Do management company have to allow communal access in repossession case?

Argghhh

they WILL get in, they will wait all day for someone to open the door

davidmcn

Willowpop wrote: »

They also said 99% of the time the management company doesn't assist them with gaining entry in repossession cases.

Often their solution is to post a notice offering a bribe to any resident who gives them a spare key.

Willowpop

Yep, the solicitor I spoke to said they often contact other residents and offer a fee (bribe ) if they'll let them in.

chanz4

why not take the fee yourself then, and let them get THERE property back

Willowpop

If its offered, there's every chance I might.

lonestar1

Surely once the court issues the reposession order the bank then become the leaseholder and as such are entitled to any rights granted by the lease Im guessing the management company dont want to get off on a bad footing with the new service charge payers etc ?

Alarae

Hi, I actually work on the asset management side of repossessions so I can give you a bit of insight.

The bailiff and contractor attending possession cannot force the communal door at the first instance; usually they get in by buzzing residents or slipping in when someone else opens the door. Once inside, they have authority to change the locks on the repossessed property. Obviously even if they manage that there is no guarantee any agents or surveyors can go back for a valuation to market the property as we do not request that the residents are bothered with constant requests for access because we don't have a key.

Usually a request will be sent asking for a copy of the key from the management company. We advise of who we are and why we want access with a key. Usually we are given a key as the management can see we are essentially acting as the new owners- plus it's in their benefit anyway since usually there are also management charge arrears which would come from the sale of the property. If the management company denies access so we can't sell the property = they won't see their arrears back.

I've had cases where we have been given keys from the management company or from the residents themselves after offering a cash incentive.

I know my colleagues have had to resort to getting the communal lock changed as they couldn't get a key- this resulted in a contractor remaining at the property all day to hand out spare keys to each resident.

Obtaining a communal door key is normally painless in my experience, but I've had some rather... Unhelpful experiences as well!