Service charges
Frequently asked questions
Find out how service charges work and what they're for.
Do you want an overview of service charges and how they work?
You can download our service charge guides for leaseholders and people who rent their homes here.
Service charges - frequently asked questions
If you need to get in contact with us after reading this information, please fill out the short form on the money matters page of our website or call us on 01202 312 715.
If you need to contact us about anything else, just drop us a line as you usually would.
How service charges work and are calculated
What is a service charge?
A service or estate charge is the amount you pay for the delivery of services in communal areas. This may include things like cleaning, lighting, secure door entry, grounds maintenance, and the cost of managing these.
For leaseholders and shared owners, the service charge also includes the cost of building insurance.
For example, if you live in a flat, then the cost of maintaining any shared areas, such as corridors, stairs, or a shared garden will be covered by service charges.
The amount charged depends on the services provided to your home and wider scheme.
Why do service charges increase?
While many rising costs are beyond Stonewater’s control, we’re committed to getting the best value possible and ensuring our customers remain secure, warm and comfortable in their homes. But, given inflation rates and the continuing economic situation, we’re still seeing some increases in the cost of the services we provide to them.
We know it’s really tough to hear that costs continue to go up when everything else is getting more expensive too. We’re legally not allowed to make any profit from service charges, and only recover the costs of the services that we’ve provided to customers.
We are really pleased to have secured new energy contracts from June 2024, showing our continued efforts to look for ways to save our customers money. This is an area which caused a lot of customers substantial concerns during 23/24 as the cost of commercial energy rose above that of domestic supplies. We are hopeful that with up-to-date usage and the new contract rates that most will still see a reduction from April.
We know that estate services such as grounds maintenance and communal cleaning have also been a concern of our customers during 2023, both in terms of the rising costs and the delivery of the new contract as they embedded. We have worked to ensure that the projections made in these areas reflect the up-to-date costs that we have incurred, using newly procured contract information and billing received. We are undergoing a remapping exercise of all our schemes to ensure that our contractors and customers are clear on what will be delivered under these services, providing clear guidance on the standard to which customers can hold us to account and to help maintain happy, healthy communities.
Whilst in some areas we will see stablisation and even reduction in costs; due to changes in the market and inflation, many customers will see an increase in some of their service charges.
Why might some of my service charges increase by a higher percentage than my rent?
Service charges are not governed by the same factors as rent and are set to reflect the actual cost of delivering services to customers. We do everything we can to keep increases in service charges costs in line with or below inflation, but this isn’t always possible due to external market factors.
When will I hear about my service charges for this year?
If you are a rented customer your service charges may be fixed or variable. Your rent and service charge review letter will tell you which. If you are a homeowner then your service charges will be variable.
If your service charges are fixed, you’ll have all the information you need in your Rent and Service Charge review letter. If you pay a variable service charge this may be reviewed separately from your rent later in the year. Your service charge review date will be described in your tenancy agreement or lease.
How can I pay my service charges?
Service charges should be paid with any rent at the start of the period for which they are due, this normally means at the start of each week or month.
The easiest way to pay your service charges is by Direct Debit. If you would like to pay online, or set up a new Direct Debit, please visit myhome.stonewater.org. If you prefer to pay over the phone, please call us on 01202 319 119.
How can I tell what services I am receiving?
Your Rent and Service Charge review letter will break down your charges. You can also look at your tenancy, lease or licence agreement to explain which services you receive. Depending on the type of agreement you have with us you may be able to see a breakdown of the charges in MyPayments on MyHome by clicking on the total weekly charge to see the individual charges.
We are working hard to give access to all customers to see a breakdown of the charges on MyHome but this may be limited by the rent type you pay or your tenure. We want to give our customers as much control of their tenancy and online account as possible to give you 24/7 access to queries so we will continue to work towards implementing these features for everyone.
How do service and estate charges work?
All charges are based on an estimate of the cost of providing services. We use known costs of contracts, previous costs incurred in recent years, and consider price inflation. The overall cost is divided between customers who receive the service – that way each customer only pays for their share of the services they receive.
Most of our rented customers have a ‘fixed’ service charge. The rent and service charge reviews are done at the same time and the estimated charge is final. You will not be asked to pay more if the actual costs are more than the estimate.
