Leaseholders have backed expensive new parking charges to stop outsiders taking spaces near their homes.
The tariffs were approved for Springfield Park in Maidstone, Kent, after people living there took issue with visitors or those with multiple vehicles using up the bays.
The first hour of parking will cost £50 for people not living in the new-build estate.
Weston Homes, the firm that built the 502-flat development, said the fees should be a deterrent as residents are sick of spots being ‘monopolised by members of the general public’.
Each flat is allocated one parking space and there is a separate visitors’ park for all to share. However, some people abuse the system by ‘locking down spaces with secondary cars,’ according to Harry Bartlett.
But the high fees also means visitors finding a spot for their own. Others have had to sell their cars or use spaces far from home due to only having one allocated spot.
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Ryan Kingsford, 24, who recently moved into his flat, said: ‘It is a bit of a nightmare to park around here. I have a van as well as our car, so I have to park it quite far away.
‘You only get one parking space here, and most households nowadays have two cars. The parking in the side roads is also very scarce. £50 an hour is ridiculous.’
Hollie Schleider, who has lived in the area since 2021, said: ‘There used to be a car park behind the Shell garage that people parked in, which belongs to the council.
‘They closed it last year to the public, and since then, it’s been chaos because everyone has been trying to park in the visitor spaces.’
She had to downsize from two cars to one due to the difficulty finding enough space.
A spokesperson for Weston Homes said the new visitor parking charges have been imposed after close discussion with residents and a vote.
‘The result of the changes to the parking bay charges means that there are now two separate tariffs for leaseholders and their authorised visitors, and those for members of the general public,’ the spokesperson added.
Weston Homes confirmed its support for the new fees as they are the ‘direct result of a democratic vote’ taken by residents.
The new pricing began on October 1 and visitors are now charged £50 for the first hour, £55 for up to two hours, £60 for up to four, £65 for up to 12 and £70 for a 24-hour period. A failure to pay will result in a £100 charge.
Parking fees for leaseholders and their guests, however, start at just 70p an hour.
While these parking bays are pricey, the fees cannot measure up to buying a bay outright in central London, where some spots have been sold for more than £200,000.