Your service charges explained
We include a separate charge in addition to your rent for each of the individual services that you receive in your home. The rent we charge currently includes the cost of all other services we provide to your home or your estate, as well as the basic rent for your home. The services include things like caretaking, lifts and grounds maintenance.
Individual tenants only pay for the services that they actually receive. If you do not have a concierge, a lift or any of the other services listed above, you will not see this on your statement and you will not have to pay towards this.
Service charges are capped to ensure any increase is no more than the rate of inflation plus 0.5 per cent.
What is a service charge?
Your rent covers the management and maintenance of your home. The extra services we provide as part of your tenancy agreement, which are shared between the tenants of your block and / or estate, will form your service charge. These are shown separately on your rent increase letter. We pay these charges and then split the cost between the residents who receive them.
These shared services include:
- caretaking: this is for dedicated caretakers to sweep and clean communal areas in your block and your estate
- CCTV: this is for the maintenance and contractor-time associated with any CCTV equipment installed in your block or on your estate
- communal lighting: electricity for communal lights and charges for the maintenance and repair of lights in communal areas of blocks and estates
- concierge: these are staffing charges for locations that have a concierge service providing security and monitoring in blocks (If your block does not have a receptionist, cover may provided by this service from another block via the CCTV system)
- door entry: charges for the repair and replacement of controlled access entry systems on blocks and estates
- grounds maintenance: the cutting of grass, pruning of bushes and trees, general gardening and clearing of communal estate and block areas
- TV aerials: the maintenance of shared TV aerials for blocks / estates, it does not include individual aerials
- lift maintenance: charges associated with maintaining, operating, upgrading and replacing lifts within blocks
- window cleaning: charges for where we clean communal windows or clean windows in areas not accessible to residents.
What will this mean for me if I receive housing benefit?
All of these costs are covered by housing benefit. We will make the housing benefit department aware that your rent is increasing and you will need to tell them if your circumstances change.
Who can I speak to if I have a question?
If you feel that there are services on the list that you have been provided that you do not receive, you should call your income officer first who will explain the charge to you. If you have any other questions or want further information, please call your housing officer or income recovery officer.
You can find these details on our housing contacts page or using our online staff search tool.