- 01202 026174
- enquiries@resolve-iq.co.uk
Service charges are where trust between leaseholders and a managing agent is usually won or lost. When the budget is clear and the money is well managed, most other things fall into place. When it isn’t, every demand feels like a fight. A surprising number of agents still make it hard to see where the money goes, and leaseholders end up paying without ever getting a straight answer.
Resolve.IQ takes the opposite approach. We produce transparent service charge budgets, report clearly on what’s been spent, and make the accounts easy to follow for leaseholders and directors alike. The platform keeps every transaction and commitment on record, so when someone asks a question, we can answer it properly. No vague figures, no hidden fees, and no insurance commission quietly taken on your premium.
Clear, well-reasoned service charge budgets set out so leaseholders and directors can see exactly what they're paying for.
Regular, readable financial reporting rather than figures buried in jargon, so nobody's left guessing.
Inclusive fees with no charging at every turn, and no insurance commission taken on your premium.
Well-managed maintenance and vetted contractors, coordinated so money is spent well and jobs get done.
Financial and compliance records kept straight and aligned to the wider regulatory regime.
Practical help for RMC directors on budgets, reserve funds and the financial side of running a block.
A well-run block is almost always a well-funded one. When the service charge is set sensibly and the reserve fund is looked after, repairs get done on time, compliance stays on track, and directors aren’t left firefighting. Get the finances right and most of the friction between an agent, its leaseholders and the board simply goes away.
That’s why we treat financial management as core rather than an afterthought. Every enquiry is logged, every commitment tracked, and the numbers are always there when you need them. We provide service charge and leaseholder management for residential blocks across Bournemouth, Christchurch, Poole, Sandbanks, Canford Cliffs, Highcliffe and the surrounding areas.
Straight answers on what you pay and where it goes.
Your service charge is worked out using the method set by your lease: a fixed percentage, a fraction based on the number of flats, or in older leases a split by rateable value, a measure frozen since domestic rating ended in 1990. The annual budget is built from known costs such as insurance, cleaning, grounds, lift and plant contracts, compliance work and management, plus any reserve fund contribution the lease allows. Your share is then demanded in the instalments the lease specifies, usually quarterly or half-yearly.
Service charge, ground rent and a reserve fund pay for three different things. Service charge covers running the building and is variable, so it moves with actual costs. Ground rent goes to the freeholder for the land and has nothing to do with services. A reserve fund is money set aside now for big future jobs such as roofs, lifts and redecoration, so the bill does not land on whoever happens to own the flat that year. Reserve contributions are only payable if your lease allows for them.
You can see the invoices behind your block’s service charge accounts, and there is a statutory route if asking politely does not work. Section 21 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 lets you request a written summary of costs for the last accounting year. Within six months of obtaining it, section 22 lets you inspect the accounts, receipts and supporting documents. Inspection facilities must be provided free of charge, though copies can be charged for. We would rather you never needed either section.
When a leaseholder does not pay their service charge, everyone else covers the shortfall in the meantime, which is why arrears get chased early rather than allowed to build. Our approach is a reminder, then a call, then a formal demand, then recovery through the county court if it comes to that, with the tribunal deciding reasonableness where the charge itself is disputed. Most cases resolve at the conversation stage, often because there is a dispute or a hardship issue nobody had raised. Arrears go to directors monthly.
What happens to a service charge surplus or deficit at year end is decided by the lease. Most leases either carry a surplus forward against next year’s budget or move it into the reserve fund. A deficit is usually recovered through a balancing charge, and that demand has to be served on time. Costs incurred more than 18 months before a demand may not be recoverable at all, unless leaseholders were told in writing within that period that the costs had been incurred and a contribution would follow.
