Frequently Asked Questions

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Under the terms of the covenants, you can see that service charges are technically payable 50% on Jan 1st and 50% on July 1st.

The LEMC Directors offer two alternative options - either you can pay in full or you can set up an (interest free) monthly standing order with your bank ensuring the first instalment reaches us no later than 31st Jan. 

Please do email us at lemcoperations@gmail.com. We can discuss and find a solution.

We send out the service charge invoice at the beginning of January, and we rely on your payment in order to pay our suppliers. The payment options are set out in the "How do I pay my service charge" FAQ above. If payment is not forthcoming and you have not contacted us about it, we will send you a free reminder.. 

If LEMC still receives no response, additional charges (including administration fees, solicitor fees and interest on the debt at 4% above base rate) become payable. 

The process includes sending a formal  'Seven day notice of legal proceedings' letter, and if we still receive no response,  your file is referred to our solicitor.

You will find our bank details on your invoice, or any statement you may have requested in the past.

LEMC has to prepare two sets of accounts: the dormant accounts - which are filed at Companies House - and the service charge accounts - which are prepared for you, the shareholders. Please see the accounts tab for the difference.

The covenants require LEMC to procure the buildings insurance for the freehold houses. 

However, as at late 2023, virtually all our freehold homeowners have taken up the option to change the covenants and procure their own buildings insurance (often making good cost savings) by signing a contract of variation; this is a binding agreement to transfer the insurance obligation from LEMC to the homeowner.

Please ensure your buildings cover is always current and kept up to date.

If you sell your property, your successor in title will automatically be asked to sign a deed of covenant agreeing to continue cover by procuring their own buildings insurance in turn.

If you have not signed the contract of variation, LEMC will procure your freehold buildings insurance and a supplementary charge will be added to your service charge invoice. You can choose to sign the contract of variation at any time, agreeing to arrange your own cover wef 1st Jan next time round.  Please email lemcoperations@gmail.com and we will have our solicitor send you the contract of variation to sign. LEMC will pay for the contract itself, but you will have to pay a small amount for an ID check.

LEMC reserves the right to see a copy of insurance policy documents on request. 

Technically, LEMC is required to paint and wash down your walls and garage fronts. Homeowners are responsible for making all repairs, and for repairing and painting their doors and windows. 

But in response to overwhelming homeowner demand, LEMC's policy is to leave all house repair and decoration up to homeowners. LEMC no longer collects reserves for decoration therefore, reducing the service charges accordingly.

LEMC retains a responsibility to ensure Lacuna Estate doesn't start looking run down, so will periodically conduct inspections across all zones in order to ensure that repair and decoration obligations are being fulfilled.  

LEMC reserves the right to carry out works where necessary; the cost, including professional project fees & management fees, will be added to your account as a supplementary charge.

Homeowners are generally keen to keep their freehold homes in good order, but LEMC retains an overall responsibility to ensure Lacuna estate doesn't start looking run down. 

LEMC reserves the right, therefore, to enact the following policy where necessary:

Step 1.

In April of each year LEMC will conduct a full walk-round of the estate to identify any

breaches of covenants and any potential Health and Safety issues.

In the event that any properties require remedial action the appropriate party will be

written to politely ask that remedial action be taken within 3 months.

Step 2.

In July of each year LEMC will conduct a further walk-round. Should any properties

continue to be in breach of covenants the LEMC directors will formally write to the

relevant party explaining that unless action is taken within 3 months to remedy the

situation, legal action will be taken.

Step 3.

Should no action be taken to remedy the situation LEMC will instruct solicitors to

write to the relevant party explaining that under the rights of the covenants LEMC will

step in to remedy. This will also include an additional charge to the property service

charge account to cover estimated costs of remedy. The additional charge will

include (but not restricted to) legal costs, surveyors fees, contractor costs and

administration charges.The charge will be with immediate effect and invoiced as a supplementary invoice.

Step 4.

Should the supplementary invoice not be paid within 30 days, or the issue not be

resolved, LEMC will instigate the legal process to recover the fees.

Where they are estate facing - ie are plainly visible from the common areas -  LEMC is responsible for their upkeep. Regular inspections are carried out to determine 'what's next on the list', but please report any urgent work to lemcoperations@gmail.com.

