OMC and Freehold

It's not just apartments that are subject to fees in a managed development. We have freehold houses too and they are liable for fees. You need to talk to your solicitor

Mrs OBumble

Has the estate been taken in charge by the council?

Op, you need to read up on the MUD Act, specifically what constitutes a multi unit development, and the legal requirement for unit owners to pay fees (Section 18(10)).

The OMC is as the name suggests, made up of the owners of units in the development, if you own a unit, you are a member irrespective of whether your property is freehold. You still share use of amenities, facilities, services etc with other units in the development. Legal advice would be money well spent, the OMC will have the option to attach a lien to the property mortgage if you have one, which would mean you cannot sell it without paying what you owe.

https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2011/act/2/section/1/enacted/en/html

The time you bought may be a factor... send them an email with this link...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118662088#Comment_118662088

The 2011 Act applies to both new developments built after its enactment, and pre existing developments built before it.

The link you provided does provide the answer though to one of the op’s contentions, that as he/she owns the freehold, he/she is not a member of the OMC. The Act defines “unit owner” as follows:

“unit owner” means a person other than the owners’ management company who holds the highest freehold or leasehold estate or interest in respect of a unit in a multi-unit development.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118662114#Comment_118662114

Is this stated in the act..

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118662134#Comment_118662134

Section 2(5).

“(5) Except where otherwise provided, this Act applies to every multi-unit development.”

https://www.irishstatutebook.ie/eli/2011/act/2/section/2/enacted/en/html

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118662186#Comment_118662186

I am aware of that as this has always been the cast for shared commercial roofs...

My question is how can an OMC take charge of a property that was bought before this law was passed...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118662211#Comment_118662211

Using the MUD Act presumably.

Claw Hammer

There have to be covenants by the o/p for service charges to apply. The MUD act didn't bring units into the purvey of an OMC who were not bond by covenant to pay service charges. If the OMC are trying to levy charges on the O/p they should have a copy of the title deeds and the clauses which make the o/p a member of the company and oblige him to contribute to the maintenance of the development.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118663861#Comment_118663861

Why would the contract of sale influence whether a unit is part of a multi unit development for the purposes of the MUD Act?

The terms of the purchase contract may have bound the unit owner contractually to the OMC prior to the MUD Act being enacted, but once enacted, the MUD Act gave legislative clarity to the obligations of unit owners in relation to OMC charges.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118663918#Comment_118663918

I agree so it is attached to the deed... if its not i think op ok... i have always thought management fees on freehold properties wrong...

These are not commercial units with shared roofs... these are freehold houses... i wonder if this is part of planning but i expect not...

For me the MUD/OMC were neceessary for apartment development as too complicated to have Commercial development for apartments where no actual turnover... it seems to me developers/property management companies included houses if there were apartments as part of development...

OP are there apartments as part of your development...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664107#Comment_118664107

Freehold properties in the same development still use same amenities, services and facilities as all other units in the development, so whether the unit is freehold or leasehold matters not a jot, the unit is still part of a multi unit development and the MUD Act clearly reflects this. The Act also applies to all MUDs in relation to fees, there is no exemption for pre-2011 builds in relation to those fees listed in the Act that I can see, it just states the Act applies to all except those exempted. There is some leeway in the Act that allows the sale of a property built pre 2011 in which common areas have not transferred to the OMC, but the obligation to transfer those areas remains and must be done so as quickly as possible.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664159#Comment_118664159

So i think you are confirming what i think in a housing only development there are not OMCs in place...

I do not agree freehold properties should be obliged to be part of an OMC but there should be an obligation for residents to look after areas not under the charge of the council...

I have a friend who was secretary of an OMC and we had a few discussions about it...

silver2020

In a mixed development charges are apportioned depending on the type of property.

For apartments there will be internal and external maintenance fees including sinking fund for major works.

For the freehold houses it's a smaller fee. Any I've seen are usually about 35% - 40% of the apartment fee.

This covers the common areas - pathways, roads, lighting, open space and very importantly, public liability insurance for the common areas.

