Money Tips Daily By Charles Kelly, Former Ifa And Author Of Yes, Money Can Buy You Happiness.

Flat owners told their homes could be unsellable for up to 10 years with unsafe cladding. Following the Grenfell Tower fire disaster, hundreds of thousands of buildings were deemed to be unsafe due to the outside wall cladding. In 2019, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) brought out the EWS 1 form as a way of grading the safety of tower blocks with cladding. The grading certificate was intended for buildings over 18 metres tall with cladding, but this year Government regulations changed. Mortgage lenders now require the form for shorter buildings as well. It is estimated that 300,000 buildings that might require an EWS1. However, there are only 300 inspectors able to carry out the in-depth surveys, creating a huge backlog. RICS charge at least £40,000 per building for the EWS1, which seems extortionate. Another issue is that only the freeholder can apply and some have refused, even though the cost will be passed on to leaseholder, because the say it's not a legal requirement. Peabody, a Housi