Our Factoring Service
Information on our property factoring service

Our factoring service

You can find details of the factoring services that we provide within our Written Statement of Services. The information will include our Core Services and include; Property Management and Maintenance, Estate Inspections and Management of Common Areas, Instructing Repairs and Buildings Insurance.

What Are the Advantages of Having a Property Factor?

In Scotland, some property owners choose to manage the common areas of their building themselves, a process known as self-factoring. This involves organising repairs and maintenance collectively. While this can work in certain situations, it’s not always practical. Common challenges include:

• An owner is absent and cannot be contacted
• Not all owners are equally committed to self-management
• The Deed of Conditions requires a factor to be in place

When these issues arise, appointing a property factor can make life much easier. A factor takes on the responsibility of managing shared spaces and services, reducing stress and ensuring everything runs smoothly.

What Can a Property Factor Do for You?

A professional factor can:

• Serve as a single point of contact for reporting repairs or maintenance
• Arrange and manage contracts for services like gardening and cleaning
• Conduct routine inspections of common areas
• Organise payment for shared utilities (e.g., stairwell lighting)
• Arrange common buildings insurance
• Apportion costs fairly according to your Deed of Conditions
• Recover outstanding payments
• Manage larger projects, such as installing secure entry systems or replacing roofs

By employing a factor, you ensure your property is well-maintained, costs are shared fairly, and you avoid the hassle of coordinating everything yourself.

Williamsburgh aims to minimise instances of poor communication and complaints by engaging and consulting with homeowners, on matters affecting them.

We are also happy to receive feedback from our residents. You can write to us at Ralston House, Cyril Street, Paisley PA1 1RW, email us at admin@williamsburghha.co.uk, telephone on 0141 887 8613 or make an appointment to attend our office.

If you wish to make a complaint about any aspect of the Association's service as a property factor, our complaints policy is available, on request or on our website www.williamsburghha.co.uk

In accordance with our procedure, we aim to deal with all enquiries or complaints received within 5 working days. If we consider the matter complex and that it requires a fuller investigation, we will let you know and agree the likely timescale for dealing with the investigation.

If, on completion of the complaints procedure, you remain dissatisfied, you may redirect your complaint to the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland Housing and Property Chamber (FTT).

You can contact them as follows:-

Housing and Property Chamber

First-tier Tribunal for Scotland

Glasgow Tribunals Centre

20 York Street

Glasgow

G2 8GT

Telephone: 0141 302 5900 Email: HPCadmin@scotcourtstribunals.gov.uk

Website: www.housingandpropertychamber.scot

• You can pay any outstanding invoices by contacting the Factoring Team factoring@williamsburghha.co.uk
• Ways to pay

Your factoring invoice is issued on a quarterly basis, and details actual costs incurred, and then your share of the costs.

If you’re struggling to pay or worried about falling behind in payments then please get in touch with us by calling 0141 887 8613 to make an arrangement to pay your outstanding invoice. We always work with our customers to help them if they have, or risk, falling into arrears.

All owners are charged a management fee to cover the cost of our services. Management fees cover the cost of:

• Overseeing common repairs and ensuring works are carried out satisfactorily
• Service set up and on-going administration
• Title research and preparation of any grounds maintenance plans
• Calculating owners shares
• Communication with and between owners and external agencies/ providers
• Maintaining accurate property repairs records
• Issuing invoices
• Recording payments made and received and recovering charges in relation to each property/owner
• Taking details of repairs
• Instructing contractors to carry out works and co-ordinating these
• Consulting owners in respect of repairs costs in excess of £350 or more per owner
• Tendering and obtaining estimates

Every year we review our management fees to make sure we can still provide a high quality service.

Our Written Statement of Service is reviewed and produced yearly prior to 1st April.

If you’re struggling with any of your payments, please contact us as soon as possible factoring@williamsburghha.co.uk 0141 887 8613

If factoring payments remain unpaid, we may need to place a Notice of Potential Liability on the property. This can make it difficult for owners to sell their property.

