No insulation?
Q My wife and I bought a two-bed apartment in Dundrum in 2004. The main bedroom has always been very difficult to heat, requiring the central heating to be on all day during cold periods. Also, the external wall sounds metallic and hollow when tapped. There is no issue with heating the rest of the apartment. We suspect that the builder never insulated the external wall in the main bedroom properly. If it is found that the wall is not properly insulated, would the builder be responsible at this stage? Would the HomeBond guarantee cover the repair cost?
A We put your query to HomeBond which says that “the onus would have been on the builder to build in accordance with the relevant building regulations at time of construction. The matter of insulation does not come under the terms of reference of HomeBond”. It will take a professional survey (see scs.ie for a list of professionals) to check that building regs were adhered to, and that will determine whether it can become a legal issue. If it is an actual exterior wall (and not just the outside wall into a hall) then it is something to bring to your management company because it might not be your problem alone.
Your management company (of which you are a member) owns the development, including the exterior walls. You own a leasehold interest in your apartment.While you feel it is an insulation issue, there may be other issues which might come under HomeBond to rectify, but you won’t know this until after the survey.
We want deposit
Q We told our landlord that we would be leaving our apartment on April 1st. We tried to renegotiate the rent several times, with no luck. We told him that if the rent wasn’t dropped we would be leaving; we have now found a lower priced apartment (in the same block!). Now he says that he won’t give us our deposit back. But we did give one month’s notice.
A There are specific rules on how a tenant gives notice and if you don’t follow them you have little chance of getting your deposit back. The basic rule is that the longer the tenancy, the longer the notice. If you were in the apartment for less than six months, the notice must be 28 days, if more than six months but less than one year you must give 35 days. Your one month’s notice falls between these timings and you don’t say how long your tenancy has been, so it is difficult to advise. Also, you must give notice in writing.
Your questions
Send your queries to Property Questions, The Irish Times, 24-28 Tara Street, D2 or e-mail propertyquestions@irishtimes.com.This column is a readers’ service and is not intended to replace professional advice.
