Management fees

Q

Quigley

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Just starting out on our bid to buy a property, just wondering what the ususal management fees are in Dublin? Went to see a 2 bed apartment in st samsons, balgriffin and the fees there were 1200. Is that around the norm?
 
€1,200 sounds about right for an apartment, based on what we paid in recent years.
 
Mgt Fees are currently running at about €1700-1800 in the IFSC for a 2 bed.
 
We paid €1900 last year for large 2 bed in Santry, this year it's going up to approx €2300.
 
MsGinger said:
We paid €1900 last year for large 2 bed in Santry, this year it's going up to approx €2300.
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That sounds fairly pricey, even at €1,900. What is driving the €400 increase?
 
speaking from personal experience, the presence of lift(s) in any development usually adds a significant amount to the annual service charge.
 
c. €1400 for 2 bed in South Dublin. I remember looking at a one bed apartment in Blackrock (Linden) and the annual service charge was €2,200 and that was 2 years ago.
 
Are all these fees for apartments? We pay c. €300 p.a. but we're in a development of terraced townhouses (no apartments or duplexes etc.) which is privately managed but not gated in and in which Dublin City Council collect refuse on a bin bag tag basis payable directly by householders.

I suspect that just looking at the management fee without looking at what's provided and what the annual budget is may be a bit meaningless.
 
ClubMan said:
I suspect that just looking at the management fee without looking at what's provided and what the annual budget is may be a bit meaningless.
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Agreed, but we paid around €1,200-€1,400 for a 2 bed apartment in a gated development with lifts. Granted certain services were still covered by warranty, but provisions were still made in the accounts to service lifts etc.

€1,900 to €2,300 sounds expensive, unless maybe their is a gym onsite?
 
A management fee is a form of legalised theft as far as I'm concerned.

Before you think about signing on the dotted line for that 2-bed flat with €1200 p.a. fee, remember that:

- the €1200 fee will most likely increase after the first year. For the developer to have it prohibitively high would be akin to shooting himself in the foot. A lot of developments have "no mgmt fees for 1 year" type offers. Once you're in though, you're a captive market and in reality, there's very little you can do when the mgmt fees are increased.

- think of how much better off you'd be if that €1500 was going in to your bank a/c each year. If you do the calculations, you'll see that you'd manage to save at least 170k (assuming 6% interest on deposit) by the time your 35 year mortgage is up... Of course I've neglected inflation, but the inflation will be nullified considering that your fee will increase by a proportionate amount.

Worth thinking about...
 
CelloPoint said:
A management fee is a form of legalised theft as far as I'm concerned.
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Not really. For example (a) you can decide whether or not to buy in an area that requires private management fees and signing the requisite management company lease agreement/covenant and (b) owner occupiers are normally shareholders/members of their management company so have the power to influence how things are run.
 
Point taken ClubMan. But arent the local authority supposed to take care of lighting and estate maintenance?

I can believe the cost that people have pay in Dublin for these fees.
 
Miles said:
Point taken ClubMan. But arent the local authority supposed to take care of lighting and estate maintenance?
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Not where somebody decides of their own volition to buy in a development where this is not the case.
 
but should the county councils be 'taking over' the management of these estates within a few years of completion - or at least the common areas? I thought that waspart of the deal with developers - that they will get their bond back when it's taken over so that they don't just leave a development without completing it properly
 
I paid 1200 this year for a 2 bed apartment and I was happy with that after reviewing the breakdown of costs from the management agents. The cost included bins, block insurance, cleaning common areas, lighting in common areas, window cleaning, sinking fund, grounds and gardening etc

If you feel that the charges are excessive then you should contact the management agents for a breakdown. We usually get this yearly with the bill for fees.
 
dubinamerica said:
but should the county councils be 'taking over' the management of these estates within a few years of completion - or at least the common areas? I thought that waspart of the deal with developers - that they will get their bond back when it's taken over so that they don't just leave a development without completing it properly
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Depends on the development. With some developments private management is a long term/indefinite term plan.
 
dubinamerica said:
but should the county councils be 'taking over' the management of these estates within a few years of completion - or at least the common areas?
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In practice the county councils do not come round every week to cut the greens and trim the edges no matter how much badgering you do . Therefore to get the area kept in good nick, somebody will have to take an interest. Where I live , the residents commitee spend approx €3K a year on getting regular grass cutting in the green bits during the summer. Granted , they only look for about €70 a year per house.
Don't forget , you are also getting your bin collections which is minimum a few hundred euros now ..
 
Our management fee is almost €1900 for the year - 2 bed apt in small development. Management fees in the first phase were only c.€1200 for the 2 bed apts - we expected some increase between signing contracts & closing but not a €700 increase in 1 year. In phase 2 (where we bought), the lift is the main cause for the fee increase.

Our management fee covers block insurance, lift maintenance, grounds maintenance, private bin collections, lighting & cleaning of common areas, electric gates. I think there is also a sinking fund & it covers the fees for the management agent & accountants. But there's no on-site gym!

As other posters have mentioned, check what is covered by the management fee & budget for some increase. Also make sure of the period that is covered ie is it 12 months from when you close on the apt? Might sound obvious when its an 'annual fee', but it is worth asking!!
 
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