Roofing in Glasgow: tenement roofs, factors and shared costs

Where the title deeds are silent, the Tenement Management Scheme set out in the Tenements (Scotland) Act 2004 fills the gap. Each flat has one vote, and a repair decision needs a majority of all the votes in the building, not just of those who turn up. Owners can decide at a meeting or by consulting everyone in writing; a meeting needs at least 48 hours' notice.

For the roof over the close, the default split is equal shares per flat. Only where the largest flat is more than one and a half times the size of the smallest are costs divided by floor area instead. Deeds for many older Glasgow tenements set their own proportions, so check them before a vote.

Source: legislation.gov.uk

Many Glasgow tenements have a property factor appointed by the owners or by the deeds. Factors must be registered on the Scottish Property Factor Register and follow a statutory code of conduct under the Property Factors (Scotland) Act 2011. If the building has a factor, the factor usually obtains roofing quotes and asks the owners to approve one. You can still ask for a contractor of your own to quote, and the owners can decide between them.

If there is no factor, one owner often has to take the lead: gather quotes, circulate them, collect votes and hold funds. The impartial advice service Under One Roof publishes guidance for Scottish flat owners on doing this.

• a written scope the owners can vote on
• price per flat under the deeds or the default scheme
• scaffolding, including any road or pavement permit
• treatment of chimney stacks, skews, valleys and cast-iron gutters
• photos of the defects before and after the work
• guarantee and who holds it for the building

Source: legislation.gov.uk · edinburgh.gov.uk

Glasgow's tenements are mostly built of red or blond sandstone with slate roofs, stone chimney stacks and skews along the gables. Many roof leaks come from these details rather than the slates: failed flashings at the stacks, open joints in the skew copes, blocked rhones and downpipes. A roof inspection from a scaffold or a cherry picker should cover all of them. Stonework may need a stonemason as well as a roofer.

Roof work at this height is scaffold work carried out by trained operatives; an owner should never go onto a tenement roof to look.

Tell us about the building, the problem and whether a factor manages it. Roofing contractors covering Glasgow see the request without your name; a single contractor can buy it. Before it sees your details, we email you its name, address and phone number. The service costs nothing, and the owners remain free to choose another contractor.