Making changes in a scheme in receivership

Q My wife and I bought a house in a private development about three years ago. The building company went bust and the houses were sold at a very big discount. A management company runs the development but it is still in the hands of the receiver. We want to convert the attic into a gamesroom/den for our children and have had a quote from a builder to do this. Part of the quote is for two Velux windows on the roof at the back of the house to let in light. We do not want a dormer or box extension. These windows would go flush with the roof.

We took it upon ourselves to write to the management company to see if this was okay before proceeding. The builder had advised us that as long as planning permission was not required, getting permission was often a formality.

However, the management company said we signed a lease prohibiting changes to the outside of the building. We thought this meant the front or back (eg extensions), but didn't think it meant the roof which is not visible from ground level, the same way an extension would be.

To complicate matters, the management company informed us that it did not own the buildings or common areas but only collected service charges. They referred us to the receiver whom we contacted and who referred us back to the management company.

I am confused and hope you could give some advice on these issues:

1. How valid is the management company lease we signed if they do not own the buildings or common areas? Can they enforce something they don’t have the right to?

2. If I don’t require planning permission, can a management company lease usurp this?

3. Any advice on the best way to resolve this?

A1. The owners’ management company (OMC) can enforce the lease binding it to the property owners when the legal and beneficial interests stand merged. This will be from when the common areas or reversionary interest of the OMC are transferred from the development company to the OMC; the receiver now assumes responsibility to do this and should have done so already. As the common areas have not been transferred to the OMC, the consent would need to be obtained from the receiver subject to certain qualifying factors.

As you have sought consent from the OMC, I suspect your house has a shared roof with other OMC members and as such, any material alterations would be an issue, not least to the fire certificate granted and the block insurance policy.

The roof is part of the common areas, where relevant, as prescribed in the Multi-Unit Developments Act, 2011 (MUDs Act), section 1 (a): “the external walls, foundations and roofs and internal load bearing walls”.

It is plausible to have a detached house in an OMC development and that roof structure may not form part of the common areas subject to the definitions contained in your corresponding lease.

It is rare for an OMC to have the financial resources to correctly assign the roof to your title if your property is detached. It would be incorrect to assign the roof to one member’s title if the roof was a shared structure enjoyed by other units; examples are roof gardens or roofs of terraced houses in an OMC.

2. You would be unable to sell your property if you proceeded to make alterations without consent, and you could face legal action and costs to rectify the works you undertook as well as assume a concoction of other liabilities.

3. It is possible to transfer a part of common area to one property title under section 10 (B) of the MUDs Act 2011.The costs to ensure that the interests of the OMC are appropriately represented could be significant as qualified third parties should be involved to observe that is done correctly. Paul Huberman is a member of the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI) Property and Facilities Management Professional Group

Bad vibrations

QI live in a small terraced house in Dublin that is about 120 years old. My main concern is when vehicles outside go by, I can feel the house shake. My bedroom doorknob makes noise and sometimes in bed I can feel the house shaking, especially when larger vehicles go by. There is a speed bump near my house and the main times I can feel it is when lorries and vans go over it. There is an "RUS 015" three-tonne vehicle limit sign at the end of my road.

I am not sure if is it a structural problem with my house, if the vehicles going up the road are too big or if the road infrastructure needs to improve. We had a structural survey before we moved in a year ago and there was no concern regarding the house.

A Vibration is a frequent problem in buildings and can be extremely annoying for occupants. The level of vibration felt from passing traffic depends on the building proximity to the main road, physical road conditions, soil structure, the size of the vehicle passing the building and building construction.

Vibration, like noise, travels via two means: impact and airborne. Traffic vibrations are mainly caused by impact from heavy vehicles such as buses and trucks which produce vibrations with frequencies. When a bus or truck strikes an irregularity in the road surface (speed bump, pothole or uneven manhole cover), it generates an impact load and an oscillating load.

These vibrations can be amplified if the natural frequencies of the soil coincide with any of the natural frequencies of the building structure or its components. This may help explain the strength of the vibrations you are feeling.

Furthermore, a 120-year-old house is unlikely to have separation between the external walls and internal floor construction (floor joists built into the walls); therefore any vibration occurring on the road will pass directly through the building walls and timber floors.

While the effect of building vibration for homeowners can be worrying, vibration levels are rarely high enough to be the direct cause of structural damage. They could, however, contribute to the process of deterioration manifesting as cracks in walls and ceilings.

The maximum gross weight sign, RUS 015, is used where the weight restriction is for traffic management reasons: for example, to prohibit heavy vehicles using residential roads. While the vibrations you experience are not a result of a structural problem, the intensity of the vibration is a result of structural construction. I believe the main contributing factor to the vibrations felt in your home is a result of the speed bumps and would recommend that you contact your local authority to request their removal.

Andrew Ramsey is a charteredproject management surveyor and is chairperson of the Building Surveying Professional Group of the SCSI

Cracks in walls

Q In 2006, I built a four-bedroom house and was informed by the builders that as the property settles some cracking would occur. Cracking did start to appear over some windows, doors and ceilings. Over the years I have filled in these cracks, but they always reappear. The house is on an incline and I recently noticed a small hole under the property. Is the problem subsidence? If so, what steps should I take to resolve this?

A All buildings settle under their own weight and this can result in cracking. Settlement cracking happens at weak points in the structure such as at the openings formed by windows and doors. Generally this “bedding down” should be over within the first ten years.

Your house is approaching its 10th anniversary. At this stage initial settlement should have ceased.

Expansion and contraction of building materials as they age will continue beyond this general timeframe. Movement can also happen as buildings expand when heated by the sun and then contract when temperatures fall. This is known as thermal movement. It is common for houses to be constructed without joints that make provision for thermal movement. In the absence of these joints, settlement cracks can accommodate this normal thermal movement. This explains why filled cracks typically reappear. The building is simply expanding and contracting along the line of the settlement crack.

The sloping site you mention can leave properties prone to “differential settlement”, meaning some parts of the structure settle more than others. This should not be significant.

Subsidence is different. In cases of subsidence cracking occurs when the ground that supports the structure moves away or is eroded and support lost. This can happen if a water main or drain leaks and erodes the earth below the structure.

You mention you noticed a hole below the property. On the basis there appears to be some erosion, I suggest you engage a chartered building surveyor or other suitably qualified professional to inspect and monitor the situation.

It would be very important to differentiate between settlement and subsidence as repair methods would be different. Repairs to subsidence may be covered by your home insurance if the house is not covered by a builder’s ten-year warranty.

All buildings settle and crack and therefore I would not be unduly worried about cracks in buildings. However, as there appears to be some movement of the ground in this case, the matter should be investigated and the cause established. Noel Larkin is a member of the Building Surveying Professional Group of the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland (SCSI)

Send your queries to propertyquestions@irishtimes.com or to Property Clinic, The Irish Times, 24-28 Tara Street, Dublin 2. This column is a readers’ service. Advice given is general and individual advice should always be sought