Dol Llys Hall

Dol-llys Housing Limited is a housing co-operative registered as an industrial and provident society. The co-operative was formed in 1992 by 6 families to purchase Dol-llys Hall, then empty and owned by Powys County Council. In appearance the Hall bore the marks of several decades of use as a residential care home for the older members of society.

There are 7 accommodation units one of which is rented. Each flat is self contained with its own ‘Front Door’, bathroom and kitchen. All have open fireplaces with wood burning stoves. The central heating and hot water system is from a wood pellet boiler, with a back up oil boiler. Each flat has a meter for the heat used; electricity usage is also metered.

Three rooms at the front of the house are ‘communal’; two are used as recreational rooms, while the third is a small bedroom used as a guest room which any resident can ‘book’.

The grounds comprise 14.5 acres; 9 acres of deciduous woodland, a lake, two small fields, lawn, vegetable and flower gardens.

Dol-llys is able to produce most of its own fire wood supply. We manage it as a shared resource, cutting, splitting and stacking it in our shared wood shed on ‘Wood Days’. On average there is one wood day held per month during the colder months.

The house and land is valued as a whole, the value of each flat calculated accordingly. All mortgages are arranged with the a local bank in Newtown. There is a single mortgage on the estate and individuals guarantee a proportion of that mortgage. They pay monthly payments to the bank via the Dol-llys Housing account. When you buy into Dol-llys you own one sixth of the total estate and this gives you the right to occupy a flat.

Dol-llys Housing Limited rents out a 1 bedroom flat. All the facilities of the Hall are available to tenants. The Tenant is responsible for participating in the monthly house meetings, the workdays, and wood days. They have equal status with other members of Dol-llys Housing Ltd, however they cannot vote on financial matters.

There are monthly house meetings where a financial statement is given; maintenance requirements, social plans etc are discussed. Each flat has a vote; tenants in the rented accommodation do not have a vote on financial matters.

A monthly work day beginning at 10.00am and ending at 5.00pm with a lunch eaten together is routine, and all living at Dol-llys contribute in different ways. The tasks include routine maintenance and work in the grounds. All members of Dol-llys Housing Limited have a responsibility for participation in the work day.

Sale procedures are outlined in the Occupancy Agreement and in the Loanstock Certificate which guide the buying and selling of shares in Dol-llys Housing Limited. Anyone interested in joining the co-operative are asked to meet with current members informally on several occasions for the benefit of all. A house meeting then makes the decision if there are several people interested.