The Title Deeds for your property will clearly state your responsibilities for work to shared areas within your Estate or common parts of your building. Every house or flat within our Estates is subject to conditions contained in the Title Deeds for that property. The Title Deeds set out your rights and responsibilities in relation to your property and to the others within the Estate. This means that when you purchase a property you take on the rights and responsibilities not only for your own house, but also relating to the wider area.

The Title Deeds impose obligations on the owners of the property. These obligations will continue even when a house has been sold, with the responsibility passing to the new owner.

Your Title Deeds establish your responsibility for meeting a share of the cost of maintaining the common areas within your Estate. The Deeds also give us the right to recover the direct costs of any work as well as all costs incurred in managing the service. If you are unsure about any aspect of your responsibilities as a home owner, you should seek advice from your solicitor.

When the maintenance required is to common parts of a flat (or block) the Title Deeds should detail the parts which are common and identify the basis on which each owner’s share is calculated. If the Title Deeds do not provide for this then the Tenements (Scotland) Act 2004 provides legal responsibilities for maintenance and management of tenements which fills and gaps in the Title Deeds.

The work we do on your behalf is set out in the Statement of Factoring Services.

The Scottish Government has produced a short guide to the management of tenements in Scotland called Common Repair Common Sense. Impartial advice on repairs and maintenance for flat owners in Scotland is provided by Under One Roof.