Leaseholders Get Angry Now!

Leaseholders Need to get Angry !

Dear Sir

It was a polite affair at the Town Hall all things considered and for those of us who feel the leaseholders have been disgracefully dealt with, a rather odd one. You might think that a group of people, 11,000 strong, faced with demands for inflated bills, attacked for having equity, and at all turns frustrated and cheated, would be angry. They aren’t pleased true, but they should be an awful lot angrier.

For example they listened quietly while various absurd speakers tried to convince them that they were just another sort of Council tenant. They are not. Buying a Lease is a common form of property ownership, they are property owners like others, they just have the worlds worst landlord .Brian Potter said some very interesting things, and his role as the acknowledged expert is vital, but what is also needed is some, `We `re not going to take it ! `

Liberal and Labour politicians have never truly accepted that their status .Steve Hitchens wrote to the Deputy Prime Minister on their behalf, but what did he say? ` Land values in Islington are high and …the flats owned by leaseholders are now worth considerably more than they paid for them. It may be possible for leaseholders to realise some of that increase in value……. .In other words their money is on call simply because they have it.

It is constantly suggested that these hard working people have been the recipients of some sort of charity. Rubbish. Property values go up because people like them borrow money to pay mortgages. Without them creating wealth and buying their own places all the legendary value of Islington’s real-estate would not be there

Many of them are unaware who their real enemies are .Labour and Liberal councillors love their fat cat salaries and Islington’s unusual voting pattern is maintained by the housing mix. Social housing currently adds up to 48% of all housing in the Borough and 66% of the tenants are on benefits .Labour wants it to stay that way. They want leaseholders to fail so they can keep their jobs. Without Labour of course, what is the point of the Liberals? No wonder they are no help

The Government wants to upgrade the neighbourhood. Jolly good, so .£178,000,000 of taxpayers money is “borrowed “ .Leaseholders pay taxes like the rest of us, but then, in the guise of “Service Charges“, they pay again. How much of the £178,000,000 is actually spent on Kitchens and Bathrooms anyway?

I could go on, Section 20s are late, misleading and hard to query. ? Work is shoddy and over priced, responsibilities are vague and let’s not even get into the capping mystery.

There will be other times for detail but right now Leaseholders must step out of their doors and simply say, “ I will not put up with this “.If 11000 of them could focus their anger on the right people they might be surprised how much they could achieve.

Islington’s Conservatives will always be there to support them. So dig your heels in Leaseholders of Islington, help is on its way !