Commercial Estate Management

"As Managing Agents for An Fuarán Management Company Limited, A.K. Property Services have proven themselves for a number of years now to be capable in every aspect of the job in hand. The team at A.K. Property Services have always been extreemly helpful and professional in the services that they provide. We recommend A.K. Property Services."

 

Gerard Geoghegan, Director, An Fuarán Management Company,

Moycullen, Co. Galway

hallwayCommercial Estate Management works on the same principle as Residential Estate Management where a Management Company is set up to cater for the legal and day to day running of the development.

A management company for a Commercial estate is specific to the commercial operations of the estate as detailed out in the Memorandum and Articles of Association of the Management Company for the Estate.

There are several IDA industrial estates and business parks throughout the country that are government operated, as well as several private commercial estates/business parks, where the owners pay an annual service charge for the running of the estate.

Unlike a Private residential estate, in a private commercial estate each unit owner/leaseholder must pay commercial rates to the local authority and also the service charges to their Management Company.

Some common area issues associated with Commercial Estates are as follows: VAT registration, green areas, security (static or remote monitored CCTV), regular road repairs, etc.

The full responsibilities of the Management Company are outlined in the company’s Memorandum and Articles of Association, and in the Management Agreements attaching to the Title Documents to each unit in the development.

All owners or leaseholders have a responsibility to the Management Company to perform certain obligations, set out in the Management Agreements, primarily the payment of Annual Service Charges and attending the Annual General Meetings.

It is important to have a clearly defined situation where the Management Company has definite responsibilities to all of its members and the Members, likewise, have definite responsibilities to their Management Company, and to each other.

watering canThe Management company is a limited liability company and is managed by a Board of Directors or a Board or Management. At the very beginning, until all the units are sold, the responsibilities remain with the Board of Management, which normally comprises of the developer and/or their solicitor, or solicitor’s staff.

Once the units are sold, the control of the company is handed over to the owners themselves who elect their own Board.

One of the many complexities of Commercial Estates is where the estate has been developed on a number of plots of land comprising of different phases for development.

It is vital for any managing agent to ensure the accurate and fair calculation of service charges for each unit on a per day occupancy basis and operate an accurate rolling schedule of service charges. Failure to do this will result in incorrect percentiles calculated for the different units and can create considerable contention for the payment of service charges by the unit owners.

At A.K. Property Services, our experience of dealing with these issues is proven as we work with several town centres and business parks throughout the country.

Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.

- Peter F. Drucker