown, a local authority or other public sector body, a registered social landlord or other housing association or where the premises are provided for the purposes of a charitable housing trust or where less than 50% of the flats in the building are on long leases and the landlord is resident on the premises and it is a converted, not purpose-built property, and he has been resident in the flat as his only or principal residence for at least twelve months.

Further Reading

For further information on appoint of a manager, the Lease Advisory service has written an excellent article here.