• On My TP1 I Have Signed Up To Service Charges How Do I Get Out Of These (house Is Freehold)

    By Guest on 11th Jul 2019

    As above. 7 of my neighbours not happy with service charges or work and want to know if there is a way out of this e.g. paying to have it deleted or forming a residents association etc etc.

  • 2 Answers

    By Guest on 11/07/2019

    Who are you paying the service charges to? If it's a Residents Management Association then you control it jointly as residents and can set your own service charges or remove them. Presumably the charges are for the upkeep of the communal estate, e.g. public gardens, pathways, lighting and so forth.

    If you don't communally own the management company, engage with it. If all residents say they don't want communal charges they may be persuaded to abandon charging but this is very unlikely because they probably make management fees from it. The owner of the land with the benefit of the service charge covenant may be persuaded to sell the land to the residents collectively. If that took place then the residents would essentially be left to manage it themselves however they wished.

    If the charges are not really required or are extravagant you may wish to consider challenging them, for example in court action. That would not be an area where I could provide further advice.

    Consider also what happens if the service charges are dropped. Who would maintain the communal areas? If each resident maintains their nearby sections what happens if one resident stops doing so? Etc.

    www.notaryexpress.co.uk

  • By Guest on 11/07/2019

    There are only 7 of use (houses) service charges done by housing association. When houses first built it was shared ownership with this housing association. Not sure if any of 7 house are still shared ownership. I know that at least 3 are not and these are the ones that are not happy. I have canvassed the other houses and waiting to hear.
    Contractor turns up and does about 10 mins work and has lunch in van. Have to keep chasing. So money for old rope and charges went up 110% 18 months ago for same work which housing association will not answer why

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