You won't be able to sell the house until fees are paid, so they will continue accruing until paid

I bought a small investment property 2 years ago. Similar situation in that the person said no fees due as it was a house. He was rather pissed off when over €9,000 had to be paid to the management company for the sale to proceed ( he had already signed the contracts, so could not back out)

So the chances are these charges are correct.

However, a phone call to the solicitor you used to buy it will give you the correct answer as it is possible that if you purchased in 2006 there may be different rules.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664268#Comment_118664268

Well the OP said they bought the first property a few years before the OMC became law... it is likely that there are plans of the whole development on the original plans which the solicitor will have to confirm what they were buying into...

The solicitor has being already paid for this transaction so i expect a phone call will confirm...

Mrs OBumble

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664268#Comment_118664268

Surely though it depends on whether the house is actually legally part of the multi unit development. It may have been built stand alone before a development was even contemplated for the site.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664268#Comment_118664268

Charges are not necessarily apportioned based on unit types. In our development it's on unit sizes so a 3 bed house pays the same as a 3 bed apartment. No it's not fair but it's next to impossible to change, we've taken legal advice.

The OP needs legal advice based on all available paperwork, his, planning permission, OMC articles of association etc. Everything on here is conjecture as none of us know what's in that documentation.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664329#Comment_118664329

Exactly. The MUD Act outlines what a mud is, and that it applies to all muds, irrespective of whether it existed before the Act was enacted. If the op’s unit is not in a mud, then the Act does not apply, but an OMC would have a list of the units, it would be easily be checked by looking up the planning and seeing if the op’s house was included in the development. In reality, it’s pretty obvious if your property is part of a development.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664197#Comment_118664197

Houses are residential units, the Act is not restricted to apartments, it can be a stand alone building comprising a “unit” (house) or building with multiple “units” (apartments)

“multi-unit development” means a development being land on which there stands erected a building or buildings comprising a unit or units and that—“

No doubt your friend pointed out the relevant term in the Act that I quoted earlier related to both leasehold and freehold.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664690#Comment_118664690

My friend changed his mind after talking to me about it... he has since sold the house. This is a development which had shops/offices at the front and houses semis at field behind... My view then and now is that freehold properties should be excluded from the management company's and he agreed with me but only after a time...

I still want to know if this development was houses only would there be a requirement to have a management company to cut grass etc... you mentioned the word presumably in a post which suggests the whole thing a bit vague...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664197#Comment_118664197

You are wrong and what you think here is irrelevant. There are hundreds of house only estates with management companies.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664737#Comment_118664737

I have also provided you with direct quotes from the MUD Act which contradicts your viewpoint. I edited my recent reply to you to include another quote from the Act which outlines that single buildings/units are also part of muds.

On the issue of freeholds, the “presumably” does not apply, the Act clearly states both leasehold and freehold units are included, there is no vagueness in that.

A house may standalone, but if it is in a mud, it shares amenities, services and facilities with the other units, you can’t separate those out from your property just because you own the plot on which the house stands.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664766#Comment_118664766

That's not the question i asked... The question i asked if a developer decided to build a number of houses in a field and had the planning.

Does the current legislation require the said development to have an OMC... i am of the opinion it does not until someone shows me absolute proof it does...

I am talking of a development that does not have any leaseholds...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664837#Comment_118664837

I’m not sure that I can make it any clearer than it is made in the MUD Act 2011. In it, it is clearly stated what constitutes a multi-unit development and that it applies to both leaseholds and freeholds as well as single buildings/units buildings with multiple units.

Maybe before you post again, you might read the Act, or at least look back on the direct quotes from it that I have posted in relation to your question.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664865#Comment_118664865

There is no clarity in the act to say if a group of houses and you cannot quote with clarity whare it confirms if semi-detached houses only in a development are required to have an OMC... I say they they do not... thats the end of it unless you can confirm something else...

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664897#Comment_118664897

Required is not the issue. Pretty much every housing development from the early noughties to the recession was set up with a management company. It was the only way the councils were granting planning permission. And so management companies (later renamed owner management companies) were set up for developments that only consisted of houses.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118664941#Comment_118664941

I have seen several grants of planning and never seen this clause in a house-only development... it may be you can confirm where you seen this...

What i seen is developer maintains all common areas until last house sold... i did not see a requirement to have management company but i may be wrong...