Legal requirements of a resident’s association
The Estate has to be satisfied that any representations put forward on management issues reflect a consensus of the Residents’ Association and are not those of individual member(s) of the committee.
To that end, a residents’ association needs to demonstrate that it is truly representative of a majority of owners. It must be properly constituted, have elected officers and maintain a list of names and addresses of subscribing members, representing at least 65% of owners.
In certain circumstances, the Estate can accept a lower percentage of owners. All residents’ associations are required to submit an annual return to the Estate, demonstrating compliance with these criteria.
Legal requirements of the Estate as freeholder
The Estate must provide leaseholders and residents’ associations with details of service charge expenditure and insurance cover whenever this is requested. We must also consult with leaseholders and the residents’ association before contracts are placed for major works (where the cost to each leaseholder is more than £250) or long-term agreements over 12 months (where the cost to leaseholder is more than £100).
We follow the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Code of Practice ‘best practice’ guide for managing agents of blocks of flats in dealing with leaseholders. We are not a managing agent, but as a responsible landlord (freeholder) have adopted some of the principles.
What can owners and residents’ associations expect from the Estate?
Contact with the Estate
Owners and residents' associations have direct contact with the residential property manager for each property
Our staff are available by telephone and email Monday - Friday 9 am – 5 pm.
Quick responses to issues raised
We will respond to all emails and letter within three working days.
Meetings with the residents’ association
We will arrange an annual walk-around meeting with the residents’ association to discuss the management of the property/properties generally.
We will also meet the residents’ association at other times either at the property or at the Estate’s offices, on request, to discuss specific management issues.
Consultation on ongoing maintenance works
We welcome and encourage the involvement of the residents’ association in the appointment and implementation of cleaning, gardening and general maintenance contracts.
We will advise owners and the residents’ association of the works we propose to undertake and welcome any comments from leaseholders and/or the residents’ association. The final decision on any works will be taken by the Estate as freehold owner and manager of the property.
Consultation on major building works
We seek to maintain property to a high standard. Necessarily, this sometimes requires major building work to be carried out. Major building work is defined as work which will cost the leaseholder/freeholder more than £250, such as the redecoration of the internal common areas or the redecoration of the exterior windows frames, which will be carried out, generally, every five years. Less frequently, it might include renewal of the roof covering or resurfacing of roads and paths.
To help owners to plan for the cost of major works, we will:
- consult before any works are scheduled
- publish a five-year programme of works tailored for each building, with estimated costs. This will be sent to each leaseholder/owner. It will be reviewed and updated annually in collaboration with the residents’ association.
Garden maintenance works
We have started a programme to improve the garden areas on residential developments, undertaking works such as enhancing the planting quality of existing beds and shrub areas, planting trees and improving the maintenance of existing beds and hedges. Projects will typically span between two and five years, depending on the scale of the proposed works
We will prepare a programme for each area in conjunction with the appointed gardening contractor and our tree consultant, and then discuss this with the residents’ association before we implement it.
