What are Building Service Charges?

Service charges are usually paid by the leaseholder of a flat. They are payments that are made to the freeholder, or the person who owns the building. This money could go directly to the freeholder, or it may go to the property agent that is used by the freeholder. If the building has a residents’ association who also own the land and building, service charges will go to them.

The service charges paid by flat owners (or indeed house owners, if the plot of land is leasehold) are used to maintain the building and carry out any repairs. These could include window cleaning, gardening, cleaning of corridors, maintenance of building entry systems etc. It will also include the day to day running costs of the building, such as central heating.

Service charges will usually be enough to cover repairs and maintenance, though sometimes a bigger job like a roof replacement may cost more.