We appreciate some clients want an answer to a specific question but do not want to navigate through the website to get to the detail and their particular issue. Set out in this section are a number of FAQ’s and our standard response.
If you have a question that is not covered within this page please send us an email and we will respond, adding your question, as appropriate, for the wider benefit of the readers of our website.
Our office telephone lines are open between 9:00am and 5.30pm Monday to Friday. Our contractors operate a series of out of hours emergency numbers which you can acquire by calling 01992 500040 or you can email 999@hscpm.co.uk at any time, day or night.
If you would like to change your correspondence address, please write to us, or email ContactDetails@hscpm.co.uk, so that we can amend your details on our system. Please ensure that you keep us updated on any change of address as these details are essential for contacting you regarding your building or service charge. We also require the contact details of your tenant if your property is sub-let.
To report any issues please contact us, details are located on the contact page. Our in house developers are currently developing a state-of-the-art mobile app for Apple iOS devices, which we hope to eventually roll out to all other platforms. This will allow you to photograph and report any issues from within your development quickly and efficiently with the added bonus of live updates as we deal with your particular issue.
If an invoice remains unpaid after the due date shown on the invoice, we will send a reminder notice. If a further 7 days pass, we will issue a final demand notice. Finally, if another 7 days pass, a referral charge of £96.00 will be applied to your account along with a finance charge, depending on the terms of your lease. The debt will then be referred to London Debt Collectors Ltd who will seek to recover the debt along with costs and further interest. This may result in your mortgagee being contacted for payment, in which case the Debt Collector will charge further fees.
Please refer to your lease. Often you will find this at the back of your lease along with the plan/layout of your flat. If you have any difficulty finding this information please do not hesitate to contact your property manager.
There are multiple payment options which are as follows:
Bank Transfer: You can make a direct payment into the bank account provided at the bottom of your invoice. Please ensure that you reference any transfers with your account number or invoice number. If you have more than one account under our management, please send separate payments for each account.
Cheque: To be sent to Hurford Salvi Carr Property Management Ltd, 3 Castle Gate, Castle Street, Hertford, Hertfordshire, SG14 1HD, and made out to the account name provided at the bottom of your invoice. Please write your property address, account number and invoice number(s) on the back of the cheque, this enables us to identify and allocate the cheque to the correct account.
Monthly Direct Debit: To spread your payments, contact us at accounts@hscpm.co.uk to obtain a direct debit form which you can complete and send back to us. This option is available for the vast majority of buildings and is interest free.
Unfortunately, we do not accept debit or credit card payments.
The transfer of Leaseholder details can often be a lengthy and complex process. The solicitors acting in the sale are required to serve legal notice upon us within four weeks of the transfer. We may not have received this notice and we can only do this when legally advised. If you require assistance in this regard, please contact our legal team on 01992 500040 option 3.
If you instructed a solicitor to act on your behalf in the purchase, we would advise you to contact them. As standard procedure we advise all purchasers to keep a retention.
Please notify us of the sale by contacting our legal team on 01992 500040 option 3. Please also note that Ground Rent, Insurance and Service Charges must be paid in accordance with the lease. If you are selling your property and any of these are due to be paid, you are still responsible for payment. Once the property is sold, your solicitors should ensure that you recoup an apportionment of the monies paid form the purchaser.
Many buildings that do not have porterage services, lifts or other communal facilities are very effectively run by the residents and we shall be delighted to offer our small block management service to those clients that want to retain an active management role. It is only our experience that has shown blocks of under 12 units are generally managed with a full management service, but we are flexible in this regard.
We have a number of small buildings in our block management portfolio that enjoy 24 hour uniformed concierge, valet parking, gymnasium and other facilities. For those properties we can provide a full management service.
A Reinstatement Cost Assessment (RCA) is used for building insurance purposes and ensures your building is insured for the correct sum. A detailed site inspection with measured drawings should be undertaken every 3 years and a desk top review in the intervening years. RCA assessments are undertaken by our in-house building surveying division.
It is our strong advice that every building should have a PMP which will run for 20 years and highlights the routine maintenance at a high level throughout this period and therefore service charge funds can be assessed and allocated to meet the future demand of your building maintenance. By having a 20 year overview, the plan is divided into 5 year segments with the current 12 months in great detail. The plan will help you build reserves to stop unexpected service charge hikes in future years and will be reviewed annually with the Resident Directors to ensure the management meets the required standards and services demanded of the long leaseholders. Our in-house surveying team will help prepare this plan.
Hurford Salvi Carr can provide a quotation for comprehensive block insurance cover along with obtaining quotes from the open market. The decision as to which policy is taken is made by the RTM directors, officers of the Residents Association or the freeholder, as dictated by the lease. For more details click here.
The terms of your lease will dictate what conditions are imposed on any sub-letting of your accommodation. Most leases will forbid a partial sub-letting so a letting to an individual or members of the same family or established household would be permissible provided the property does not become overcrowded. In some blocks the managing agent is obligated to keep a register of the occupiers for general communication or in case of emergency, in which case a fee could be levied.
In most leases pets of any kind are not permitted, however, at the discretion of the building owners or the RMC, subject to certain conditions, permission may be granted. There may be Estate rules produced by the RMC which can fully restrict or lessen the obligations for pets.