Service Charges
Service charges are levied by landlords to recover the costs they incur in providing services to a dwelling. The way in which the service charge is organised is set out in the tenant's lease or tenancy agreement.
Below are some useful articles on service charges...
Articles in this category
Service charges are one of the principal areas for dispute between leaseholders and their landlords.
Many leases provide for the landlord to collect sums in advance to create one or more reserve or 'sinking' funds. The purpose of such funds is to build up a sum of money to cover the cost of irregular and expensive works such as external decorations, structural repairs or lift replacement.
Usually the lease provides for the landlord to arrange the insurance of the building (not the contents) and charge the cost as a service charge.
Ground rent is a payment made by the leaseholder to the landlord as a condition of the lease. The payment of ground rent (as with any rent) is specified by the lease and should be paid on the due date.
The final sanction for a landlord faced with a leaseholder in breach of his lease due to the failure to pay the service charges, ground rent or administration charges is to take steps to forfeit the lease and to repossess the house or flat.
Application to the Leasehold Valuation Tribunal
Both landlords and leaseholders have a right to ask a Leasehold Valuation Tribunal whether a charge, or a proposed charge, is reasonable; however, there is no statutory definition of what is 'reasonable'.
