Service charges are payments made by you for the costs of providing services in shared areas. Find out more about how we make these charges below.
Service charge estimate
We can never know for certain all of the costs that may be incurred in managing a building or estate in advance of a given year, and with a new building or estate this is even more difficult. So, whoever manages the building will make an estimate (which varies from period to period) for anticipated expenditure, which will be reflected in your regular service charge contributions.
If NHG is the landlord or freeholder then the estimate will likely be set by us, but in some instances another landlord will set and manage the service charge.
Service charge statement
Once the service year has ended, you will receive a statement showing how the service charges have been spent. Statements are usually issued six months after the end of the previous financial year (although this can sometimes be delayed).
The statement or account will show:
• the estimated costs for the relevant financial year
• how much was actually spent (this may be more or less than the estimated costs)
• if any amount has been collected and put into a reserve fund to cover the costs of any major works planned for the future
If there is a surplus then this will either be refunded back to you or used to reduce future demands, but any shortfall will be due for immediate payment.
New operational model
Service charges for most properties will have been set and managed by either the Property Management Officer (PMO) in the case of leaseholders or the Housing Officer (HO) in the case of tenanted properties (although in a few instances a superior landlord managed the service charges).
In the new operating model, the service charge will be set by either your Property Management Officer (if you are a leaseholder) or your Housing Officer (HO) but in some instances, another landlord will still set and manage the service charge where that is their legal obligation.