Your lease
Your lease is a legal document that sets out the relationship between us and you. Your lease tells you:
- how long the lease agreement lasts
- what we are responsible for
- what you are responsible for
- how we work out charges for common repairs and services
- the amount of ground rent you need to pay
You must also comply with the tenant’s covenants with landlord and other tenants for the management of your block and estate.
Our responsibilities are set out in the lease and are governed by law. We are responsible for:
- giving you an estimate of your service charges before the start of each financial year
- notifying you of your actual service charges after the end of each financial year
- consulting you on major work and services, before inviting estimates from contractors and awarding contracts
- informing you of any rechargeable costs we have incurred, within 18 months of incurring them
- repairing and maintaining the structure and exterior of your block, including external windows
- providing repairs and services to common areas
- repairing and maintaining any communal equipment in your property, for example heating appliances, waste disposal units and door entry systems
- requiring other leaseholders to agree to similar terms to those in your lease
You can find information about a number of leaseholder issues including service charges and independent advice on GOV.UK.
Buildings insurance
We are responsible for buildings insurance, which covers the structure and shared areas of the block, but not the contents of your home. The cost is included in your service charge and varies based on the number of bedrooms in your home.
We advise leaseholders to take out separate contents insurance. See information on our home contents insurance scheme.
How to claim
To make a property claim, you can call the dedicated claims line at 0161 274 9077, email claims@protectorinsurance.co.uk, or visit Protector Insurance.
When making a claim, quote the main policy number: 3146403.
Contact Protector Insurance as soon as possible after a loss and provide the following information:
- Cause of damage:
- Has the cause been fixed? For example, if there was a water leak or water ingress, has it been stopped?
- Is the property secure?
- Description of damages:
- How many rooms are affected?
- What areas are damaged (walls, ceilings, décor or flooring)?
- Provide photos if possible
- Include details of any contents, stock, money, or other damages
- Date of loss
- Is the property tenanted? Is it suitable for use?
- Are there any losses related to rent or business interruption?
- Are there any third parties responsible for the damage? Provide their details for investigation.
- Any crime reference numbers or emergency service details, if applicable
For damage caused by riot, civil commotion, strikes, labour disturbances, or malicious persons, notify claims at the earliest opportunity. For other claims, notify as soon as reasonably possible.
Keeping us informed
You must tell us if you have changed any of your contact details, including your telephone number, email or home address.
It is important the information we hold about you is up-to-date so we can continue to write to you.
To update your contact details, you need to complete the online form below.
You can also download the contact details form (PDF, 74.83 KB), which must be signed by all leaseholders associated with the property, and email it to leaseholder@enfield.gov.uk or post to:
Homeownership Services
The Edmonton Centre
36-44 South Mall
Edmonton
N9 0TN
Failure to do so could affect the status of your buildings insurance.
Moving abroad
If you're moving abroad, you must provide a contact address and details of a person or agent who can act on your behalf in England or Wales.
Subletting your property
You must let us know if you rent out your property and provide contact details for you and your tenants as well as any managing agent in case we need to inspect the property or carry out repairs. You will need to provide us with a contact address in England or Wales to send documents to. We may also consider renting your property from you.
If you rent your property you will be responsible for your tenant's behaviour and ensuring they comply with the terms of your lease.
Sublet registration
All Enfield Council leaseholders who sublet their property must register each sublet with the Home Ownership Services Team. As the freeholder, it is important we have details of any subtenants residing in our blocks.
To register your sublet, complete the online form below.
You can also complete the sublet registration form (PDF, 162.73 KB) which must be signed by all leaseholders associated with the property and emailed to leaseholder@enfield.gov.uk.
We charge a sublet registration fee of £35 for each tenancy agreement. When we receive your registration form, we will send you the payment options and your unique subletting reference number. Once the payment is received the sublet will be registered.
