Question reference: S4W-09627
- Asked by: Jamie Hepburn, MSP for Cumbernauld and Kilsyth, Scottish National Party
- Date lodged: 18 September 2012
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Current status: Answered by Margaret Burgess on 12 October 2012
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what legal responsibility social landlords have to consult the owners of properties within the stock owned by the landlord regarding potential changes to the properties.
Answer
<>There may be provisions in title deeds on how decisions should be taken on repairs and maintenance of common space. If there is nothing in title deeds, or they are uncertain, the Tenement Management Scheme in the Tenements (Scotland) Act 2003 may be relevant. Under the Tenement Management Scheme, decisions on repairs and maintenance to common areas may be taken by a majority of the owners of the flats in a tenement. More information on managing common repairs is contained in Consumer Focus Scotland's guide "Common Repair, Common Sense" which can be found at http://www.consumerfocus.org.uk/scotland/news/consumer-guide-to-managing-common-repairs. Improvements to common areas of tenements generally require unanimous agreement of the owners of the flats, unless the improvements are reasonably incidental to the maintenance or there is provision in the title deeds on taking decisions in relation to improvements.
Social landlords acting as property factors need to comply with the provisions of the Property Factors (Scotland) Act 2011. More information on the 2011 act is at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Built-Environment/Housing/privateowners/propertyfactors/2011Act. The Code of Conduct for Property Factors, which forms one of the main elements of the act, sets out certain requirements relating to how property factors should communicate and consult with homeowners.