I have recently bought a freehold house in a holiday village and am facing multiple challenges with the board of management at the property.
One of the key issues I am encountering is regarding the property’s boundaries, specifically concerning the adjacent car park. Despite providing documentation from two engineers confirming the proximity of the car park to my house, the board insists that all car parking within the village is considered a common area.
Furthermore, I have raised concerns about the board’s participation in Airbnb rental activities, which is prohibited by the property deeds. However, my inquiries have gone unanswered, leaving me unsettled about the lack of action taken by the management.
Despite my efforts to address these issues and the substantial maintenance fees paid annually, a resolution remains elusive. I am seeking advice on the appropriate channels through which to address these issues and hold the board of management accountable for their actions.
Your guidance on potential solutions would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.
Despite following up your valid concerns by engaging proactively with the board of directors of the owners’ management company (OMC), you have clearly not received a satisfactory response.
The matter of good title should not be ambiguous following your recent purchase of your freehold property. Any title defects should have been identified during the sales process and before the property was purchased.
What I suspect may have happened here is that while your property has a footprint of a certain size, the OMC is saying that the car park is overlapping with your property’s footprint, and this may be at the root of the dispute.
I would recommend you engage a solicitor who is experienced in conveyancing and ask them to engage with the OMC’s solicitor.
If your solicitor is satisfied that you are the owner of the property and with the boundaries as outlined by your two engineers, it is then up to the OMC to prove otherwise.
It could be that the property deeds are defective in some way. It is not unheard-of for irregularities to arise in an OMC agreement, for example. Planning would have been granted for the submitted original plans and, as the development progressed in the construction phase, alterations over time could have occurred without amendments being correctly made to the OMC deeds.
A deed of rectification, if required, could be drafted by the OMC solicitor with all consenting members to repair any title defect.
While the Property Services Regulatory Authority (PSRA) has regulatory authority over property service providers, the Corporate Enforcement Authority is now the responsible body for addressing complaints for company law breaches. A review of its website should prove informative.
Section 228 of the Companies Act 2014 sets out the fiduciary duties of all company directors. An experienced company law solicitor could give you guidance on the conduct of the board of directors and options to remedy breaches which can range from raising matters at the annual general meeting to litigation.
The planning approved for the development will indicate what is appropriate and can be inspected at the relevant local authority. It could be that the holiday village has planning for short-term letting or tourism. Short-term holiday lettings are expected to be required to register with Fáilte Ireland under planned legislation that has yet to come into law, so watch that space.
Paul Huberman is a chartered property and facilities management surveyor and a fellow of the Society of Chartered Surveyors Ireland
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