Property Management Services Authority Reminds 
Property Management Companies under Municipal Solid Waste Charging 
Matters to Pay Attention to When Adjustment is Made to Property Management Fee / When Handling Fee is Charged for Collection of Oversized Waste

The Property Management Services Authority (PMSA) issued letter today to remind licensed property management companies (PMCs) in Hong Kong under municipal solid waste (MSW) charging to pay attention to the following matters when adjustment is made to property management (PM) fee / when handling fee is charged for collection of oversized waste:

Property Management Fee

According to the Building Management Ordinance (Cap. 344), if a PMC is the manager of a property, it has to prepare draft budget for each financial year setting out the proposed expenditure for the financial year and consult the owners’ organisation / owners / clients; and as per the “General Code of Conduct” issued by the PMSA, a licensed PMC has, to the best of its knowledge, to provide accurate and relevant information or advice to its clients to facilitate them to make informed judgment and decision. If PM fee is to be adjusted, it should, in accordance with the aforementioned, explain clearly to the owners’ organisation / owners / clients. If the overall management fee is to be adjusted by X%, and the reasons include adjustment of employee remuneration, increase in repair and maintenance expenditure and / or implementation of MSW charging, etc., then the PMC should provide the breakdown percentage of each item leading to the adjustment (i.e. breakdown of X% should be provided) for the consideration of the owners’ organisation / owners / clients and for the avoidance of misunderstanding.

Oversized Waste Handling Fee

PMCs which currently handle oversized waste (e.g. furniture such as dining tables, bookshelves or mattresses, etc., which cannot be handled by refuse collection vehicles (RCVs) with rear compactors) through private waste collectors’ RCVs without rear compactors (e.g. grab lorries) will be charged a weight-based “gate-fee” by the Government at waste disposal facilities (e.g. landfill) as stipulated by the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) after the implementation of MSW Charging. The PMSA reminds PMCs to explain to the owners’ organisation / owners / clients in accordance with the aforementioned “General Code of Conduct” how the handling fee for the residents to be charged is calculated, including the specific disposal arrangements, the fee elements (e.g. the “gate-fee” charged by the Government, fee of transporting oversized waste to waste disposal facilities, etc.) involved, and whether fee needs to be paid to third parties (e.g. cleansing service contractors), etc., in order to assist the owners’ organisation / owners / clients to understand the matter and make decision on the implementation arrangements and to avoid misunderstanding.

If it is eventually decided to adopt the aforementioned “Charging by Weight” mode to handle oversized waste, the PMCs should remind and assist the owners’ organisation in explaining to residents that upon the implementation of MSW charging, they need not affix designated label to the oversized waste but have to pay a fee to the PMC if they choose to handle oversized waste through the PMC. However, if residents then choose to dispose of by themselves oversized waste at Food and Environmental Hygiene Department’s refuse collection points, they then have to affix the $11 designated label but need not pay extra fee to the PMC.

Dr James WONG, Chairperson of the PMSA, said, “The PMSA expects PMCs to explain clearly to owners’ organisations / owners / clients regarding the above matters in order to avoid raising concerns or causing unnecessary misunderstanding that may lead to complaints or arguments.”

The EPD has already made suggestions on the apportionment mechanisms of “gate-fee” for oversized waste. Details are set out in the best practice guides on implementing MSW Charging compiled by the EPD based on different types of properties. The best practice guides have been uploaded to the following websites: