Guides

A bigger number arrived and the covering letter said costs have risen. That is not an explanation, and you can reasonably ask for one — not because a statute says so, but because your deed is a contract and you are a party to it.

You own your house and the land it stands on. You still get a bill each year for the estate around it — the roads that were never adopted, the grass, the play area, the drainage. This explains what that charge is, where it comes from, and what you can reasonably ask about it.

Most buyers assume the council takes over the roads, lighting and greens once the estate is finished. On a great many estates it never happens, and the charge you pay is the reason it does not need to.

You own the house and the ground it stands on, and something is still charged on your land in favour of somebody else. That is a rentcharge, and it came from the document you signed when you bought.

The ordinary service charge covers the running of the building. A one-off demand is something else — a roof, the lifts, the windows — and it usually arrives with far less explanation than its size deserves.

Buildings insurance is usually one of the larger lines and one of the least discussed. It is also one of the easiest to compare, because it is a single figure for a single thing.

A bigger demand arrived with a sentence about rising costs. That sentence is not an explanation, and finding the real one means reading a different document from the one that asked you for money.

The demand shows a total and a due date. The detail lives somewhere else, and reading one against the other is most of the work.

Of every line on a service charge, this is the one people understand least and question most. Part of the reason is that it is often not shown on its own.

A larger account arrived with a sentence about rising costs. Finding the real explanation means reading a different document from the one asking you for money.

If you own a flat or a house on a managed development in Scotland, the company billing you is a property factor — and your position is different from an owner's in England.