Leasehold/Retirement Homes - Event Fees

It is usual, in specialist owner-occupied retirement housing, for there to be a fee payable to the landlord if the owner ceases to occupy the property.

These fees go under a variety of names: 'Exit Fees', 'Departure Fees', 'Deferred Management Fee', 'Contingency Fund Fee' and 'Transfer Fee', among others. They can be payable in a wide variety of circumstances; not just on sale but also on inheritance, surrender, equity release and sub-letting and some owners can get caught out.

In 2013 the Office of Fair Trading investigated certain types of these fees and concluded that the model was not optimal for consumers. It recommended greater transparency of the whole process and legislative reform.This page provides details on the resultant Law Commission's consultation, further background information, the leasehold retirement sectors response through the adoption of various new codes and the Law Commission’s final report, published in March 2017.

Further info:

• Law Commission consultation of event fees (opens new window)
• House of Commons Briefing on leasehold retirement housing event fees (opens new window)
• ARCO Consumer Code (opens new window)
• ARHM Code of Practice (opens new window)

Links:

• Campaign against leasehold exploitation (opens new window)
• Leasehold Knowledge Partnership (opens new window)
• MHCLG Committee announces Leasehold Reform inquiry (July 2018) (opens new window)