Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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In light of a 64% increase in fees on one estate, I wish to draw the House's attention to three case studies which will illustrate the activities of property management companies. All will highlight the fact that such companies are protected by the Government while they rip people off. An estimated 8% of people in Ireland now live in properties managed by companies and the proportion is much higher in Fingal, given the large amount of development there recently.

One of my constituents told me:

I purchased a duplex under the shared ownership scheme with Fingal County Council this time last year. I was told by Fingal County Council that the management fee would be €550 per year with insurance and bin charges included in that fee, though it seems other people were told different things. I was also told the charge was paid for the year.

I live in a courtyard and there was no street lighting in the courtyard. They had the lights but did not switch them on until, if I remember correctly, late October or the start of November, which I found extremely dangerous while walking at night. Also, I cycle a bike and for months I had to keep it in my apartment because they did not have adequate lighting in the bike storage areas. To be honest I do not see much being done around the estate.

Last summer the management company, Murphy Moore in Malahide, resigned. Director Gerry Gannon, comically, is head of the development Robswall, known also as Gannon Homes. A new management company was introduced, Smith Dunboyne, and again Gerry Gannon appears as the director, which is bizarre.

I have not had much to do with them until now. I got landed with a bill for €940 for service charges for my duplex, including €250 for refuse, which is a huge difference from what I was told last year.

They provided a breakdown of the charges and one of the things I found most comical was external window cleaning. I have been living there for a year and not once have they cleaned my windows.

There are many similar cases which beggar belief. Another management company in Balbriggan, Brecan management company, has directors registered as Mark Colgan of Blencam, Kerrymount Avenue, Foxrock, Dublin 18, and Desmond Ryan, Ardfallen, Cunningham Road, Dalkey, but they are no longer directors. The head of the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement, Mr. Paul Appleby, wants more resources to ensure company law is being upheld but is denied them. People take that as a licence to flout company law so I ask the Minister to tackle these clear cases.

The third example relates to a new form of landlordism, which the inaction of Government encourages and is exemplified by the exorbitant fees being charged. A constituent tells me:

Unfortunately things have not improved a great deal in my area. I have e-mailed Smiths Property Management with the problems in Barons Hall. In fact the only things I have received from Smiths is a bill for €387.26 and a final notice letter that they are going to sue me if I do not pay up immediately. At this stage I am refusing to pay until I see some action being taken.

The thing that angers me most about this company is the fact they do not even have the courtesy to reply to me by telephone, e-mail or letter — nothing.

Smiths seems to be a particularly bad management company. Charles Smith recently appeared on a RTE "Primetime" special about management companies, although he did not want to be interviewed or even show his face. I wonder why.

I have friends in Chieftans Way and Brackenwood here in Flemington, both in apartment blocks managed by Smiths. Both have doors that do not lock. In fact the apartment block door of my friend in Brackenwood has not locked now for two months and lights in the stairway have not worked for the same period. She has e-mailed and telephoned Smiths numerous times and still nothing has been done. This is the kind of service we have come to expect of this company.

If I saw them do something with the green and act promptly when an abandoned car was reported to them I would pay my bill, even though it annoys me so much that this is something Fingal County Council should be doing but the fact they demand money and treat residents with such disrespect leaves me no option but not to pay and go to court if it comes down to that.

If I had a problem with my phone bill... I could complain to a regulator but with the management company there is no regulator...

How the present Government has let these management companies come into existence really gets me angry.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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The Deputy's time has concluded.

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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I am not surprised at that anger. The Government allows the law to favour management companies. There is an embargo on local authority recruitment which often means it is not possible for the council to take into charge because it does not have the staff. The corporate enforcement agency does not have the resources.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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I ask the Deputy to give way to the Minister of State.

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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The Government is essentially giving those management companies carte blanche.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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Before the Deputy came into the House, the Chair ruled on this matter. In recent times the Chair is concerned at the number of Deputies coming into the House, naming companies and individuals outside and making allegations against them when those people are not here. There is a very long-standing tradition in this House and many rulings by my predecessors that this is not allowed. I ask Deputies to desist from allegations in future. We have had three matters on the Adjournment this evening and on two of them I have needed to make the same ruling.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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Apartment living will constitute a key part in the future of housing in Ireland from a number of perspectives, including spatial policy, efficient land use, sustainability, housing choice and affordability. Successful apartment developments, providing good quality of life, depend on a range of factors, including the standard and quality of the units themselves, the quality of the general living environment, as well as convenience to workplaces etc. A key factor, essential to the success of the sector concerns the quality of management in apartment complexes.

Regarding the local authority's role and my Department's involvement in this area, planning authorities have been advised that they should not attach planning conditions requiring management companies for traditional housing estates, except in very exceptional circumstances. I understand that this advice is now accepted by all planning authorities. A working group chaired by my Department and involving relevant interests has been considering issues relating to the taking in charge of developments, including responsibility for the maintenance of certain shared facilities in newer type mixed estates. It is intended that further guidance for planning authorities, based on the group's deliberations, will be issued shortly.

Management companies are an unavoidable feature of the interdependence that exists in multi-unit developments. It is necessary to have management companies or similar arrangements to manage the common elements of apartment complexes and certain other types of multi-unit developments. On the specific question of management charges, it is important to remember that the charges levied on property owners are determined by the management company of which the owners themselves are the members. I realise that might sound somewhat theoretical, but it ought to be the case.

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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It does not work.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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The members ought to decide the charges and call all the shots. I realise that sometimes when developers hold on to some units they have golden shares or nominee rights. The issue is to try to end them so that the people in apartment and other multi-unit complexes are in control of their co-operative or whatever one likes to call it.

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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It needs legislation.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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Up to recently, property management received relatively little notice in residential housing, but that has changed radically. Much of the focus has been on negatives, including management fees, poor maintenance, complaints, management companies being dissolved and so on, and this has given rise to considerable misunderstanding and even misinformation.

I am glad to say that the information deficit has recently been reduced through a series of publications and consultation processes undertaken by a number of organisations, including the National Consumer Agency, the Director of Corporate Enforcement, Dublin City Council and the Law Reform Commission. There is no doubt that better consumer information and awareness will help to avoid some of the problems and frustration that have been experienced in the past.

My Department is not responsible for the wider range of legislation and regulation relevant to management companies in apartment complexes. The Law Reform Commission's consultation paper on legal aspects relating to multi-unit developments is currently the subject of a public consultation process. Possible measures to be taken in this area will be considered by the relevant Departments and agencies, and the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform has convened an interdepartmental committee to help develop appropriate legislative responses.

Indeed, a number of legislative measures are already in the pipeline. The Government has already decided that property managing agents will be regulated by the Property Services Regulatory Authority under legislation currently being prepared by the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. Property managing agents are commercial firms engaged by management companies to provide management and maintenance services for which management charges are paid.

With regard to company law, which is the framework within which management companies operate, forthcoming legislation will also provide a chance to ensure that the framework of law supports the effective operation of management companies. It is a moot point whether there should be further regulation of management companies since they consist of the property owners themselves——

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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In theory.

Noel Ahern (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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Yes, I accept that. They function solely in their own developments. We need clarity about when the management company starts, that is, whether it should start when all the units are privately owned or otherwise. That limbo area is causing difficulty and needs to be resolved.

I believe the different processes I mentioned with deal with the issue. The measures being taken by the different Departments and the interdepartmental consultation process on what is required in law will result in a successful apartment sector. However, we must go through this process before reaching that.