Sheila Terry (Fine Gael)

I also welcome the fact that the study is being carried out. The problem is in urgent need of attention. With the many apartment complexes being built in Dublin and throughout the country, these management companies and charges cause serious problems for those who buy apartments in those complexes. I appreciate that somebody has to maintain a block of apartments. They are different from housing estates in which each individual is obliged to maintain his or her own property while the council looks after the common areas. Apartment blocks need management companies to do that. My knowledge is of those in my area and the Dublin area where they cause serious problems. I do not know how the Minister will sort it out.

In recent years where, in many cases, investors have bought most of the apartments in a complex, the landlords are not paying the management fees. I would like the Minister to examine that. Paying the management fee is the obligation not of the tenant but the landlord. However in many cases the bill goes to the apartment and the tenant perhaps throws it in the bin and does not pass it on to the landlord. It is up to the landlord to ensure the management fee is paid. Many complexes in Dublin suffer because the fees are not being paid to the management company which gets into difficulty as a result. In some Dublin developments a number of management companies have gone out of business because they do not have the necessary funding. It is a complex and difficult situation and strict legislation needs to be brought in to ensure this area will be dealt with properly in the future. I welcome the fact that this study will be done and I urge that good, strong legislation be introduced to deal with the problem.