Service charges are calculated each year using the guidance of the spend for the proceeding year as well as our knowledge on what items are requiring attention for the year ahead such as any health & safety testing due, anything required to meet any new compliance obligations or any decoration or restorative items as detailed in the lease.
The amount apportioned to each unit is generally dictated by the lease on a percentage split. Whereby a lease is not specific in this regard, we as the agent will assessed the split percentage fairly looking at unit size and any other residing factors.
A new estimated service charge budget and invoice for the year will be issued to you once per year and the payments due by instalments are then either collected quarterly in advance or monthly in advance. Your invoice will be clear on this along with the bank accounts details of where you can send payment.
Often it is, however sometimes building insurance may be billed separately on some developments. Your service charge budget will be clear on whether it is included or not. Please do be aware that you are still required to organise your own contents insurance for inside of your own dwelling.
Ground rent is invoiced separately to service charge. An invoice will be sent to you for your ground rent along with a notice. Ground rents are collected either as one payment once per year or spit in half for two payments 6 months apart. The invoice you receive will be clear on the period for which is being demanded. Ground rents on the developments that we currently manage range from £10.00 per year - £200.00 per year
It is very important that you make your payments in full and on time as without these funds the services to the block are unable to continue. This will have a detrimental affect on the development, cause lapses in health & safety requirements and lower the value of your property. It is a breach of your lease to not make payment on time and as such your home is at risk.
If you fail to make a payment on time or fall behind, we will contact you on the matter up to three times to find a resolve. If you continue to not make payment thereafter, we will contact your mortgage lender (where one is on place) and ask them to pay us the amount owing directly.
Your mortgage lender will then advise you of what action they will take against you for breach of your lending with them. This may include fines, higher mortgage payments or ultimately repossession of the property.
Where a lender is not in place, we will instruct solicitors to commence legal proceedings for breach of lease and forfeiture. At this stage, your home is at risk.
Please refer to our Arrears Collection Policy to understand the administration costs that may be applied and the steps we will take. Click Here for our Arrears Policy
YES, whilst it is unlikely that consent would be denied (assuming you are following the Estate Rules with things such as pets and smoking etc), you must still obtain our official Consent to Let for several reasons:
1) It is a term of your lease and you are in breach of it if not obtained.
2) You will be in breach of any lenders criteria
3) As the agent we require information on your tenant to satisfy Fire Safety requirements and to be able to alert emergency services to any vulnerable occupiers
4) We need to ensure that the 'rules of the estate' are adhered to and that you are aware of Health & Safety laws when renting out your home so that we may best protect your neighbouring leaseholders
5) We need to know how your property may be accessed in the event of an Emergency that may have an impact on your fellow leaseholders
6) Day to day management duties and alerts such as security, vehicles parked on site, new users of site facilities etc all need to be adequately inducted
To apply for CONSENT TO LET, please click HERE
An administration fee for Consent to Let is charged at £ 35.00 per year or per change of tenant, whichever is sooner.
Once your application is submitted we will confirm if consent has been granted within 21 days
Penalties for renting your leasehold property without formal Consent is subject to fines This process is in place to ensure everyone is kept safe and peaceful living can be maintained*
Each block/estate that we manage has its own recognised/ring fenced client account and is protected under legislation by the requirement for us to hold client money protection.
Affinity are members of the Client Money Protection Scheme and our membership can be viewed by clicking here
Your money is in safe hands with Affinity.
As the managing agent we are required to your flat entrance door in compliance with the Building Safety Act 2022, which mandates inspections for buildings over 11 meters. This legislation is designed to enhance safety and security standards in residential properties. Members of the Affinity Team are 'Fire Door Inspector' accredited with UKFDT, ensuring that the inspections are conducted by qualified professionals who can verify that your door meets necessary fire safety and security requirements, ultimately helping to protect both your home and the overall safety of the building.
