Maintainence
- Ongoing maintenance is vital to safeguard the value and character of Glasgow’s tenements. A well-managed building can help avoid costly problems. GCHT’s checklist for inspecting tenements can be found here.
- Good communication with neighbours is crucial and it can be useful to meet a few times every year to allow owners to raise concerns, plan works and share responsibilities. Together, residents should agree on a maintenance programme covering routine tasks such as cleaning common stairs, clearing gutters, mowing shared gardens, inspecting drains and roofs, and refreshing paintwork.
- Many owners appoint a property factor to coordinate this work. Factors act on the behalf of all owners in a building, arranging contractors and managing payments. Some tenements choose to ‘self-factor,’ which avoids factor fees. However, this can be time-consuming and often challenging, particularly when collecting contributions from multiple owners or dealing with insurance.
- Financial planning is equally important. Establishing a Building Reserve Fund allows owners to budget for ongoing upkeep and emergency works. With regular inspections, collective effort and a clear programme, a tenement will remain in good order for generations to come.
Responsibilities
While you are solely responsible for the upkeep of your own flat, parts of the tenement building or estate are normally the joint responsibility of all the owners whose title deeds say they have a right of common property.
- Individual Property
You are solely responsible for repairs and maintenance to your own flat. This includes your entrance door from the shared stairwell, as well as all windows, walls, floors and ceilings up to the boundary with the adjacent property.
- Mutual Property
Some title deeds will identify which parts are the property of only those who have use of them. For example the stairs, stair window, drainpipes serving flats on one side of the building. Repairs to mutual parts of the building should be paid for equally by all who use that part, unless your title deeds say otherwise.
- Common ‘Scheme’ Property
Common property is considered to be parts of the building where maintenance is paid for by all owners, unless titles deeds say otherwise.
This generally includes:
- The ground on which your tenement is built (solum)
- Foundations
- External walls
- Roof, including the rafters and any structure supporting the roof
- The part of a gable wall that is part of the tenement building
- Any wall, beam or column that is load-bearing