Demand Notice From Landlord

[marc.ellix]

I am the legal owner of a Lease Hold Flat, A few months back the Property manager requested �1083.00 for "Supplementary levy - works" which i paid. They have now sent another letter requesting a further �161.00. Because the builder did not apparently calculate the costs correctly.
I have half a mind to tell them where to shove it, as i had to get a loan to pay for the original request and cant simply keep paying every time they make a demand.

Where do i stand?

Regards

[dzug]

You have to pay it.

[whiskygalore]

Hope you haven't paid this yet? Do you know what the first demand was raised for? Was it for a particular project, or was it a demand for yearly service charges?
If it was for one particular project, depending on what the works carried out were and some other details, you may not be obliged to contribute more than �250 towards the cost of the work. But tell us a bit more?

[marc.ellix]

Hi whiskygalore,

Here are a few more details: The Demand is for "Supplementary levy -works", and is seperate from my monthly service charge which i pay to the property manager. The work is for interior redecoration to paint/wood work and also to external items such as guttering and soffets. i was originally given a request for �1083.00 which i paid, however now the property manager claims that VAT was not properly calculated by the contracted builder, and as such a further �161 would be required to cover the cost.

Hope this helps

Marc

[whiskygalore]

If a freeholder intends to carry out works, classed as 'qualifying works' under Section 20 of the Landlord & Tenant Act 1985 (as amended by S151 of the Commonhold & Leasehold Reform Act 2002), they first need to enter into two 30-day consultation period with leaseholders. This consultation should be triggered if any leaseholder is required to contribute more than �250 towards the cost of the works, and cyclical redecoration of the common parts counts as 'qualifying works'.
The freeholder should serve two separate notices. The first of these should state the freeholder's intention to carry out works, give a broad outline of the works and why these are considered necessary, and invite leaseholders to comment on these and nominate contractors for the freeholder to approach.
The second notice is served after quotations have been received, and should summarise these, and give another 30-day period for lessees to make comments and examine the tenders.
These notices can be in letter or notice form and if they were served on you before works started, you are obliged to pay your contribution, including the supplementary demand for �161.00. If you have NOT been consulted about the works and these have already been instructed, the Freeholder is only entitled to recover �250 from you. Before starting a claim to recover funds, you may wish to consider whether, in spite of the lack of consultation, the works were instructed prudently and completed to a satisfactory standard. Presumably these works were carried out because they were required and the freeholder was acting on their obligations to keep the building in good repair. However if you feel that any aspect of the works has been mismanaged or that the standard of works completed does not offer good value for money, then you could use the lack of consultation as a valid reason for withholding further payment and challenge the validity of the costs put through the building's service charges.