Factoring services and charges
The Council’s main function as your property factor is to manage the repair and maintenance of the parts of the block and services that are common to residents (either in terms of ownership or liability). Examples of common parts of a block are
- the external walls
- the roof
- the stairs or common entry
- lifts
- utility infrastructure
- concierge service where provided
- any common pathway.
Your title deeds (and where necessary the 2004 act) specify your responsibilities in respect of your own property and the common parts of your block.
An annual factoring management fee is under review and may be charged to cover the day to day management costs of providing a factoring service. The cost of a repair or maintenance carried out is not covered by the factoring fee and is charged separately. The current fee is set at 15% of the costs of repairs and maintenance and will be subject to review. Any changes to the fee structure will be notified to owners prior to implementation.
The Council may carry out the following administrative management tasks
- maintaining a homeowners’ database including the monitoring and recording of all changes of ownership
- providing information about factoring and common repair issues
- checking title deeds for billing purpose
- meetings with owners
- preparing and distributing newsletters when required
- annual billing report and invoicing
- implementing debt recovery procedures, up to and including legal action, where owners fail to pay their invoices
- investigating and answering customer enquiries and complaints on repairs, factoring or invoicing issue.
The Council may provide the following repair management to common parts:
- arranging contractors and management of emergency and non-emergency repairs
- property inspections in relation to the safety of the property where required (see note below)
- managing and maintaining an asbestos register
- arranging an asbestos survey of common areas as required under the health and safety legislation prior to a contractor carrying out work
- health and safety reports
- concierge duties for example cleaning common areas
- providing a 24-hour service for arranging emergency common repairs through the call centre-out of hours service
- providing a facility for reporting non-emergency repair on-line or by phone
- procurement of best value contractors to carry out repairs in accordance with Scottish Government procurement regulations for public bodies
- meeting contractors on a regular basis to ensure quality is maintained
- cost estimates for repairs (where costs are to exceed the pre-authorised limit)
- inspection of repairs in progress and on completion of work
- lift maintenance.
NOTE: The Council, as a property factor will not carry out annual building condition inspections of blocks on behalf of homeowners. All homeowners in a block have responsibility for monitoring the condition of their building and reporting any issues.
Charges for services are split into two categories, Core Services and Repair and Maintenance services. As part of the Council’s duty as Property Factor, the Council will deliver Core Services to manage the common parts of the property.
Core Services generally include, where appropriate, regular maintenance items such as Lift testing, water testing, aerial maintenance, communal lighting and power, hub and sub-hub power and repairs, communal gas heating, health and safety reporting and caretaker costs.
Repair and Maintenance services include one-off repairs to common parts of the building.