This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Fair deal for tenement homeowners
03/06/2004
Stairhead stand-offs could be resolved by proposals to make it easier to repair Scotland's 800,000 tenements and flats, the Parliament will be told today.
Speaking ahead of the Stage 1 debate on the Tenements Bill, Deputy Communities Minister Mary Mulligan said it was vital that homeowners were given the powers to maintain their properties without being vetoed by neighbours.
She added:
"The Tenements Bill will modernise a system of property law which is outdated and old-fashioned, and replace it with one which is modern, clear and just.
"The vast majority of owners take pride in their properties. They want to maintain the common areas, such as the stair and the roof, and keep them in a safe, working order.
"At the moment, all owners in a tenement must agree before repairs can be carried out, unless their title deeds say otherwise. This means that a minority who refuse to co-operate can scupper vital maintenance work."
" The Bill will ensure a fairer deal for homeowners in enabling them to carry out repairs and maintenance with majority consent. Everyone will then be liable for repair bills, ending frustration and delay and ensuring common areas are in a good condition.
"This will be a huge step forward for responsible owners and will mean neighbour disputes can be resolved quickly. Approval by the Parliament today of the principles of the Bill will be a significant step forward in our drive to modernise and improve property law in Scotland."
Among the changes the Bill seeks to introduce are:
- Every tenement will have a management scheme to set out the basic framework for maintenance of the tenement. Often the title deeds will set this out but when they don't, the Tenement Management Scheme will apply. For instance, if the title deeds don't specify how the cost of maintenance is to be divided, the Tenement Management Scheme will apportion the costs between the owners (in most cases they will pay an equal share)
- Majority decision making will apply where no decision-making procedure is provided for in the title deeds. In other words, if the majority in a property decide to have repairs or maintenance work carried out, the minority will be obliged to pay their share. Improvement, as distinct from maintenance, will still be subject to unanimous agreement, unless they are incidental to any maintenance works
- The Tenement Management Scheme will include a list of 'scheme property'. This will mean that unless the title deeds say otherwise, every owner will be obliged to contribute, in most cases equally, to the cost of maintaining the most important parts of the tenement - such as the roof and the external walls
- The Bill also contains relevant rules on a number of other aspects of tenement management, including ensuring emergency access for repair work and compulsory insurance
The Tenement Bill is the third in a series of the Executive's drive to modernise property law reform. The Abolition of Feudal Tenure Act 2000 and the Title Conditions Act 2003 are due to come into force on November 28 this year. It is anticipated that, if the Bill is passed by the Parliament, the Tenements Bill will come into force at the same time.