Other rented and homeowner customers have a ‘variable’ service charge. If you’re on a variable service charge, your service charge review is separate from the rent review. If the cost of services is different from the estimate the difference is passed on to your account.
If you’re currently renting your home and on a variable service charge and would like to move to a fixed service charge, please contact us on 01202 312 715 or rentreview@stonewater.org.
What do each of the service descriptions mean?
You can find explanations of the most common service charges in our jargon buster. We also included a copy of the service charge descriptions with your rent review letter.
Why you pay certain charges
Why do I pay for grounds maintenance?
The grounds maintenance in your service charge relates to the maintenance of the shared outdoor spaces where you live. This covers areas that are owned by Stonewater and can include grass, trees, shrubs and paved areas. The charge is shared fairly between all Stonewater customers who live on the scheme whether they own or rent their home.
Why do my neighbours have different service charges to me?
Your service charges are set based on your agreement with us, your neighbour’s agreement might be different to yours so may vary.
If you think your charges might be wrong, please let us know by emailing rentreview@stonewater.org or calling 01202 312715 so that we can look into it for you.
Why do I have new service charges this year?
This is likely to be because we’ve introduced a new service to your scheme. From time to time we may add or remove services to your scheme to ensure we are delivering the best possible service to you. We do this in line with the terms of your tenancy agreement with us.
What is my management fee for?
The management fee covers the cost of administering service contracts, preparing and issuing accounts for payment. This fee may also cover the cost of a Management Company where Stonewater operates a small part of a larger scheme managed by another organisation.
Does Stonewater charge administration fees?
Under service charge guidelines, we are permitted to charge a 15% management fee for services provided. The management fee covers the reasonable costs and overheads we incur in operating and managing services to your home and scheme, including administering service contracts, preparing and issuing accounts for payment.
Do I have to pay for services I may not use?
Yes, where they are described in your agreement. Although you may not feel you directly benefit from these services, they are of benefit to your community, and we split the cost evenly across all customers with access to these services.
Why are my service charges the same all year round when they change with the seasons, for example I use less energy in the summer and you don’t do as much ground maintenance in the winter?
To help make charges manageable for customers, we divide and apportion the total cost of all services over the course of the entire year. This helps where customers are on fixed weekly or monthly incomes and means payments are always at a consistent level. For example, it avoids having larger energy bills in the winter, when use is higher, or larger bills for grounds maintenance in the summer, when visits are more frequent.
I never use communal areas. Do I have to pay these charges?
In terms of other communal costs, it’s difficult to allocate these against individual usage. A customer may not watch TV in the lounge or sit in the garden but they do benefit from heating and lighting in communal spaces and the availability of things like laundry facilities and on-site staff.
We’ve worked on better communication with customers when they ask about moving to a scheme where services are delivered in this way, to make sure they fully understand the parameters before entering into a tenancy.
What do my “Retirement Living” charges pay for?
Our Retirement Living schemes allow residents aged 55 plus to live independently with additional housing management support as required.
We provide a member of staff on site, 24-hour emergency help through an alarm system, communal areas such as gardens and lounges, as well as social and aging well activities for residents. We have a variety of wellbeing call patterns, with some customers receiving daily/weekly wellbeing calls, depending on personal circumstance.
Why might Retirement Living or Supported Living charges at my scheme have risen this year?
The Retirement Living or Supported Living charges vary from scheme to scheme. These charges reflect the actual cost of delivery of the service to customers and cover a lot more than staff salaries. For a full breakdown of your individual scheme, please contact us on rentreview@stonewater.org or call 01202 312715.
Why has the cost of fire equipment maintenance increased?
The health and safety of our customers is our priority. Following the tragic incident at Grenfell Tower, Stonewater were pleased to see the Government shine a spotlight on ensuring that all buildings and homes are safe and secure for customers.
We have continued to comply with relevant legislation to ensure that we are fully assured of the safety of our homes however this does come at a cost. Whilst we always do all we can to ensure that increases are kept to a minimum, due to the increased work carried out on some schemes, this cost has in some cases increased above inflation. The projections for this service charge are based upon the costs incurred at each scheme over the past three years as well as the anticipated inflationary increase.
Why do I pay communal council tax through my service charges?
