Maintenance of common green area in estate - landlord or tenant responsible?

Princess Fiona

So as the title suggests, I am renting in an estate where the Residents' Association are asking all households to cough up for maintenance of the common green areas.
Who is obliged to pay, me or the landlord? Or does it depend on lease?
Thanks in advance for any help!
Mods, please move if in wrong thread

Paulw

In short, the answer is no one.

A resident's association have no ability to make anyone pay.

They are simply asking, and you can say no.

Princess Fiona

Thanks for speedy response, they are being quite insistent though. Am considering passing note requesting payment on to letting agent, who would hopefully pass it on to landlord, wonder would this be appropriate?

3DataModem

What do you think is fair?

Paulw

Princess Fiona wrote: »

Thanks for speedy response, they are being quite insistent though. Am considering passing note requesting payment on to letting agent, who would hopefully pass it on to landlord, wonder would this be appropriate?

They can be as insistent as they want, but you have no obligation at all to pay, and nor does your landlord.

You can pass the note to the landlord, or pass it directly to the bin.

Princess Fiona

Thanks Paulw, that's what I figured.
Re. what's fair, I have mixed feelings, to be honest.
If I owned the house I would have no problem contributing to the upkeep of the common areas, but as I only have a 6 month lease, I'm less inclined to.
Also, like everyone else, am feeling the pinch these days, and the sum they've asked for is (in my opinion) quite a lot.

djimi

Tenants are not responsible for management company fees and I dont see why this would be any different. As a tenant (especially on a short term lease) there is no way Id be allowing the residents committee to get any money out of me for something like that.

Merch

Princess Fiona wrote: »

Thanks Paulw, that's what I figured.
Re. what's fair, I have mixed feelings, to be honest.
If I owned the house I would have no problem contributing to the upkeep of the common areas, but as I only have a 6 month lease, I'm less inclined to.
Also, like everyone else, am feeling the pinch these days, and the sum they've asked for is (in my opinion) quite a lot.

how much?

Princess Fiona

€50 per household, which I suppose doesn't sound like a lot, but all that it seems to cover is grass cutting, and it seems like it's going to be a regular thing too If they hadn't specified an amount I wouldn't mind as much, but I just think it's a lot to ask of people in this day and age. I'm aware that this is relative, though. €50 is nothing to some people and a lot to others. A "cut-off" date has also been supplied, which I take issue with.

djimi

Ive heard of some estates asking for extortionate amounts for this kind of thing. I worked with a girl who reckoned her estate would end up paying thousands every year (if every one paid) for a bloke to come around twice a month to cut the grass.

Xiney

Offer to do it for them for the money they've collected from everyone else

Merch

Princess Fiona wrote: »

€50 per household, which I suppose doesn't sound like a lot, but all that it seems to cover is grass cutting, and it seems like it's going to be a regular thing too If they hadn't specified an amount I wouldn't mind as much, but I just think it's a lot to ask of people in this day and age. I'm aware that this is relative, though. €50 is nothing to some people and a lot to others. A "cut-off" date has also been supplied, which I take issue with.

Are you sure there hasnt been a miscommunication and they meant 5 euro?
Why pay someone to do it at all, why doesnt everyone chip in with the workload, thats what I did instead of offering money

ricman

IF someones gonna pay it should be the landlord,not a tenant.

seamus

As others have said, the resident's association cannot force anyone to pay any money.

However, the Management Company are an entirely different thing who can insist that money is paid. But not by the tenant. All correspondence from the management company should be forwarded to the landlord, it's usually addressed to "The owner" and not "The occupant", therefore a tenant is not legally permitted to open this mail.

The general rule is that all management fees are paid by the landlord, who is then free to build this cost into your monthly rent. Theoretically, the landlord should split the management company fees into costs that he should bear - such as insurance and sinking funds - and costs that the tenant should bear, such as waste disposal and groundskeeping, but such conscientious landlords are few and far between.

Princess Fiona

Merch wrote: »

Are you sure there hasnt been a miscommunication and they meant 5 euro?
Why pay someone to do it at all, why doesnt everyone chip in with the workload, thats what I did instead of offering money

Unfortunately not, definitely €50 per annum. Can't understand how it could cost this to have the grass cut, maybe I'm missing something?

Merch

Well as a tenant I suggest you would have responsibility to keep the grass in your front garden and between the path and the road cut and tidy, but anything that is on a green would fall under the responsibility of a council? what is your local council? what area?

Paulw

Merch wrote: »

Well as a tenant I suggest you would have responsibility to keep the grass in your front garden and between the path and the road cut and tidy, but anything that is on a green would fall under the responsibility of a council? what is your local council? what area?

Who cares, it's not the OPs responsibility?

Keep your own garden cut and tidy, and don't worry about the resident's association, unless you want to contribute. They have no power to force anyone to pay anything. You should even direct anyone that calls to the landlord.

Merch

Paulw wrote: »

Who cares, it's not the OPs responsibility?

Keep your own garden cut and tidy, and don't worry about the resident's association, unless you want to contribute. They have no power to force anyone to pay anything. You should even direct anyone that calls to the landlord.