LEMC is not responsible for back garden, dividing fences.

LEMC does not recommend professional services or contractors. But the local trade magazines are full of contacts to try - plus it is definitely worth asking around the neighbourhood.

These are taken care of by your block's Residents Management Company (RESMANCO) who looks after your building.

LEMC is the Estate Management Company (ESTMANCO), and - so far as the leaseholds are concerned - we look after the communal grounds. 

When just one place starts looking uncared for, it brings down the whole estate. We are actively working with leaseholders where upkeep is required.

No, the coach houses (sometimes referred to as 'flats over garages' or FOGS) are leasehold properties. Please refer to your transfer documents and consult your solicitor if you are unsure.

Your conveyancing solicitor will have sent you a copy of your transfer documents when you purchased your property, and the covenants you signed up to can be found there. You should be able to download your documents from Land Registry. Please consult your solicitor if you need further assistance.

Polite request: please tuck your bins away. Lacuna Estate can easily start looking littered with them and then people can start to object. 

Another polite request - please be mindful when parking that you are not making access difficult, or impairing somebody's line of vision. Sometimes, homeowners find it is really difficult to turn in and out of the side roads, because people park right up to the corner edge!

Considerate parking includes leaving a bit of 'swing' room ...

Please talk with your neighbour to see if things can be resolved informally. 

LEMC policy is that if a complainant has made reasonable attempts to resolve issues directly with their neighbour but if a serious, persistent breach of the covenants nevertheless continues, then LEMC would intervene. 

Examples of serious breach might be blocking someone's garage access, attracting vermin, frequent late night noise. Please take photographs and log examples. 

LEMC would then send the neighbour an informal request to comply before sending a formal request and ultimately referring the matter to a solicitor. 

Costs - including administration and legal fees - are payable by the homeowner who is in breach; these are added as a supplementary charge via the service charge mechanism.

All changes that alter the outside appearance of the property should be 'in keeping' ... the covenants require homeowners to  consult LEMC before works to the exterior commence so please do email us first at lemcoperations@gmail.com.

LEMC is responsible for landscaping of communal areas, freeholder front gardens and trees (front or back). In busy periods, when everything grows fast all at the same time, please bear in mind it can take a while for us to 'get round' the whole estate. 

If you find an area that appears to have been inadvertently missed out altogether, or if you have a tree that needs pruning, please email lemcoperations@gmail.com. 

LEMC is responsible for external lighting on Lacuna Estate, with the exception of Milton Lane, Queen Street & Fortune Way which are council adopted.

Please report outages, referencing street location but also citing the post number. 

Mindful of costs, LEMC might wait for a small list to build up so that we do not pay for too many individual call outs.

Yes! The work should be carried out by a qualified installer who will issue a safety electrical certificate. Any impact to the communal areas, such as digging up paviours, need to be remedied at the homeowner's own expense.

Yes! The LEMC Directors have agreed a blanket approval for new colours. There are no restrictions on colour therefore, other than that it should be generally in keeping with the overall look of the estate.

The covenants stipulate that any proposed alterations to the external appearance of Lacuna Estate are first passed by the LEMC management team.

We can confirm that neither KHREMC (liberty/prologis) nor LEMC have any objection to the installation of solar panels on the main roof of a freehold house, but they should not be affixed to the roof of a garage block, porch or ground floor annexe. 

If you live in a leasehold coach house or block of flats, you need to discuss with your residents management company that looks after your actual building. 

In all cases - leasehold and freehold - we would be grateful if you would pass your plan by the LEMC management team for review, before proceeding with any works. 

You can report problems to Southern Water on (0330 303 0368) by filling in their contact page at southernwater.co.uk/help-advice/contact-us. 

Not all manhole covers belong to Southern Water (especially not little round ones) and are for LEMC to repair, so pease advise us, with photographs, of the problem area.

Freehold homeowners are responsible for all maintenance and repairs to their own property including the gutters. If you are a leaseholder (you own a flat or coach house) then your residents' management company (RESMANCO) is responsible for all repairs and maintenance of the external building and the indoor common areas.