This process involves the courts and can be time-consuming, costly, and stressful, which we only use as a last resort.

For full details, please refer to our Factoring Debt Recovery Procedure can provide you with more information.

You can report a repair online. When you report a repair use your block address rather than your flat address.

Emergency Repairs

If you have an emergency repair
An emergency repair is something that, if left unattended, could:

• Seriously affect the property’s structure
• Compromise security
• Pose a danger to health and safety

Non-Emergency Repairs

Repairs that are not an emergency will normally be completed within 10 calendar days of being reported.
In some cases, repairs may take longer if:

• Parts need to be ordered
• The work is complex

If this happens, we’ll keep you updated throughout the process.

Types of Repair and Maintenance We Carry Out

We look after the common areas of the blocks we factor through three main types of work:

1. Reactive Maintenance

Day-to-day repairs such as fixing doors, replacing lights, or addressing minor issues as they arise.

2. Planned & Cyclical Maintenance

Larger, scheduled works that keep your property in great condition—examples include exterior painting, window replacements, and roof maintenance.

3. Emergency Repairs

Urgent issues that pose an immediate risk to safety, security, or health—such as flooding.

Annual Inspections

We carry out an annual visit to check the overall condition of your block or development and note any repairs needed.
You can also report a repair at any time—just remember to use your block address, not your flat address, when doing so.

Your Responsibility for Common Costs

As an owner, you share responsibility with others in your block for the costs of maintaining and repairing common areas, as well as charges for shared utilities such as:

• Electricity
• Other services related to common parts

Your share of these costs is calculated based on:

• Your Title Deeds
• The Tenement Management Scheme under the Tenements (Scotland) Act 2004

For full details on how costs are apportioned, please refer to your Written Statement of Service.

Delegated Authority for Repairs and Maintenance

We can instruct and carry out repairs and maintenance up to the limit set out in our Written Statement. This is known as delegated authority.

If the cost of the work is likely to exceed this limit, we will only proceed once it has been approved by a simple majority of owners.

However, if the work is an emergency or required for health and safety reasons, we may need to act immediately.

Works Outside Delegated Authority

If the work falls outside our delegated authority, or if we agree to provide services beyond our core responsibilities, we may ask you to pay your share in advance.
Before any work begins, we will send you a proposal outlining:

• The scope of the work
• Any charges
• Payment terms

This ensures transparency and gives you time to review before we proceed.

Yes. It’s essential that all buildings are properly insured. For this reason, buildings insurance is automatically arranged for all new owners and the cost is included in your quarterly factoring invoice.

If you prefer to arrange your own buildings insurance, you must provide us with a copy of your policy schedule confirming the total rebuild cost is covered. This allows us to cancel the insurance we’ve arranged on your behalf.

Block Buildings Insurance at Williamsburgh

At Williamsburgh, we have arranged a block buildings insurance policy to ensure all properties are adequately covered.

• Policy Period: Runs annually from 28th April
• Billing: The premium is charged quarterly through your factoring account

Important: If you fail to pay your building insurance premium, you may be unable to make a claim under the policy.

Making a Claim

If you need to make a claim under the block policy, please contact Howdens Insurance Brokers:

Contact Details:
Lynsey Tummon – Claims Handler
144 West George Street, Glasgow G2 2HG
Telephone: 0141 354 2899
Email: lynseytummon@howdeninsurance.co.uk

Out of Hours:
Telephone: 0121 411 0535

Policy Details

• General Excess (Factored Housing): £0
• Commercial / Retail Units Excess: £250
• Subsidence Excess: £1,000
• Property Owners Liability Excess: £0

Accessing Policy Information

• A summary of the policy can be obtained by calling 0141 847 6711
• A full copy of the policy is available on request
• Policy details are provided annually for your reference.

Yes, if you want contents insurance remember you’ll need to organise this yourself as it’s not part of our service.

If you are selling your property, the normal practice is for your solicitor to let us know details of the date of sale and the new owner.

Please email our Factoring Team factoring@williamsburghha.co.uk

Your Written Statement provides you with full information.