The subletting register has been added to your lease, to ensure we are accountable for all residents within our leasehold properties. The fee is to cover the admin and maintenance cost of the register and applies to leaseholders subletting privately, through a managing agent or housing association.
The £35 charge does not apply to those subletting to Enfield Council. However, you’re still required to complete the registration form.
Short-term lets
We are aware that a growing number of council leaseholders are letting their properties on a short-term basis, through various online platforms.
The lease places conditions on the use and occupation of the property. Short-term letting is considered a breach of the lease covenant, “not to use or suffer the flat to be used for any purpose other than as a private dwelling house” and, “not to do or permit or suffer to be done any act or thing which may be or become a nuisance or annoyance to the council or to the lessees’ owners or occupiers of adjoining or neighbouring property.”
Enfield Council does not give approval for short term lets via AIR BnB or any other online marketplace for short and long-term homestays and experiences and may take legal action against you.
Selective licence
You may also be required to obtain a selective licence if you are subletting and your property is located within a licensing designated area.
Further information
As a landlord, you are legally responsible for the gas, electrical and fire safety of your tenants. See useful links below:
Selling your property
Management information pack
If you’re a leaseholder selling your property, your solicitor needs to get a management information pack from us. This pack includes important details about your property, such as any planned major works.
We charge £240 (including VAT), for each leasehold management information pack. We aim to reply within 10 working days from receipt of payment.
We charge £90 (including VAT) for any additional enquiries received after a standard pack has been issued (except for up-to-date balance statements). We aim to reply within 15 working days from receipt of payment.
The management information pack for leasehold properties includes:
- service charge history for the last 3 years
- current service charge account balance and statement (including ground rent)
- buildings insurance schedule and policy booklet
- a list of section 20 notices served on the address and planned major works for the block and/or estate
- fire risk assessment for the building (communal parts only)
- asbestos reports for the building (communal parts only)
If you’re a solicitor representing a buyer, you should request the seller’s solicitors to get the management pack, as some of the information is protected under data protection.
Pay a leaseholder management information pack fee
Please let us know when you've made the payment by either emailing leaseholder@enfield.gov.uk or calling 020 8375 8003. This is so we can begin preparing the pack.
Remortgaging your property
If you’ve applied for a new mortgage, want to borrow extra funds, or are a lender or solicitor with a client remortgaging, the mortgage provider may need a remortgage pack from us.
We charge £90 (including VAT) for one remortgage pack. We aim to reply within 10 working days from receipt of payment for initial enquiries and for any following enquiries we receive.
Right of First Refusal
If you own a leasehold or freehold property purchased through the Right to Buy, you must offer the council the ‘right of first refusal’ to buy your property if you wish to sell or transfer it within 10 years of the original purchase.
This requirement is mandated by the Housing Act 1985 and is also stipulated in your lease/freehold transfer agreement.
Before agreeing to any sale on the open market, you must first offer the council the opportunity to purchase your property. It's crucial to follow this process, as new owners cannot register their legal ownership with HM Land Registry without the council’s written confirmation that this requirement has been met.
If you're thinking of selling your property and think you may be subject to the 'right of first refusal' complete the form below.
Right of First Refusal application
If you have any queries on this process, email propertyacquisitions@enfield.gov.uk.
Extending your lease
If your lease has less than 95 years left, it can be hard to sell your home. When it drops below 80 years, it affects the property's value and the cost to extend the lease.
If you've had a long lease (21 years or more), and been the leaseholder for at least 2 years, you have the right to extend your lease.
The cost to extend your lease depends on the property's value and the remaining lease length.
You can extend your lease through a formal or informal process.
Make sure you have the necessary funds before proceeding, and always use a solicitor to handle the legal aspects.
For more information, see Lease extensions.
Alterations to your property
Under the terms of your lease you must get your landlords consent in writing before carrying out any alterations to your property. This is in addition to any planning and/or building control approval that may be required.
Completing alterations without obtaining consent may result in you having to reinstate the work and/or be subject to breach of lease proceedings.
