Owner-occupier story: Taking the stress out of common repairs

Julia stays in a flat in Bryson Road, EH11, that had been presenting a roof leak for a number of years, affecting her flat every time it rained. She had been putting off the repair as there was no real feeling of community within the 16-flat stair, and the idea of organising a common repair requiring the cooperation of all was “incredibly daunting and stressful to her.”

In mid-2021, Julia discovered the Novoville app and thought this could be a way of making some progress. Of the 16 owners, 6 joined it - which is more than enough (in fact, you only need one person!) According to Julia, other owners in the stair were quite “analogue” and not accustomed to technology.

She sourced two quotes and got them uploaded to the app. After giving owners enough time to view the quotes and make up their minds, a vote was recorded, including those of owners not directly using the app. To gather funds, Julia didn’t want to do the traditional thing and open a maintenance account with a bank: this would mean trips to the bank and paperwork. Instead, she created a dedicated payment account in the app directly, making the collection of funds a walk in the park. The actual repair was completed soon after.