Tweet
Property management company - bad service and huge admin fees
Hi there, I’m hoping someone can offer me some advice before I lose my mind.
im currently renting and buying in one city, and selling in another.. Too many agents!
The property that I’m selling is a leasehold in a converted building of 6 flats. We have a property management company and I’ve been very unhappy with them for a long time. I’ve been moving around a bit for work and the flat was rented out, so not had a lot to do with it besides paying the bills.
For the 11 years I’ve owned it, the Service charge comes out monthly by standing order. A year ago I was changing job and moving from England to Scotland and I missed a letter from them advising that they were changing payment procedures. Apparently they’re using a company called ‘Leasehold payment services’ to handle payments.. and here starts my problem.
My payment carried on into the Property management company old account for a couple of months until I received a chase up letter, I then tried to set up a new payment but i got distracted and forgot about it. Then I lost the paper with the details and called them a few weeks later, paid off the backdated fees and also for the remainder of the year (about 4 months in advance). This LPS company then called and said that they had applied a ‘late payment fee’ of £144. I told them I would dispute it as it wasn’t a reasonable amount. After a few angry phone calls, I was told someone would get someone at the actual property Management company to call me back. They never did, so I forgot about it. That was in Feb this year.
Now, I’ve been paying monthly since but am in the process of selling the flat. I’ve just received a letter from this ‘Leasehold payment seervices’ saying that I’m in arrears with my “Property management fees” to the tume of £234 for a period 1/10/17 to 30/12/17 and if I don’t pay up, they will add another £144 late payment fee. They don’t show a breakdown but I work it out that the £234 is NOT my service charge, but my 1/12 monthly payment + their £144 fee... but they’re labelling it as though I’m in arrears with my service charge... which I’m not. I done a bit of Googling and cannot find any reference to this company on the internet AT ALL... nothing.
is this legal? Can the Property managers just change procedure re-payment without permission?! Can this random company apply a ‘late payment fee’ to an already disputed admin charge? I’ve brought my 1/12 monthly payment forward so it comes off tomorrow. That means that my service charge is paid to 31/12 by which time I should have exchanged on the flat.
It all just seems very underhand. This company is nowhere to be found on the internet, and technically the Property managers are apointed by and collect funds on behalf of the 6 owners... of which I’m one.
i feel like I’m going a bit mad, it doesn’t seem to make sense.
im currently renting and buying in one city, and selling in another.. Too many agents!
The property that I’m selling is a leasehold in a converted building of 6 flats. We have a property management company and I’ve been very unhappy with them for a long time. I’ve been moving around a bit for work and the flat was rented out, so not had a lot to do with it besides paying the bills.
For the 11 years I’ve owned it, the Service charge comes out monthly by standing order. A year ago I was changing job and moving from England to Scotland and I missed a letter from them advising that they were changing payment procedures. Apparently they’re using a company called ‘Leasehold payment services’ to handle payments.. and here starts my problem.
My payment carried on into the Property management company old account for a couple of months until I received a chase up letter, I then tried to set up a new payment but i got distracted and forgot about it. Then I lost the paper with the details and called them a few weeks later, paid off the backdated fees and also for the remainder of the year (about 4 months in advance). This LPS company then called and said that they had applied a ‘late payment fee’ of £144. I told them I would dispute it as it wasn’t a reasonable amount. After a few angry phone calls, I was told someone would get someone at the actual property Management company to call me back. They never did, so I forgot about it. That was in Feb this year.
Now, I’ve been paying monthly since but am in the process of selling the flat. I’ve just received a letter from this ‘Leasehold payment seervices’ saying that I’m in arrears with my “Property management fees” to the tume of £234 for a period 1/10/17 to 30/12/17 and if I don’t pay up, they will add another £144 late payment fee. They don’t show a breakdown but I work it out that the £234 is NOT my service charge, but my 1/12 monthly payment + their £144 fee... but they’re labelling it as though I’m in arrears with my service charge... which I’m not. I done a bit of Googling and cannot find any reference to this company on the internet AT ALL... nothing.
is this legal? Can the Property managers just change procedure re-payment without permission?! Can this random company apply a ‘late payment fee’ to an already disputed admin charge? I’ve brought my 1/12 monthly payment forward so it comes off tomorrow. That means that my service charge is paid to 31/12 by which time I should have exchanged on the flat.
It all just seems very underhand. This company is nowhere to be found on the internet, and technically the Property managers are apointed by and collect funds on behalf of the 6 owners... of which I’m one.
i feel like I’m going a bit mad, it doesn’t seem to make sense.
