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Private Owners
| Many more funding sources are prepared to assist building repair projects undertaken by registered charities or other not-for-profit organisations than will help private individuals. Private owners of historic properties seeking financial support to carry out repairs therefore frequently find themselves in a particularly difficult situation. One radical solution to this problem is to give the property to a charity. The downside is obviously loss of ownership and probably also control. The upside is the freedom from liability or obligation and the knowledge that the building will be in the hands of a body which is better able to look after it for the public benefit. Charities may also be able to provide a use for the building which will cover its long-term maintenance. Unless the present private owner is prepared to establish an endowment fund to pay for repairs, the willingness or ability of a charity to take on the ownership and management of an historic building will depend on its condition at the time and the immediate and longer-term anticipated maintenance costs involved. The Architectural Heritage Fund can suggest existing charities which may be able to take on an historic building, or help to set up a new charity for this specific purpose. February 2003 |