For Owners

Owners are responsible for proper maintenance of their flats.

This section sets out those aspects which the Directors believe are the most important. Taking care of these matters will help to maintain the value of your investment.

As a minimum please be familiar with three key sections:

Extensions approved by the Board to the conditions in the lease are included, reflecting how society has developed over three decades together with the benefit of owner, resident and director experience about what sets Rookwood Court apart as a special place to live. The formal regulations are in Main Lease Conditions. That document should be included in any Tenancy Agreement.

If you have comments on anything in this section please contact the Managing Agent.

Subletting

When letting (furnished or unfurnished) the sub-tenant must be made aware of the stipulations and restrictions of the Lease together with the additional measures approved by the Directors. Lessees should provide their letting agent with a copy of the Main Lease Conditions from this website. We suggest all of it is included in Tenancy Agreements. As a minimum these should include The First Schedule, Parking Regulations and our Zero Tolerance Drug Policy.

In the event of a breach or nuisance or annoyance to other residents formal proceedings could follow. These will involve the Lessee and in the most serious cases could put the Lease itself at risk of forfeiture.

Notice of any sub-lease must be given to the Managing Agent together with payment of the correct registration fee.

Short term lettings (less than 6 months) via AirBnB or any other way are strictly prohibited. As well as being in contravention of the lease, such visitors are a security risk. If you notice signs of holiday lets, eg frequent changes of tenants perhaps with suitcases, please alert the Managing Agent.

Tenants

The Lease restricts occupation to one family unit and prohibits use for business purposes (see First Schedule - first item). If you employ an agent to rent the property on your behalf, please give them an explicit instruction to refuse rental other than to one family unit.

For a specific concession on business use see Tenancy.

Floor Coverings

Lessees may know that although the flats in Rookwood Court are soundly built there can be a problem of noise transmission, up and down, between flats. This results from the method of construction of the floors and is not unusual in flats at the time the blocks were built. The potential problem is recognised in the Lease with a condition derived from Building Regulations applying to the grant of approval for the blocks. See Clause 4(10).

To address this, installing noise suppressing underlay in upper floor flats is strongly recommended.

Wooden Floors

Notwithstanding lease provisions, the Directors recognise that other types of floor covering are popular, particularly wood surfaces. On an individual case basis, coverings with an effective sound absorbent underlay may be accepted for the ground floor flats only, subject to the signing of a Revocable Licence.

You will be asked to agree to follow our advice on noise reduction.

You must obtain written consent for your plans from the Managing Agent before making any commitment and you must agree to an inspection by our surveyor.

For upper floor flats (ie above the ground floor): Please note that for upper ground flats, we strongly advise against replacing carpets with wooden flooring due to the increased risk of noise transmission to the flats below. This could lead to complaints from neighbours, and in such cases, you may be required to remove the wooden floor and revert to carpeted flooring. Ensuring a quiet and comfortable living environment for all residents is a priority, and this policy helps prevent potential issues related to noise disturbances. For more information please contact the Managing Agent.

For ground floor flats: Standard underlays 2-3mm thick designed for wood veneer floors may be used.

Carpeted Floors

For upper floor flats (ie above the ground floor) when new carpets are fitted we recommend a noise suppressing underlay with the specification required for wooden floors.

Kitchen Floors

As originally sold, flats had vinyl flooring in the kitchens. In most cases these have been replaced with similar coverings, often to a better standard. This implicit relaxation of the rule will be allowed to continue, but in respect of vinyl flooring only.

Ducts

Lessees are reminded that kitchen and hall floors have ducts containing internal water supply and central heating pipes for which they are responsible. As a matter of prudence these should not be covered too permanently. There have been a few isolated cases of leaks.

Flat Front Doors

Decorative Finish

The front door of each flat forms part of the flat.

The Lease provides that the lessee must not paint or otherwise interfere with the outside surface of the front door and imposes upon the lessor management company redecoration.

Some lessees have indicated that they would like to change the colour of the wood stain finish on the front door of their flat. The Directors are prepared to accede to requests for change but only in respect of a wood stain finish (not any form of paint) and subject to the following conditions.

That all lessees on the same floor level make the change.
That the same colour and finish is adopted on all front doors on the floor level.
That in addition to the front doors the adjacent cupboard doors are similarly treated.
That lessees arrange at their expense the change in colour. Thereafter the Company will maintain the adopted colour but will not be responsible for any failing in the finish as a consequence of initial poor preparation/application.
The Company will only accede to a limited range of wood stain colour and finish.
Lessees must seek and receive formal written approval before making any change from the Managing Agent.

Door Furniture

Lessees are permitted to install replacement high quality FD30 rated door furniture subject to approval in advance from the Managing Agent.

Door Design and Use

Flat doors sets must conform to a FD30 specification specifically:

Doors must be free to close against their frame. Carpets and rugs must not obstruct closing.
Letterboxes are to be metal with both external and internal hinged flaps.
A self-closing mechanism must be fitted, correctly adjusted and in working order.

In case of any doubt please consult the Managing Agent.

Alterations

It is strictly prohibited to convert the kitchen or a bathroom to an extra room, to change the original layout of the flats, or to install kitchen or bathroom facilities other than in the original location. RCRA will take legal action against such activities.

No alterations affecting the structure of the flats or exterior of the block may be made without the prior written consent of the Directors, to be requested through the Managing Agent. If consent is given the lease will need to be varied professionally by a solicitor at leaseholder's expense.

The Company is willing to grant approval for new windows subject to strict guidelines (see Replacement Windows).

The Lessee is not permitted to paint or otherwise interfere with the outside surface of the front door or any back door of the flat or of the windows or the railings of any balcony. However the Company is agreeable to a limited change in colour of the front door subject to strict requirements. Door furniture may also be changed with permission (see Front Doors).

Permitted works must be within normal working hours, Monday to Friday 08:30-17:00. Apart from emergency repairs to essential services, workmen must not be on site outside normal working hours.

Communal areas must be kept clear at all times.

Leaseholders are asked to give at least a week's written notice of works to all residents in the block and to advise them if the schedule is changed.

Replacement Windows

These regulations are to ensure that window design is consistent for all flats in a block. The table shows the obligatory basic design for replacements.

	Kitchens (front or back of block)	Glass doors (if installed)	All others (includes kitchen side windows)
Blocks 1&2, Flats 1-19	Sash	Sliding	Sash
Block 3, Flats 20-28	Top hung¹	Sliding	Sash
Blocks 4-6, Flats 29-61	Top hung	Sliding	Sash
Block 7, Flats 62-67	Top hung¹	Sliding	Sash
Blocks 8&9, Flats 68-83	Top hung	Sliding	Top hung

Kitchen windows in these blocks are currently a mixture of sash and top hung. Replacements for any reason are to be top hung.

Keep the following in mind when planning to replace windows:

Consent must be received from the managing agent before any double glazing contractor is instructed
You must conform to a specification which the Managing Agent will provide
Secure window and door locks should be fitted
Design must match other windows in the block
Frames to be white plastic covered
except single 'All others' window replacements (eg if broken) must conform exactly in material and style with the original

See also Planning Consent for important background on window replacement.