Depending on the set up of each scheme, we may be required to recover part of the overall charge for council tax. This is apportioned back through service charges to all of the households affected.
Am I paying for future improvement works?
When calculating charges, we can’t take into account any improvements which have not yet happened. This is because it would not be accurate and wouldn’t meet the legal and compliance guidance we are required to follow.
If you're not happy with your service charges or services
What should I do if I feel I am being charged for a service I don’t receive?
We know we don’t always get things right and if, at any time, you feel we aren’t delivering the services we should be, please let us know. You can report an issue on MyHome, by emailing us on customers@stonewater.org or by calling us. If you wish to make a formal complaint about the services you receive, you can find information on all the ways you can do this on our website.
If you think your charges might be wrong, please let us know by emailing rentreview@stonewater.org or calling 01202 312715 so that we can look into it for you.
Can I complain about rent & service charges?
Our Complaints policy sets out what you can make a complaint about. We follow the direction of the Housing Ombudsman and examples of the types of cases we may investigate include:
- Complaints regarding poor communication about service charges
- Complaints that you are not receiving the service they are paying for, or the service provided has been of a poor standard
- Complaints that Stonewater has not followed the correct process when allocating service charges.
Why are you increasing my Grounds Maintenance charge when you have not been delivering the service?
We know that over the past year we have not always got things right with the estate services within our schemes. We're working hard to tackle these issues and ensure that we can deliver a service that our customers can trust and rely upon.
We’ve worked to ensure that the projections made in these areas reflect the up-to-date costs that we have incurred, using newly procured contract information and billing received. We are undergoing a remapping exercise of all our schemes to ensure that our contractors and customers are clear on what will be delivered under these services, providing clear guidance on the standard to which customers can hold us to account and to help maintain happy, healthy communities.
How does Stonewater procure services that are value for money?
We’re constantly looking for the best value through our procurement process. An example of this would be our grounds maintenance service, which was procured this year. Even though quotes were higher than previous years, (driven by the national economic climate), we managed to keep the increase below inflation, which is reflected in the current charges for customers.
We take all appropriate steps to keep the costs of services as low as possible and appoint suppliers we believe offer the best value for money, but this may not always be the lowest price.
Legal rights around service charges and customers’ agreements with us
Why are fixed service charges not mentioned in my tenancy agreement?
Since 2016 we have only offered tenancies with a fixed service charge. This decision was based on customer feedback on variable service charges which gave customers less assurance and more fluctuation in costs, making it harder for them to budget.
Many of our rented customers who were previously on variable service charges have chosen to switch to fixed service charges since 2016.
We have improved how we communicate with customers when they start a tenancy to make sure they’re fully aware of how service charges are set and what this means for them.
What is a Section 22 request and do all customers have a right to this?
Leaseholders and variable service charge customers have the right to inspect documents relating to the service charge, to provide more detail on the summary. They are able to make this request for a period of 6 months after receiving the summary and we will provide this within 1 month of the request.
As fixed service charges are final and do not vary during the accounting period, customers who pay fixed service charges do not have the same rights.
We want to do all we can to help you understand your charges and are happy to discuss this with customers on a scheme-by-scheme basis. We cannot provide copies of invoices for a given period as this will not have a direct correlation with the fixed charge applied during that time and would be hard to understand. Our fixed service charges are set using several factors including known costs, contract costs, expected expenditure and inflation.
You can find more information in the tenant rights and obligations included with your rents and service charge review letter.
What does it mean if I am on an ‘Affordable Rent’?
This means that your rent is set at 80% of the market value and you don’t pay a separate service charge. Your rent is inclusive of any services provided to your scheme or property, however these services may sometimes show separately in notifications. You will not receive a service charge review as any increase will only be on your rent and you will not be able to see a breakdown of charges on MyHome.
Are my service charges covered by housing benefit or Universal Credit?
If you receive Housing Benefit or Universal Credit, some service charges will be covered, whilst others are classed as ineligible and not covered, meaning you are responsible for paying these charges. Eligible charges are usually those which relate to services carried out in communal areas of the property, such as communal cleaning. Personal charges/services, such as individual heating, water and electricity would be classed as ineligible and wouldn’t be covered.
If you would like further information on eligible and ineligible service charges, please contact us.