Get consent for alterations and improvements
Alterations applications are subject to administration charges, see a list of our fees.
If you have altered the layout of your property, you will need to apply for a Deed of Variation to update your lease plan. Our legal fees for this are £850. You will need to apply for a Deed of Variation after consent has been granted.
Submitting an application for alterations will not guarantee that your alterations request will be accepted. Should your alterations not be acceptable, your application will be declined, and your application fee will be non-refundable.
Leasehold administration charges
Leasehold administration charges are fees that may be applied when specific services are requested by a leaseholder or when additional work is required such as, providing resale management packs or processing alteration requests.
These charges are specific to a particular leaseholder to make sure that only the leaseholders who require these services bears the cost, rather than distributing the expense across all leaseholders.
We are committed to transparency and will always inform you if an administration charge applies. These charges are separate from your regular management fees and are subject to VAT where applicable. For more detailed information, refer to your summary of rights and obligations (PDF, 111.81 KB).
Item
- A copy of a service charge statement from a previous financial year – £10
- A copy of a Section 20 notice from a previous calendar year – £10
- A copy of a previously issued invoice – £10
- Sublet registration – £35
Resale
- Management information pack – £240
- Additional queries (except for statement of account) – £90
- Notice of transfer and charge – £95
Remortgage
- Remortgage pack – £90
- Additional queries (except for up-to-date balance statements) – £90
- Notice of charge – £95
Alterations
- Like for like improvements – £50
- Minor structural improvements – £100
- Major structural improvements – £200
- Retrospective consent – £350
- Heating disconnection – £252 (The charge provided is an estimate and may vary based on the actual service given. This estimate does not guarantee the final amount billed.)
Legal fees
- Copy leases – £80
- Deed of Covenant – £1,000
- Deed of Postponement – £150
- Deed of Variation – £1,000
Lease regulations observance clause
The Lease regulations observance clause includes information about conduct and behaviour, use of premises, health and safety, pets and animals, and repairs and alteration to your property.
Estimated service charge for 2024/25
We apologise for the delay in issuing your estimated service charge for 2024/25, due to unforeseen technical issues. We understand this may have caused some inconvenience and appreciate your understanding.
Your 2024/25 service charge will be for the period 1 July 2024 to 31 March 2025, which will be payable over 9 months, or 3 quarters.
When we issue the final accounts in September 2025, this will be for the full 12-month period.
In some cases, it is likely that there will be a higher than usual variation between our estimated and actual costs.
If you are currently paying by Direct Debit, this will be automatically set up again. You will receive your Direct Debit schedule in advance of your first payment as usual.
If you do not pay monthly by Direct Debit, continue to pay quarterly in advance as per the terms of your lease.
If you have any questions or need further clarification, please email sam@enfield.gov.uk.
Technical issues with Direct Debit payments
The council is not currently able collect Direct Debit payments from leaseholders. This is due to technical issues with a new IT system.
We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and are working hard to resolve the issue as soon as possible.
We will be able to set up Direct Debit payments from the 1 October 2024. if you would like us to set this up for you, contact the Income team on 020 8375 8005 or email hoincome@enfield.gov.uk.
You can set up a Standing Order to pay your service charge estimate. This will allow you to be in control of your monthly payments.
We would like to offer you some alternative payment options to pay your estimated service charge for 2024/25 from 1 July to 30 September 2024.
- Standing Order - you can set this up with your Bank using Enfield Council’s bank details, HSBC, account number: 81228307 and sort code: 40-20-23 and quote your 10 digit account number
- By phone - on 020 8375 8005, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm and quote your 10 digit account number
- Online payment - see Service charges and follow the instructions
If you are setting up a Standing Order to pay your service charge estimate for 2024/25, tell us by calling 020 8375 8005 so we can contact you before your Direct Debit is activated on the 1 or 16 October 2024.
Thank you for your patience and understanding. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us on 020 8375 8005 or email hoincome@enfield.gov.uk.