Postal address of flat does not appear anywhere!

[barsark]

Hi,

Having a crisis with a new flat I have recently taken over the management of. It was a very fast take over as the landlord was moving out and leaving the country and the tenant was moving in the same day, all with little warning to myself.
Anyhow, everything went fine and the tenant is in, but he has a problem.

Everyone (ie service providers, BT etc) that he rings, tell him the property does not exist on any records. It is one of a block in a small development and all the other flats (2 through 8) are on record but this one is not, No. 1.

Can anyone here please advise me on how to go about sorting this little problem out as the tenant is, quite rightly, getting a bit miffed and as the landlord is still travelling, she is impossible to get hold of.

Many thanks in anticipation,
Landlord Zone long time reader, forum newbie, Barsark :D

[Dingbat]

Might have to get on to royal mail, who provide the lists of addresses to companies - it takes a while to get it registered and then to filter through.

If the property doesn't exist where is the electricity coming from? And didn't the landlord register it for council tax?

[Paul_f]

Might have to get on to royal mail, who provide the lists of addresses to companies - it takes a while to get it registered and then to filter through.

If the property doesn't exist where is the electricity coming from? And didn't the landlord register it for council tax?Dingbat! Occupants register with the local authority for Council Tax, not necessarily landlords or owners. The owner will have registered the title with the Land Registry via his solicitor!

[Dingbat]

Paul_f, is the landlord not liable for council tax during any void periods? I find it highly unlikely that the property was tenanted at all times, throughout its history. Therefore the landlord would have been obliged to deal with the council. Now I know that many landlord's don't bother with this, but they will have awkward questions to answer when the property is finally registered.

[Poppy]

When you say "new" flat, do you mean recently constructed? If so, how recently?

I have to assume that the property is at least served with water and electricity. Try scooting around the web to find a company who will inform you which supplier.

If the flat does not seem to be registered either with the Land Registry or the local authority - only the owner can sort that out.

I worked at a firm of solicitors 2 weeks ago - trying to sort out the sh1t that a trainee solicitor left behind. He somehow managed to assist a client to buy a leasehold property without the client signing the mortgage deed and counterpart lease. Regrettably, mistakes and sheer baaaaaaddddd practice do happen.

[oaktree]

Oh dear, oh dear this is basic stuff.

Assuming the flat does have utilities connected there will be meters somewhere supplying those services. Take a note of the meter serial numbers.

Call Transco on 0870 608 1524 - give them the gas meter serial number. They will tell you who the supplier is and a telephone number. Call the supplier and tell them the meter serial number, they will set up the account for the tenant (remember to take the readings)

Call MPAS on 0845 603 0618 - give them the electicity meter serial number. They will tell you who the supplier is and a telephone number. Call the supplier and tell them the meter serial number, they will set up the account for the tenant (remember to take the readings)

Call the local water supplier - give them the water meter serial number. They will tell you who the supplier is and a telephone number. Call the supplier and tell them the meter serial number, they will set up the account for the tenant (remember to take the readings)

Call the local council, they will have a record of the property. If its a new build it may take them a while to find it (sometimes months rather than hours) but find it they will. If its a conversion give them the address of the block.

Bear in mind the Data Protection Act when calling any of the above and the fact that most of these organisations give virtually no meaningful instruction to their telephone operators on what information they can give out. It may be best for you to purport to be the tenant or to get the tenant themselves to ring

In the meantime the tenant should put aside money for utilities; just because no one admits to knowing about the property at the moment doesn't mean a bill won't appear sometime.