Many flats are self-factored. To get the best experience from this, you need to be well-organised and prepared to call on professional help when required.

Many buildings self-factor as the owners feel they can do a better job than an outsider and can save money at the same time, or the building requires little routine maintenance (ad hoc repairs only). Self-factors do not need to be registered under the Property Factors Act 2011, as long as they are not doing this on a commercial basis (i.e. charging owners for their time).

But, there can be some challenges with self-factoring:

• some people can feel put upon when other owners don’t do their share or refuse to co-operate
• there may be no system to cover admin costs, so some owners – often the more active ones – pay more than their neighbours
• some builders are reluctant to work with self-factors, fearing they won’t get paid
• some owners may (wrongly) believe that other owners are only serving their own interests
• it can be difficult to manage some tasks
• it can be hard to do when there are many absentee owners

Those who have the best experience from self-factoring:

• have an owners’ association to ensure good communication
• have a maintenance account to which all owners contribute – the maintenance account covers admin and professional costs as well as repair costs
• share tasks around
• use professionals to survey their buildings and manage more complex repairs or help with other complex tasks
• aren’t afraid to get tough with reluctant payers, difficult builders, and deal with bureaucracy

Communication is key when self-factoring, and can be done by face-to-face meetings, Zoom calls, or WhatsApp groups.

Another method of communication is the Novoville Shared Repairs app. This app was designed in collaboration with the City of Edinburgh Council and is now live in multiple local authorities. You can learn more about the Novoville app here.

Note: regardless of the chosen method of communication, owners should always follow proper procedures when organising common repairs.

Next steps

• Set up an owners’ association
• Set up a maintenance account