email from solicitors.Can anyone explain please?

[Deleted User]

Can anyone advise please?

" [FONT=&quot]You will recall that you requested us to retain a sum of £200 on completion pending the issue of the final accounts in this matter. We should be grateful if you could please confirm whether your client has received any request for a balancing payment and whether the retention monies can now be released to our client.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]We look forward to hearing from you as soon as possible. If we do not receive a response within seven working days of the date of this letter, we will take it that the retention monies can be released by our client and will do so without further recourse to yourselves. "

[FONT=&quot]And no I have not had a re[FONT=&quot]q[FONT=&quot]uest.[/FONT][/FONT][/FONT]
[/FONT]

G_M

Some history and context would help!

But I'm guessing

* you have recently bought a leasehold property
* it was unclear what the service charges would be for this year - so in case there was a demand including for a period when the seller's were in ownership, a sum was retained by the solicitors to cover this
* the seller now wants to know if the service charge for the year has been finalised, and if so,
a) whether any payment is due by them for the period they owned
b) or whether no payment is due and they can now have the money that was retained

So - have the service charges for the year been finalised or not?
Have you received the accounts for the year confirming no additional fee will be charged? If not, even if you have not yet received a bill, you need to ensure the retention is held until the final accounts are avaolable.

Since you are being given 7 days, you need to respond fast.

(or have I guessed wrong?)

[Deleted User]

Good guessing GM. Sorry for the lack of info.

Yes I bought a leasehold property 8 months ago. Yes the service charges for this year have been finalised but I never received a breakdown. They did ask for an extra £136 due to a shortfall.

Thanks GM

G_M

So there was an extra £136 for the year.

When does the freeholder's financial year run from and to?

Of that 365 days, how many days were the sellers there and how many days have you been there?

With a daily rate of 136/365 = £0.36 you can work out how much the sellers owe you and claim this from the retention.

[Deleted User]

No idea about their financial year but will find out.

Unfortunately the property had just been sold to me. Some damp proof course was missing which leaked into the flat I bought.

So I'm guessing no recourse there...

Thanks GM

G_M

We seem to have changed the subject.

Are you asking a question? If so, as with the originale issue: far more information needed!

[Deleted User]

Apologies GM.

I'll start from the beginning.

I agree to buy said flat from a trusted friend in same block.

Just before completion I notice that boiler is dripping. This gets fixed.

After purchase I notice it is still very damp. I try to dry it out and then rip up carpet and notice floorboards are rotten under boiler.

I presume boiler has been leaking for some time..

I ask three builders including one from the leasehold maintenance company for opinions/quotes.

They all stated there was a bit of damp proof course missing in the corner(directly under boiler).

I knew it was the boiler but they all insisted. Leaseholders pay £136 pound each x 4.

Issue fixed 8 months ago.

Demand asked by management company which I suspect would have been the end of the year but as I say I'm not sure when their financial year ends.

The seller was not in occupation apart from when boiler was repaired(quite a bad drip).

The damp proof course was found after she left.

Cheers

G_M

So the additional service charge for the year was your flat's share of the cost of fixing the damp proof course (which may or may not have been faulty)?

Deleted_User wrote: »

I agree to buy said flat from a trusted friend in same block.

Just before completion I notice that boiler is dripping. This gets fixed.
Did you have a boiler inspection before Exchanging?
If so, what did the report say?
If not, buyer beware.

After purchase I notice it is still very damp. I try to dry it out and then rip up carpet and notice floorboards are rotten under boiler.

I presume boiler has been leaking for some time..
Seems logical.

I ask three builders including one from the leasehold maintenance company for opinions/quotes.
Have you had a GasSafe engineer inspect the boiler?
Have you had the boiler serviced?

They all stated there was a bit of damp proof course missing in the corner(directly under boiler).
Have they shown you where? Are they right?
If you looked outside at the wall at that point, what is the ground level? Is it above or below the level where the damp proof course is or should be?

I knew it was the boiler but they all insisted. Leaseholders pay £136 pound each x 4.
So this £136 per leaseholder was for fixing the damp proof course?

Issue fixed 8 months ago.
When you say 'issue fixed' do you mean
* the damp proof course, or
* the damp
since you have suggested the dpc was not actually the problem - it was the boiler. Has anything been done to the boiler? Has the damp now dried out and not returned?

Demand asked by management company which I suspect would have been the end of the year but as I say I'm not sure when their financial year ends.
Have you no accounts for the management company? Your solicitor (if you used one) should have obtained last year's accounts during the conveyancing and passed them to you. They will show when the year ends.
Failing that, ring the Manco and ask them!

The seller was not in occupation apart from when boiler was repaired(quite a bad drip).
It is not 'occupation' that matters, but ownership.
If, say, your purchase Completed on 1st March 2015 and the financial year ended on 1st April, then the seller is responsible for 31 days in March @ 36p per day = £11.16.

The damp proof course was found after she left.

Cheers

Was this a one-off bill specifically for the dpc? If so, you have probobly not yet reached year-end, so should hold on to the retention.

Or was it an additional amount added to the anual service charge at year end, in which case you calculate the seller's liability and claim that from the retention and release the remainder? What does the invoice say?

It is unusual for the year end to be in the summer (when did you get the invoice?). December or April are most likely.

[Deleted User]

G_M wrote: »

So the additional service charge for the year was your flat's share of the cost of fixing the damp proof course (which may or may not have been faulty)?

Was this a one-off bill specifically for the dpc? If so, you have probobly not yet reached year-end, so should hold on to the retention.

Or was it an additional amount added to the anual service charge at year end, in which case you calculate the seller's liability and claim that from the retention and release the remainder? What does the invoice say?

It is unusual for the year end to be in the summer (when did you get the invoice?). December or April are most likely.

I can't seem to quote you're questions for some reason(it only quotes half of it.) I'll try and explain.

Owner was in occupation when boiler dripping.Got it serviced and checked then.No issues apart from broken descaler which was the leak.

The damp proof was under some stones(for the driveway) which we moved in order to see the apparent missing damp course. As I say i had 3 people look at it and all said the same. Told them about boiler but nobody believed it was that. It was repaired in about a month.

Yes £158(not £136) on the 8th june to all 4 leaseholders was requested. Sale of flat was mid February.

There are no issues in the flat whatsoever.(some floorboards were replaced and damp proof course done)So all good in boiler area.

I shall get the accounts for year end.

It was a one off bill for the DPC but unfortunately i've deleted it. I shall get another copy.

Does this make sense?

Cheers

Chris

G_M

Deleted_User wrote: »

It was a one off bill for the DPC but unfortunately i've deleted it. I shall get another copy.

/QUOTE]
then

1) I strongly suspect you have not reached year end, so do not yet know if there will be a further adjustment/payment.

You should therefore write back:

"Further to your letter dated xx/xx/16, I have as yet not received the final accounts so am not able to confirm whether there will be a balancing payment or not.

Kindly therefore hold on to the retention moneys until such time as I am in receipt of the final accounts for the year."

2) You could also try making a claim for a share of the £158, though I suspect this may be unsuccessful, since it relates to a charge levied against work undertake entirely during your period of ownership.