Two residents of a privately owned west Dublin housing estate are due to be taken to court on Friday, following their refusal to pay charges for the upkeep of the estate, including water mains and pavements.
The two, Conor Walsh and Cletus Okonwo from Tyrellstown, are the first of a number who are likely to face court proceedings brought by Smith Property Services subsidiary Tyrells No 1 company.
Up to 2,000 houses will be built in Tyrellstown, mostly by Twinlite Developments which has set up - or will set up - eight estate management companies to maintain the common areas and services.
Yesterday, independent TDs Joe Higgins and Catherine Murphy criticised the increasing practice of builders to charge homebuyers hundreds of euro annually in estate charges.
In the past, builders paid for the upkeep of an estate, including water supplies, before the local authority "took it in charge" once the authority was satisfied the estate had been properly completed.
Last night, a spokesman for Smith Property Services said Friday's cases were "a matter of principle, because there is no way that the estate can be maintained otherwise".
However, John Darcy of the Tyrellstown Action Group said estate management companies in Tyrellstown would raise over €500,000 this year, with one-third of this disappearing in fees.Most homebuyers are paying between €150 and €550 in annual charges, Mr Darcy claimed, though a spokesman for Smith Property Services said the average bill was €195.
Mr Higgins said that local authorities, such as Fingal County Council, had encouraged the creation of management companies in order to sneakily privatise public services for which they were traditionally responsible.
Ms Murphy said: "It is wholly unjust and unsustainable that young working people saddled with heavy mortgages now have a new local tax foisted on them for services that householders in neighbouring estates have provided by the local authorities from general taxation."
