What does the Deed do?

A Deed of Easement formalises the relationship between the owner of a house on the Estate and HHGER Ltd*, the company which owns the gated service roads and communal gardens (for which the HHGERA Houses Management Board is the managing agent). It formally grants: the right of access to garages and rear gardens via the gated service roads; the right to purchase keys to the service road gates; the right to purchase a service road skip licence allowing the placement of skips on the service road, and the right to place wheelie bins in the service road on the day of collection or to use the communal ("euro") wheelie bins where provided. In return the owner agrees to pay a contribution towards the cost of maintenance & repairs (as indicated below) of the relevant service road Zone, the security gates, the 17 communal gardens and legal / administration costs.  

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                                QUICK LINKS: Deed of Easement and Deed of Covenant template
                                                          Map of service road Zones

 

Service charge and right of way

The annual service charge covers the costs of maintaining the 17 communal gardens, routine maintenance to the gated service roads and the insurance and administration costs of HHGERA and HHGER Ltd. It is set by vote at the HHGERA Houses Management Board Annual General Meeting (AGM) and all residents of houses that have paid the service charge are entitled to vote. The service charge was set at £60 per house for the calendar year 2023, rising to £70 in 2024. The right of way will no longer apply to new owners and they will not be allowed to purchase or hold keys to the gated service road gates unless they sign up to the Deed of Easement. HHGER Ltd requires that when a house is sold, the new owner enters into a Deed of Easement, or a Deed of Covenant if a Deed of Easement already exists.. 

 

The Service Roads on the HHGE

There are seven service roads used by houses residents on the Estate to access their garages and gardens. The five gated service roads are owned by HHGE Residents Ltd., a private limited company, and managed by the HHGERA Houses Management Board. (The other two, for historical reasons, are owned by the Flats management company and are its responsibility.)

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Skip permits

A skip permit issued by the HHGERA Houses Management Board is required to place a skip on the gated service roads. Houses purchased after 28th March 2019 will require a Deed of Easement to be eligible to apply for a skip permit. Click here for more information and an application form.

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Service road gate keys

From the 25th March 2022 all houses will require a Deed of Easement to be eligible to apply for a key to the service road gates.

 

Contribution to the cost of capital repairs to the Service Roads

Major (capital) repairs to the gated service roads are outside the scope of routine maintenance and will be funded separately. The extent and cost of capital works must be approved by a majority of the residents affected, who will then be required to pay an equal proportion of the cost of repairs in their Zone as needed. Costs are recovered wherever possible from other sources such as Thames Water. But any balance is then shared between the relevant houses and is payable in addition to the annual service charge contribution. For example, if there are 20 garages on a particular service road they are each expected to pay 1/20th of the cost. A map of the Estate, showing service road gate Zones can be downloaded by clicking here.

 

Contribution to the cost of maintenance of the communal gardens

The communal gardens are maintained under an annual gardening contract. The cost of this is included in the annual service charge to all Houses – see above.

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Deed of Covenant
Once a deed of easement has been registered at the Land Registry it is permanent. Future sales of the house will not need a new deed of easement. However, a deed of covenant is required. A deed of covenant transfers the rights and responsibilities of the original deed of easement to the new owners and releases the previous owner from those responsibilities. The deed of covenant does not need to be registered at the Land Registry.

 

Buying or selling a House

If you are thinking of buying or selling a house on the Estate, or are in the process of selling your house, please contact us at gates@hhgera.com and ensure your solicitor is made aware of this information. The standard deed of easement proforma which also contains the deed of covenant is attached here. 

Your solicitor will need to tell us the property address, the Land Registry Title Number for that property and the names and email addresses of the prospective new owners.

We will then: confirm whether a deed of easement has already been registered for this property; inform you if any service charges are outstanding for this property; send your solicitor the completed deed of easement signed by ourselves or the deed of covenant if a deed of easement already exists, and answer any questions (within reason) that you or your solicitor may have about the process. 

The buyer’s solicitor will then need to: get the deed signed and dated by the new owners; in the case of a deed of easement, register it at the Land Registry against both the house title and the service road title; send us copies of the signed and dated deed and in the case of a deed of easement, copies of both updated Land Registry titles.   

Provided this process is completed within 4 weeks of the house sale completion, HHGER Ltd. will make no charge for this. If there are delays in the process and our solicitor has to chase the application the charge is £300. In the case of delays by the Land Registry it is acceptable to send evidence that the application has been made provided this is done within the 4 week period after completion and copies of the updated Land Registry titles are provided as soon as they are available.

 

 

* Hanger Hill Garden Estate Residents Ltd

Company No. 01757836. Reg Office: 187 Princes Gardens West Acton, London W3 0LT