A man who purchased a north London house for £850,000 just six years ago claims his property is now “worthless” following a shock discovery.
Daniel Bruce is just one of many homeowners in Agar Grove in Camden, who bought new-build flats in 2019 before being told the building was poorly constructed. The 41-year-old and his neighbours were left stunned to be left with unsellable, uninsurable homes.
To add to their misery, their warranty provider is still yet to agree to a payout – despite cracked walls, persistent leaks and collapsing ceilings. Mr Bruce has also criticised Keir Starmer – who is his local MP – saying he made promises to tackle the national housing crisis but has failed to achieve justice for a handful of residents in his own constituency.
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Dan purchased the flat just six years ago
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He has spoken out after receiving a letter from Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner that still offered no intervention. The letter said the Government would “listen carefully to those directly affected as we continue to do all we can to make people safe in their homes.”
Software engineer Mr Bruce has accused Starmer of selling out leaseholders to curry favour with developers, saying the PM was “happy to admonish the Ministry of Housing whilst in opposition, but won’t fight for us now he’s in power.”
“It almost feels like they don’t realise they’re in government,” Mr Bruce said.
Soon after moving into their new-build flats at Agar Grove, buyers noticed walls starting to crack
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“It’s alarming to see a response from a high-ranking government official such as Mrs Rayner that’s so devoid of any hope or ambition so early into her tenure.”
Residents began noticing persistent leaks, cracks in walls and collapsing ceilings shortly after moving into their new flats in Agar Grove in 2019. Surveyors even suggested in the past that the flats were so badly built and ‘structurally unsound’ that they might have to be demolished.
And years on from the emergence of problems with the properties, the warranty provider still has not paid out, leaving buyers trapped.
The ceiling started to crumble
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Charles Thomson / Newsquest / SWNS)
After the issues of Agar Grove residents featured in a BBC television piece, then-housing minister Michael Gove spoke out to say that consumers had more protection buying a washing machine than a home.
Starmer, then in opposition, wrote to Gove to say he was looking forward to seeing how his department would ‘ensure that my constituents are put back in the place they should have been had their homes been built correctly’.
He had added: “The Government must play their part and seek a resolution. My constituents cannot be left paying the cost of a broken system.”
In October, Mr Bruce published an open letter urging Starmer to urgently enact the very changes he had demanded in opposition.
The cracked window
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Charles Thomson / Newsquest / SWNS)
Surveyors even suggested in the past that the flats were so badly built and ‘structurally unsound’
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Charles Thomson / Newsquest / SWNS)
Rayner, in a response days before Christmas, wrote: “I cannot imagine having to deal with the situation that confronts Mr Bruce and the other leaseholders of Agar Grove. It is simply unacceptable.”
She also claimed the Government was “reviewing how we can better protect leaseholders from costs.” But Mr Bruce said this vague response fell far short of the decisive action Starmer had demanded in opposition.
Last week, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) published a list of policy priorities for 2025.Despite promising in its election manifesto to ‘bring the feudal leasehold system to an end’, leasehold reform wasn’t mentioned on the list of priorities.
Mr Bruce is now campaigning for legal reform after he and his fellow residents spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on legal fees to fight their case.
Residents began noticing persistent leaks, cracks in walls and collapsing ceilings
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Charles Thomson / Newsquest / SWNS)
He believes Starmer is too close to developers, following reports that Labour received £130,000 from an entity largely funded by developers. Industry publication Property Week has also reported on other donations to Labour by developers.
“It is undeniable that corporations have unbalanced and often unchecked influence over political parties,” Mr Bruce said.”Policy is never decisive on the side of the victim for fear of harming corporate relations.
“What I can’t understand is how he has all these assurances and stated missions but can’t resolve one issue in his own constituency. It’s like somebody who’s never been to the gym telling the country he’s going to win the London marathon. Surely with his stated missions and being a man of justice, he should be aggressively resolving our case?”
An MHCLG spokesman said: “The situation faced by the innocent residents of Agar Grove is deplorable, and the pace of progression in this case is unacceptable.
“We are pushing those responsible to meet their obligations swiftly and will continue to ensure these leaseholders are supported.”