Whats with your attitude problem?

I'm giving my opinion, I'm pointing out that the residents association should be contacting the council to request they do it, if the council have signed the road/estate over from the builders that's what they usually do, unless it is a privately managed area.

Personally I'd suggest tenants and owners have some responsibility to the place they live.

Princess Fiona

Merch wrote: »

Well as a tenant I suggest you would have responsibility to keep the grass in your front garden and between the path and the road cut and tidy, but anything that is on a green would fall under the responsibility of a council? what is your local council? what area?

I absolutely agree that it is my responsibility to keep my own grass in order, which I always do. Re. the area, naturally I'd prefer not to say, as I could be easily identified.

echosound

I used to rent on a private estate who hired a company in to maintain the common greens/grass verges/trees etc, was also 50 euro per house per year (there was a LOT of landscaping and common greens in the estate).

Landlord always paid this fee in my experience - and I rented a total of 3 different houses on this particular estate over the years, each of the 3 landlords took care of the fees themselves, tenants never had to pay. Just passed on the letter to the landlord or agent and they took care of it. You should contact the LL or agent and let them know the fees are due, if anyone calls to the door to put pressure on you to pay up just tell them you are renting and you have passed on the info to the LL.

wellboytoo

Look at your lease it should say something to the effect of" Esb Utilities etc to be paid by ?, this will answer the question, offer the res commitee half as you are only there for 6 months would be the other suggestion.

quozl

wellboytoo wrote: »

Look at your lease it should say something to the effect of" Esb Utilities etc to be paid by ?, this will answer the question,

Oh come on, this is just disinformation.

This is not equivalent to the ESB or other utilities.

If the OP's lease says they are responsible specifically for this (and I'd be shocked) then they are, otherwise the landlord is.

ricman

some estates are under private management,like apartment blocks,either way its upto the landlord to pay,98 per cent of estates are either owned or maintained by local autority in respect to roads,footpaths, green spaces.AS a tenant its not your problem,just mention it to the landlord.
some people clean ,cut the border grass outside their homes because the council cant cover every single inch of ground,in every estate.

Paulw

The OP has stated it's a resident's association, not a management company. Therefore, the development is not managed, and it should be up to the council to maintain the place.

Even if it was a managed development, the OP would still have no liability to pay for maintenance of green areas. This would be up to the landlord.

Bottom line, the OP has no obligation to pay anything to a resident's association if they won't want to, and if it's a resident's association, then the landlord has no obligation to pay either. They can simply say no to the resident's association.

Victor

Some residents associations run barbecues and Christmas parties, so it may not just be for the grass.

And who cuts the grass in winter?

Atlantic Dawn

A residents association has no right to cut grass in public areas and by paying for such you could end up being liabled should anyone fall on freshly cut grass or any other injuries arise, public areas are solely the responsibility of the local authority of your area. This is what taxes and stamp duty is for.

Princess Fiona

Victor wrote: »

Some residents associations run barbecues and Christmas parties, so it may not just be for the grass.

And who cuts the grass in winter?

They do seem to run barbeques and the like but this was not mentioned when the €50 was requested. However I suspect that the money would be used to fund this as well as the grass cutting. If so I feel this should be stated upfront. Residents should have all the info. before deciding whether they wish to contribute. Re. grass cutting in winter, obviously it does not occur.

djimi

wellboytoo wrote: »

Look at your lease it should say something to the effect of" Esb Utilities etc to be paid by ?, this will answer the question, offer the res commitee half as you are only there for 6 months would be the other suggestion.

Grass cutting is not a utility.

goat2

the owner or landlord has to be the one who should part with the bucks here, as it is to his benefit, because if you were to rent where there is a private garden with the house, it is the landlords problem, take it this way if anything needs doing outside house, it is the landlords job,

grizzly

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

A residents association has no right to cut grass in public areas and by paying for such you could end up being liabled should anyone fall on freshly cut grass or any other injuries arise, public areas are solely the responsibility of the local authority of your area. This is what taxes and stamp duty is for.

This.

Lantus

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

A residents association has no right to cut grass in public areas and by paying for such you could end up being liabled should anyone fall on freshly cut grass or any other injuries arise, public areas are solely the responsibility of the local authority of your area. This is what taxes and stamp duty is for.

Resident associations work tirelessly to maintain grass areas by giving a damm about where they live. Often it's a small cadre of people doiung a tough job for nothing again and again. They should be comended.

The local coco dont give two hoots about grass, most have closed their parks department down and so taxes do not pay for grass cutting anymore. Stamp duty has nothing to do with maintaining grass areas.

There are a lot of estates that have fallen through the loop where there is no managment company set up to legally collect money to maintain the estate but often 10+acres of land to cut and look after that no one wants to take responsibility for.

Resident association members should be comended and supported in whatever way you can. If grass areas were to go wild the area you live would look awful and no doubt all the complainers here would probably be the first to jump up and say that somebody should do something about it.

In our estate renters came out and helped and even donated. Of course you dont have to but if we all closed our windows and doors to world outside it would be a grim place indeed.