Service charge budget and reconciliation
The budget is set before the financial year begins, and the year-end accounts are reconciled with balancing charges demanded from leaseholders.
For property managers
Service charge budgets, planned maintenance and building compliance dates
A property manager runs a building's whole year at once, from the service charge budget to the half-yearly lift examination and the leaseholders who pay for it.
No account needed to see the proposed desk.
The recurring work
What property managers have to keep on top of
Every one of these has a date attached, a document behind it, and somebody who notices when it slips. This is what goes on the desk.
Lift thorough examination
Passenger lifts need a thorough examination by a competent person every six months, with the report and any defects recorded and closed out.
Asbestos register review
The asbestos register is reviewed on a set cycle, with known materials re-inspected and their condition recorded before any work disturbs them.
Fire risk assessment review
The fire risk assessment is reviewed at least annually or whenever the building changes, and the actions it lists have to be completed and signed off.
Contractor insurance and accreditation
Every contractor's public liability cover and accreditation certificates are held on file and renewed before the old ones expire.
Planned maintenance programme
Cyclical decoration, roofing, windows and plant sit on a multi-year programme, with each year's planned works budgeted and tendered in advance.
Lease and tenancy dates
Lease renewal, ground rent and tenancy expiry dates sit per unit, and the notices or demands have to be issued before each date falls.
Section 20 consultation
Major works above the threshold need consultation with leaseholders, with notices issued in stages and the required periods allowed to run.
Health and safety file
The building's health and safety file holds risk assessments, accident records and inspection certificates, and each entry is refreshed when it expires.
Communal water checks
Communal water systems are checked for legionella on a set frequency, with temperatures logged and any failing outlet treated and retested.
What it costs to carry it
A managing agent carries the year for dozens of leases at once, and each obligation falls on a date fixed by statute, a lease or a contract rather than by preference. The reconciliation is where it hurts: budgets built on last year's costs, contractor invoices arriving after the year closes, and leaseholders disputing a balancing charge nobody warned them about. A missed consultation or an out-of-date inspection certificate gives a leaseholder a reason to withhold payment and a tribunal a reason to agree.
What the desk takes over
The desk works this list to its own schedule and reports what it did.
Building compliance calendar
Every inspection, examination and review date for the building sits on one calendar and is booked with the right contractor ahead of time.
Service charge ledger
Budgets, apportionments and year-end reconciliations are tracked per lease so balancing charges and credits can be produced with the accounts.
Contractor file
Accreditation, liability cover and certification for each contractor are held on file and requested again before they lapse.
Leaseholder notices
Consultation notices, demands and reminders are prepared against the required periods and issued on schedule.
Works programme
The planned maintenance programme is kept current and tendered in time for the works to be included in the next budget.
What stays with the property manager
The manager still inspects, negotiates with contractors and handles the leaseholder who is angry about the cost of the roof. Decisions about scope, specification and which contractor to appoint belong to a person who has seen the building.
Questions
How often does a passenger lift need a thorough examination?
Every six months, carried out by a competent person, with the report retained and any defects scheduled for repair.
When is a section 20 consultation needed?
When qualifying works or a long-term agreement will cost any leaseholder more than the statutory threshold, notices must be issued and the consultation periods allowed to run.
How is a service charge balancing charge worked out?
Actual costs for the year are compared with the budgeted amount, and each leaseholder's share is charged or credited using the apportionment in the lease.
Put the property manager's recurring work on the desk
Start with a name, a website and one sentence about what the business does. The desk proposes the list; the property manager corrects it.