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Freeholder of Common Areas has sent a very large bill - What can I do?

Hippo
Posts: 59 Forumite


I own a freehold house on a typical new build estate. There are 87 properties and I'm responsible for 1/87th of the costs in relation to keep the common areas of the estate in a good state. Grass cutting/pruning/lighting/fencing etc. The road is not adopted.
Not a problem, I know a few people who live on similar estates and they pay £100-150 pa
The agents, who also manage 35% of the properties have sent their bill, and it's nowhere near £100. In fact if you added a zero you'd still be under.
Strangely I have never had T&C's, the only thing is in the land registry documents to says I'm in the dock for 1/87th of these fees.
What can I do? What are my rights? They are massively overcharging, and some of the costs are down to properties they manage.
Not a problem, I know a few people who live on similar estates and they pay £100-150 pa
The agents, who also manage 35% of the properties have sent their bill, and it's nowhere near £100. In fact if you added a zero you'd still be under.
Strangely I have never had T&C's, the only thing is in the land registry documents to says I'm in the dock for 1/87th of these fees.
What can I do? What are my rights? They are massively overcharging, and some of the costs are down to properties they manage.
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Comments
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You can either question it as a typo or do you have legal protection on your home insurance ?0
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I'm SO rusty on leasehold as to be pretty much ceased up, but I'm quite certain that they was a rule dictating that any major works (exceeding £250) have to be subject to a consultation before they can even consider charging you.It must have been 15 years ago that I offered some slightly less inept advice and an entire bill ended written off.
Contact the Leasehold Advisory Service, please. There may be some difference between major works and maintenance, but it's worth a conversation with them.Everything that is supposed to be in heaven is already here on earth.
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Have they supplied you with a breakdown of the bill to show what they're charging for? What's on there aside from the usual waste disposal and garden maintenance?2
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I agree for Leasehold there is however the Op states:Doozergirl said:I'm SO rusty on leasehold as to be pretty much ceased up, but I'm quite certain that they was a rule dictating that any major works (exceeding £250) have to be subject to a consultation before they can even consider charging you.Hippo said:I own a freehold house on a typical new build estate.
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You need to check your title deeds to see what they say about responsibility for common areas. It's not unusual for a new-build estate to be managed by an agent chosen by the builders for an initial period, with other arrangements for the longer term specified in the deeds. Of course, very often these later arrangements never get off the ground, leaving householders in the sort of situation that you are facing.
Once you check your deeds, it may be that with a majority of the owners in agreement, you can replace the agents who manage the common areas. If 35% of the properties are also managed by the agents, then you have a fairly high hurdle to cross in seeking a majority - although a big bill has a way of overcoming the usual apathy of households and may help you.
If the road is not adopted (Why? ...alarm bells!) then at some point down the line, you or the future owners of your home will be facing a very large bill!
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cymruchris said:Have they supplied you with a breakdown of the bill to show what they're charging for? What's on there aside from the usual waste disposal and garden maintenance?
LL insurance doesn't have legal cover0 -
Hippo said: Installation of CCTV. Road calming measures. Large management fees.Traffic calming measures for just 87 houses - Really ??CCTV is going to require a regular & substantial service fee for monitoring and does little to reduce crime - It is just a money making exercise for someone.. They may well be introducing permit parking and link ANPR to the CCTV to further fleece the residents.Her courage will change the world.
Treasure the moments that you have. Savour them for as long as you can for they will never come back again.0 -
Is there a management company that account for this expenditure? However necessary, it doesn't sound like a very democratic decision.No man is worth crawling on this earth.
So much to read, so little time.0 -
If this is a rentcharge, you had better pay it, regardless of what you think about it!
ISTR that, when my local council gets a speed bump installed, it costs an insane amount of money. £10-20k per bump!No reliance should be placed on the above! Absolutely none, do you hear?0 -
Rosa_Damascena said:Is there a management company that account for this expenditure? However necessary, it doesn't sound like a very democratic decision.
It's not meant to be democratic. It's a method for extracting more money from householders once all the houses have been sold.
If it sticks, force it.
If it breaks, well it wasn't working right anyway.0
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