FAQ

The word was originally short for ‘housing company’. No such company was ever created but ‘Hoco’ stuck as a description of a system used to pay for various collective services.

From a legal perspective the answer is contained in clause (Sixteen) of the Deed of Community Conditions (the DoCC document is available in the Resources section): 

“The Title Holders shall be bound to pay an equal rate, based on the size of the floor area of the dwellinghouse(s) or other such buildings (being not a dwellinghouse) they own along with other Title Holders having an interest therein of the cost of maintenance, repair and renewal of the common parts of the Estate (and including the Park Ecovillage as defined from time to time by the Titleholders’ Association.”

For most titleholders this is the square meterage of their house times the Hoco charge that year. At the moment (March 2025) this is £6.07 per square metre.

For those properties that are rented out the landlord is responsible for the Hoco charge, whether you’re renting a house, a room, a caravan or a bungalow in The Park.

Mobile homes attract two different fixed fees as Hoco charges, one for caravans and one for bungalows. Again, this is paid by the titleholder that owns the land while the owners of the mobile homes pay a ground rent to this land owner. 

THA doesn’t own the common parts but has ‘adopted’ some of them and agreed to pay for their maintenance.

• Roads: maintenance, repairs and and gritting

• Streetlights: electricity and maintenance

• Sewerage: maintenance, pumps and electricity

• Landscaping: mostly grass cutting and tree services

• Some potable water costs

• Rodent control

• Fire safety: hydrants etc.

• Other services (see further below)

The DoCC, clause 10 states:

'The annual payment for services aforementioned shall be increased each year in relation to the increase in the retail price index for the period in question unless other costs arise in the provision of services which will be detailed in the Annual Report and Projected Budget.’

Much of the above work is carried out by NFD Ltd or their contractors. There are also some services that the THA provides that are in-house costs:

• Park Planning Group

• Board and Committee

• General overheads such as insurance, accountancy etc.

For many years the Hoco system generated a significant surplus that created a substantial reserve. In 2023-24 roughly £145,000 of that reserve  was spent on major repairs to the runway and the THA intend to build up this surplus again in order to be able to address future costs.

The THA is required to present an annual budget to members for approval.

THA’s care of the roads  includes the roads themselves, common parking spaces and the sustainable drainage systems (SUDs) associated with them plus common pathways.

The THA pays for the maintenance of the roads etc. through the Hoco system. However,  the owners of the roads are responsible for road design and safety. This squares with the Deed of Community Conditions statement that the THA is responsible for “maintenance, repair and renewal” but not additions or improvements.

Hoco has no role in the supply of electricity. High voltage (HV) systems are used to transmit electricity between substations and across the national grid. The Park has an HV system that connects the wind turbines to the Earthship and the Earthship to the West Whins sub-station. The wind turbines and the HIV cables and equipment are owned by Findhorn Wind Park (FWP). This company  has a contract to supply electricity to The Park and is responsible for the connection to the national grid (which also occurs in the Earthship.) FWP is effectively a wholesaler that supplies electricity to the Park residents from the grid and their  wind turbines. The company is jointly owned by the THA, NFD, Ekopia and Energy4All (a co-operative that promotes local ownership of electricity production throughout the UK).

This is the 240 volt supply connected to homes and businesses. The LV supply system and its meters etc. is owned and run by NFD. NFD purchases electricity from FWP and acts as a retailer - the electrical supply is thus paid for by the end consumers. 

There are various checks and balances in place that aim to ensure prices on The Park are roughly equivalent to those available to consumers elsewhere.

Low voltage repairs and upgrades are paid for by the electricity vendor, NFD.  The Distribution Fee from electricity sales is source for ongoing maintenance.

NFD supplies drinking water for the Central Area, Holiday Park, Field and Pineridge and levies charges that are roughly equivalent to those from Moray Council. 

People living in the Whins and businesses located there get their water from Business Stream and pay for it via their council tax. 

Ideally there would be a Park-wide system but at different times the relevant authorities have required different solutions.

Hoco has a limited role in the supply of potable water having funded some small upgrades in the past.

As for potable water and for essentially the same reason there are two different sewerage systems in place. 

The Park east of the runway (but not the holiday park) is connected to the Living Machine, which treats the waste water on site. NFD collects a charge roughly equivalent to those from Moray Council from those located in these areas and passes this on to the operator of the Living Machine to cover maintenance and running costs. 

Elsewhere on The Park consumers pay a charge to the Council for waste water treatment.

Hoco pays for repairs to the pipework, the costs of pumps on site (for both systems) (including the electricity they use) but not the Living Machine which is currently the responsibility of the Findhorn Foundation who own the facility.

There are many communal buildings on site - sanctuaries, the Universal Hall, the Boutique etc. Those which  are liable for Hoco charges do so on the same basis as other buildings, paid by the titleholder. But THA does not pay for their maintenance.

Development land, including areas on which built amenities may one day be constructed, does not attract a Hoco charge and nor does Hoco pay for any upkeep they may require.

These include the village green, the fire pit, the dancing green etc. Once adopted, Hoco pays for their upkeep in terms of landscaping and mowing. The costs are fairly trivial by comparison with other Hoco expenditures.

The main area of conservation land is beyond the settlement boundary and owned/maintained by the Findhorn Hinterland trust. Hoco has no role here. The long-term future of the Diamond Wood, currently owned by Duneland, is not yet clear.

NFD keeps maps of the areas that Hoco pays for and for those that are the responsibility of others. (For example there are some common areas that are the responsibility of the housing clusters or owners concerned.)

NFD is also responsible for keeping technical drawings for site facilities.

The various parties involved have signed a Wayleave agreement that allows access to the services. For example, NFD does not own any land as such but can access the LV electricity cables that lie under other parties’ properties. Some home owners have service strips adjacent to their properties and maps of them should be available. 

Homeowners are responsible for removal and potential replacement of sheds, fences, trees etc. that are located over service strips as may be required for any maintenance of the services.

Charging points for electric vehicles are likely to become more numerous in future. However, how this should best be delivered and organised has been described as a ‘wicked problem’. It involves complex technical challenges related to the supply of electricity, the anticipated future need, parking issues etc. At the time of writing no clear solution has emerged. Hoco has no specific role in the provision of EV charging although the THA have engaged with others with the aim of finding suitable solutions.

A property factor manages common land in and around residential properties. The Property Factors (Scotland) Act 2011 requires property factors operating in Scotland to:

• join the register of property factors before they can operate;

• follow a code of conduct once they have registered.

The THA has registered as a factor.

You may see references in your title deeds to a factor but in those documents this has a more general meaning as applied prior to the above Act becoming law. NFD is not a factor in that although it carries out Hoco work it does not control the management of Hoco funds collected. NFD is thus a ‘service agent’ operating on behalf of the THA.

The minutes of Members Meetings are sent to all titleholders after the meeting.

If you are a member,  a prospective member or a long term resident, let us know which minutes you would like to see, you can ask for them via the contact form. We will then send them to you right away.