Whilst a rentcharge may date back over 100 years, and the rentcharge owner may not be known, legal remedies are available to rentcharge owners whether they have ever formally demanded payment of the rent or not.
Section 121 of the “Law of Property Act 1925” contains potentially significant rights of action for rentcharge owners. The Act grants them the right to take possession of the property, without giving any notice, nor any ability to apply to the court to put a stop to the rentcharge owner’s action.
Many rentcharges reserve a contractual right of re-entry exercisable on non-payment of rent, effectively enabling the rentcharge owner to forfeit the property of the owner.
The Act also grants the ability to create a lease of the property, registerable with the Land Registry, without giving any notice. If the unthinkable did happen, and a lease was created, there is no provision requiring the rentcharge owner to surrender the newly created lease, even if full payment was made.
It is generally uncommon for a rentcharge owner to take such drastic measures as detailed above; however, homeowners need to understand the legal significance, the importance of keeping up to date with payments, and the potential implications of their property being subject to a rentcharge.