COUNTY ESTATE MANAGEMENT 6

This post is my reply to the most recent communication from REM copied in today's earlier post. It is addressed to the manager of REM.

Dear Mr.Spiro

I am disappointed to have received on 12/01/07 your most recent demand for alleged arrears of £334.25 (I note however you are now saying this amount is for arrears of both ground rent and service charges, whereas originally you had claimed it was for service charges only- why the change? ).
It is particularly disappointing that you have again made no attempt to address any of the points I have made to you in previous letters on this matter, the most recent one being dated 18/12/06.
Perhaps you can now address yourself to what I think are the pertinent issues as raised here.

I have now requested both informally and formally on several occasions that you provide me with a summary of the outgoings for the period in question, namely the s/c year ending 25/12/05, as it is only this that will definitively demonsatrate the true credit/debit situation re my account. I have also asked you for any evidence that you can provide as to any outgoings- receipts,etc- but you have provided nothing.
I think it is reasonable to assume, therefore, that the reason you have not responsed to these requests is that this evidence does not exist and that the only outgoings for the period in question was for buildings insurance (I will give more reasons for believing this to be the case later).
Given this, and the additional fact that I made an interim service charge payment of several hundred pounds during this period, on what grounds exactly do you continue to claim that I am in debt for said year? ( I pointed out to you in my letter of 18/05/06 that I made a payment of £800.00 on 06/04/05 to cover ground rent for the year from 25/12/04, service charge balance due 25/12/04 and interim service charges for the year from 25/12/04, ie not £223.89 as claimed in the invoice you sent me. Have you confirmed this payment?)

I have been waiting for you to provide a summary of outgoings in order to be able to be exact about what I believe I am in credit, but in the absence of this would suggest this amount to be £355.77, worked out as follows:

Service Charge Balance 25/12/04-----------£17.02
Interim Charges 25/12/04-----------------£258.06
Ground Rent 25/12/04---------------------£75.00
Ground Rent 24/06/05---------------------£75.00
Interim Charges 24/06/05-----------------£258.06

Paid 06/04/05-----------------------------£800.00

Outgoings y/e 25/12/05- Insurance--------£277.21

Credit y/e 25/12/05----------------------£355.77

I would invite you to state any valid reason you have for believing my calculations to be incorrect in which case an adjustment will of course be made but in the absence of this would request an early payment of the amount I believed to be owed to me.
Once again I repeat that it is beyond obvious that a certified summary of relevant costs in relation to the service charge payable for year ending 25/12/05 is what is most required under the circumstances, and as it is a statutory duty for you to provide this under section 21 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 unless you have reasonable excuse not to I would ask for this again.
And in relation to your claim I again point out that the lease of this flat requires a certified summary to be provided before any claim for arrears is made by the landlord.

My additional reasons for believing there to be an absence of outgoings for the period in question:
There would have had to have been a substantial amount of work done on the property for me to have owed £300- given that I pay a 10.2% portion of costs, that would mean thousands of pounds worth. Now you will remember that a structural engineers report had been commissioned prior to the period in question showing major works to be done- and just lately there has been a surveyor's report on the property- I would suggest that a perusal of the latter would show these works yet to be done.
Is it conceivable there would be no paperwork relating to such major work?
Would the managing agent not demanded payments prior to such works commencing?
Do you not think that lessees would have noticed major works going on around/above them?
All that happened to this property during the period is that it continued to deteriorate with no active management.
As a matter of fact there is good reason to believe that Mr.Dunford , the manager of the then managing agents, did a runner sometime during 2005; due to his nonresponse to any communication on urgent matters, I went to his offices to find them boarded up- quite separately and unknown to me at the time, the lessee of the basement flat, Ms. Ong, made a similar visit for the same reason around the same time and was told he had left the premises monthe before.

Lastly, I would request you inform me who is the chief executive of your company- I have tried to clarify the relationship between REM and Alan Mattey group of companies in regard to this over the phone, so far unsuccessfully.

Yours sincerely


Barry Tierney

cc. Blog

COUNTY ESTATE MANAGEMENT 5

This post is a copy of the most recent communication received from Reality Estate Management received 12/01/07. It is a bare repeat bill for alleged arrears with no reference to any of the points made in my post letter to County Estate Management 3 dated 18/12/06
Note REM are now seem to be saying these arrears are not just for service charges but for ground rent too.


Dear Leaseholder
Demand due as following

Date Due---1 April 2006---Ground Rent and Service Charge Arrears----£334.25

Total due----------------------------------------------------------------£334.25

etc,etc,etc

COUNTY ESTATE MANAGEMENT 4

This post is a copy of the letter sent to me on 21/12/06 by Reality Estate Management in reply to my letter of 18/12/06 detailed in post -County Estate Management 3 -on 18/12/06

Dear Mr. Tierney

Thankyou for your letter dated 20 December 2006 with enclosure.

We have a meeting planned with Mr. Freilich in the New Year to address various issues including ones brought to our attention by you, we will revert to you once this has been done.

Your faithfully

(illegible squiggle)

REALITY ESTATE MANAGEMENT