‘Offer won’t solve my problem’

JOANNE DARBYSHIRE, (pictured) 48, bought a five-bedroom home with her husband Mark, 49, in 2010. She knew the annual ground rent of £295 would double ten years later and continue to do so, but she says she was assured she could buy the freehold after two years for £5,000.

However, the freehold has been sold to another company.

The developer, Taylor Wimpey, has now offered her a new deal, linking her ground rent to RPI. But she says she would now need to pay £10,000 to buy the freehold. Joanne, of Lostock, Bolton, is reluctant to sign the new deal. She says: ‘This won’t solve one of the biggest problems, which is all the onerous clauses in my contract.

‘For example, I will still have to pay for permission to make changes to my house.

‘But this is the only offer on the table and, next year, my ground rent will double. I feel like my back is against the wall.’

Taylor Wimpey charges a fixed fee to cover legal advice for those switching to an RPI contract. But Joanne says she must pay an additional £ 300 to cover the independent legal advice her lender wants her to take.

She would also have to agree to not taking further legal action against Taylor Wimpey.

She says: ‘If these contracts are ever found to have been unlawful, it could mean my leasehold was null and avoid. So I’m concerned I could be missing out on obtaining my freehold or getting compensation without paying these fees.’