Service Charges
We maintain communal or shared areas which you use or are entitled to use. In addition, by law, we must complete additional checks and servicing to make sure that you are safe along with the public, contractors, and staff as well as to prevent any fire risk.
Service charges cover the costs we’ve incurred, either directly or indirectly, to provide these services. They also cover the cost of repairs, maintenance, improvements, insurance and our costs of management.
You won’t necessarily contribute to all costs. Tenancy agreements, leases and freehold transfers explain what services you're required to contribute to.
Some charges don't have to be paid for by customers living in rented homes. This is because their rent covers the maintenance of the structure and exterior of their home, and the fittings within their home related to the supply of water, gas and electricity. Tenants’ rent also covers sanitation fittings (basins, sinks, baths and toilets) and the boilers or equipment provided for heating and hot water. Service charges are a means to recover the cost of services we provide which aren't included in your rent.
For leaseholders and shared owners, the service charge includes the cost of providing services to maintain communal areas, the structure of the building and any external communal grounds as well as insuring the building.
For some of our sites we provide services to freeholders. This is where someone owns their home but they have access to or use of our land or equipment, such as a large open space, a car park, or they’re connected to our private sewage system.
Services include but are not limited to: cleaning communal areas, grounds maintenance for land owned by Golding Homes, servicing lifts, and maintaining and servicing fire equipment. They can also include services provided by others. This is where we don't own the land or the communal areas of the building. The owner (or superior landlord) employs an external managing agent to provide these services, who then bills us our share of the costs. We recover these costs via our service charges.
Service charges can either be fixed or variable. Tenancy agreements, leases or freehold transfer explain if the charges are fixed or variable and also explain what you contribute to. We charge variable service charges in most cases.
This summary isn' t intended to be a comprehensive guide to everything related to service charges. Please contact the Rents and Service Charge team if you have any queries, by phone on 0300 777 2600 or by email to help@goldinghomes.org.uk
You can find more information about service charges on the pages below:
