What is Right to Manage?

We have recently enhanced our Right to Manage (RTM) offering. The process, which was introduced through the Commonhold Leasehold Reform Act in 2002, provides leaseholders with the right to take over the management of their property from their landlord. We sat down with our Group Head of Legal, Azmon Rankohi to find out more about the scheme and how to get the process started.

How do prospective Right to Manage clients begin the process with Rendall and Rittner?

Once prospective clients have contacted Rendall & Rittner one of our senior management team will have an initial discussion with them to understand their reasons for wanting to acquire the right to manage and make sure that process is the correct route for them.

During this call our we will be able to assess how far along in the process the prospective client is. Is it an initial enquiry or have they been speaking with the other leaseholders already and are ready to begin the formal process?

Once this has been established, we will check that the building and the leaseholders meet the strict qualifying criteria and discuss the next steps.

How does a building qualify for Right to Manage? Does it need to be a certain size or house a minimum number of residents?

In order for a building to qualify for Right to Manage it must be an apartment block and at least two thirds of the dwellings must have been sold on a long lease of 21 years or more. A building must contain no less than two flats, but there is no maximum.

Some modern apartment buildings are partly retained by the property’s developer e.g. half of the building may have been sold and the other half may contain Build to Rent properties which are then retained by the developer to let out. If this is the case then this type of building is unlikely to qualify as two thirds won’t contain long leases.

Additionally, a building must contain no more than 25% of commercial dwellings e.g. retail or businesses. If seeking to acquire the Right to Manage a building must also be a separate premises: a structurally detached building or a divisible part of a building.

In order to move forward with a claim at least 50% of the flats within a building must agree to be members of the Right to Manage company. A claim only needs this 50% support, however the more people on board the better.

It is worth noting that a lot of the qualifying criteria could change because the Law Commission is reviewing recommendations around reforming the law and Right to Manage. We are expecting the process to get less technical in order to make it more accessible and easier for leaseholders to acquire the Right to Manage.

See this infographic for more information on our Right to Manage process.