Leaseholders who survived the Grenfell Tower disaster have warned they will be unable to afford to buy a new home in Kensington and Chelsea after the council started valuations of their homes at just £350,000.

Kensington and Chelsea Council is negotiating with 15 leaseholders about payouts for their homes

Although not all of the flats were burnt – with Grenfell Tower due to be demolished after March next year – leaseholders in the tower and connected low rise cannot return to their homes and need to buy a new property.

 

One of the leaseholders has been speaking to Inside Housing, who report:

“Tiago Alves, who is leading the leaseholder negotiations with the council, said: “Grenfell has a W11 postcode and other similar W11 properties are valued at £1,400 per square foot but the term North Kensington includes the W10 postcode where similar properties have been valued for only £1,000 per square metre.”

Flats at Grenfell Tower have been valued per square foot at £1,100 for one bedrooms and £1,000 for two bedrooms. The square footage at Grenfell Walk – a connected low rise – has been valued at £680 per square foot for one bedrooms”

The council has offered valuations based on the estimated cost of a new build, including a 20% uplift, but leaseholders say this is not enough to buy locally.”