Services making up the day-to-day service charge
There are several services that make up the day-to-day service charge. Some are provided to the block, some to the estate, and some are split into block and estate components.
You’ll only be charged for services that are provided to your block or to your estate. Some services are provided every year. Others will only be charged if any work is carried out during that year.
Boiler repairs and maintenance
If your home is supplied by a communal heating system, we’ll recharge a proportion of the cost of repairs we carry out to the system during the year.
Building insurance
As the freeholder, the council must take out building insurance on your behalf. The insurance means that the structure of the building can be repaired if it is damaged. It also means that you can make a claim if problems with the building cause damage to your home.
CCTV
You’ll be charged for provision of CCTV if your block is provided with this service.
Cleaning
We provide a cleaning and caretaking service to our estates and to any blocks that have communal areas.
Communal electricity
This is a charge for the supply of electricity to communal areas, for example, to lifts or to lighting within block staircases. The charge is split into block and estate costs.
Communal electrical maintenance
This is a charge for maintenance of the communal electrical systems in your block.
Communal ventilation maintenance
Some blocks are provided with a communal ventilation system to ventilate their kitchens and bathrooms. This charge is levied if a system is present in your block and covers the maintenance of fans and vents.
Communal water quality
The charge covers the cost of maintaining any cold-water tanks and other communal water services, and repairing them if there are any problems.
Communal window cleaning
This charge covers the cost of the contract for cleaning the communal windows in your block, if any are present.
Concierge
This charge covers the cost of providing a concierge service to some blocks.
Disinfestation
This charge covers the eradication of pests, such as mice or cockroaches, where they have affected more than one property in a block.
Door entry system
This charge covers the provision of an entryphone or similar security system, if one is fitted to your block. It includes any repairs and maintenance necessary to the system throughout the year.
Dry riser
A dry riser is a system of pipework usually installed in buildings with floors 18 metres or more above ground level.
The pipework enables the fire service to deliver water at high pressure to the upper floors of a building in the event of a fire. The charge covers the maintenance of this system in blocks where it is present.
Fire ventilation maintenance
This charge covers the maintenance of the automatic ventilation system installed in some blocks.
Grounds maintenance
This charge covers the maintenance of the communal gardens and grassed areas on estates. We employ a contractor to regularly cut the grass and maintain any flowerbeds. The maintenance schedule for your estate will be posted in the entrance hallway of your building.
Hot water and heating
If you’re connected to a communal boiler system, you’ll be charged for the supply of your heating and domestic hot water.
Lightning protection
This charge covers the maintenance of the lightning conductors and associated equipment in some blocks.
Lift services and repairs
We carry out regular maintenance each year to our lifts. As well as yearly maintenance, the contract covers call outs and emergency repairs.
These maintenance and repair costs are covered by the lift services charge. If your block has a lift, you’ll be required to contribute towards lift maintenance even if you live on the ground floor.
Repairs and maintenance
This is a charge for minor repairs and maintenance carried out to communal areas. The charge is split into block and estate costs:
- Block charges are for repairs carried out to the communal areas of the block.
- Estate charges are for repairs carried out to estate pathways, roads and other common areas.
Tree maintenance
This charge covers the cyclical and day-to-day maintenance of the trees on our estates and around residential blocks.
TV aerial
This charge covers the maintenance of the communal TV aerial equipment in some blocks.
The management charge and ground rent
As well as the services making up the day-to-day service charge, your estimate will include a management charge and a sum for ground rent.
The ground rent is defined in your lease and is fixed every year. Most leaseholders will pay £10 each year, though some properties sold at auction may be charged a different ground rent.
The lease also allows us to charge a management charge of a minimum of 10% of the invoice cost. This excludes the ground rent and the management charge itself.
The management charge goes towards covering the cost of administrating and calculating the service charges and the cost of managing the contracts and services that we provide.