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Right-to-Buy homeowners on condemned estates mount legal challenge to council valuations (10 September 2014)

Date: 10/09/2014
Duncan Lewis, Housing Solicitors, Right-to-Buy homeowners on condemned estates mount legal challenge to council valuations

An investigation by BBC1’s Inside Out programme has highlighted the plight of thousands of Right-to-Buy homeowners on London estates, who claim they have been offered just a fraction of the market value of their homes by local councils who want to bulldoze their estates and redevelop the land.

In south London, homeowners on the Aylesbury Estate in Walworth, near the Old Kent Road, are taking legal action against Southwark Council over the council’s valuations of their homes.

Homeowners who were previously council tenants in Southwark claim they will be forced out of the neighbourhood they have lived in for years because councils are refusing to pay the market valuation for former council homes – meaning Right-to-Buy homeowners would not be able to buy another property in the same area.

Agnew Kabuto told the BBC that the council had made a final offer of just £145,000 – when the average market valuation for a property in the area was £385,000.

However, Southwark Council has defended the offers it has made to former council tenants who have bought their homes on estates due to be pulled down and redeveloped.

Leader of Southwark Council, Peter John, said:

“Offers are based on market evidence and can be verified by the Land Registry.

“The council is offering the option of a shared equity property, enabling qualifying leaseholders to invest in the regeneration zone and benefit from the uplift in value.”

Duncan Lewis Housing Solicitors

Duncan Lewis is a leading firm of housing law solicitors and can advise homeowners, rental tenants and social tenants on a wide range of housing matters, including:

• Debt management
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Duncan Lewis is also one of the UK leading providers of Legal Aid services.

For expert legal advice on housing law, call Duncan Lewis housing solicitors on 020 7923 4020.


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