Development and Party Wall – Freeholder or RTM?

Probably sounds correct as the RMT
Company is responsible for the building.

As the Freeholder has sold off the roof space and do not manage the building why would they get involved.

The RMT is governed by provisions in the leases. So what does lease say about repair obligations of the roof? If roof is excepted from the demise then the purchaser of the roof became by default the freeholder. What is registered at Land registry. Who is titleholder?

The Developer should pay your PW fees under the legislation, so you may not need to be concerned about the freeholder liability/contribution.

Incidentally, I would have thought it most likely the freeholder has sold a long lease to the developer, so he may still retain an interest. That lease is probably obtainable from Land Reg at modest cost.

Whatever you do, ensure you have your own party wall surveyor to represent you (RTM) alone. I made the mistake once of allowing my PW surveyor to also represent the (offending) neighbour who was doing works which affected my property. I hoped it would enable a less adversarial discussion. It didn’t. The PW surveyor capitulated to the neighbour as she was more challenging to deal with.

The RTM is representing the interests of all current leaseholders and you need independent representation.

Reply to the comment left by Freda Blogs at 23/01/2023 – 13:25
I agree. Likewise, I agreed to a single PW surveyor when I extended my home, and because my neighbour was RICS, I assumed he would recommend someone competent. Initially starting out very friendly, my neighbour soon threatened litigation unless I acceded to his wishes, which were channeled through the PW surveyor who turned out to be his friend, and caused me £20k of unnecessary work, and 3 months delay. I complained to RICS and was awarded £250 due to his poor customer service! Lesson learnt!