'If our roof blew off we had nothing to pay for it'

When Niamh Carbery bought her apartment near Dublin city centre eight years ago, she never would have guessed how much effort it would take to ensure the complex was properly maintained.

Niamh had been told by the estate agent selling the apartment that she was looking at an annual service charge of about £500, but the agent failed to point out that this would escalate in subsequent years. Also when she moved in, it was "exceptionally difficult" to find out exactly what the complex's management agent was expected to do in return for these fees.

In fact the managing agent was "absolutely appalling", she recalls.

"Nothing was getting done in the complex."

For example, complaints in relation to break-ins and stolen property would go unanswered. "There's nothing more frustrating than ringing up complaining about something and nothing being done."

She later found out that most of the other residents in the complex had encountered the same problems.

"So I made it my business to get on the committee and find out what was going on," she says, referring to the committee of the property management company, which owns, and is responsible for maintaining, shared areas in the development.

Together with other residents who were also voted onto the committee, Niamh succeeded in ousting the old management agent and hiring a much more satisfactory replacement. It took two years, but it was worth it.

First of all the committee members did some research, visiting nearby apartment blocks, and finding out which management agents were used by the well-maintained complexes. They selected a new agent, but before firing the old one, they sought legal advice to ensure that they were entitled to do so.

The committee is now very active, and holds quarterly meetings with the new management agent, but it has taken a lot of time and effort to get to this point.

"We've only just got back on track in the last couple of years," Niamh says. The previous agent has claimed that there was a sinking fund (a contingency fund to provide for major capital expenditure) in place, but the residents later discovered that this was not the case.

"We had nothing, so if our roof blew off we had nothing to pay for it," she says.

Their annual service charge is currently in the region of € 1,500, and a percentage of this is contributed to the sinking fund that has now been set up.

Niamh is happy to pay the service charge, as it covers her insurance and refuse costs as well as maintenance of the complex. "If it works, and runs smoothly it's worth it," she says.

What advice would she have for other apartment owners being given the run-around? First of all, make sure to attend the property management company's annual general meeting (agm) to make your grievances known, she advises. "If they really mean business it's in the interest of the owner-resident to go to the agm."

"The key is to get strong people on the committee," she continues. "Then shop around for a new management agent if necessary."