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How to run your block
Straightforward guides for directors of freehold, RMC and RTM companies and the leaseholders who back them. What the law requires, the steps, and the mistakes that cost money.
Running the company
How to run an AGM for your freehold, RMC or RTM company
Whether you need an AGM at all, notice periods, what to put on the agenda, quorum and voting, and the minutes you must keep.
Director duties and Companies House filings for block companies
The duties volunteer directors take on, the annual filings, identity verification and how directors protect themselves.
Service charges and money
How to set a service charge budget
Building a realistic annual budget, apportioning it by the lease, collecting it on account and what every demand must contain.
How to prepare year-end service charge accounts
What the year-end accounts must show, who prepares and certifies them, the deadlines and how to deal with a surplus or deficit.
How to collect service charge arrears fairly and lawfully
A firm, fair process for late payers: reminders, compliant demands, payment plans, the small claims route and the tribunal, and why forfeiture is a last resort for a solicitor.
Repairs and major works
How to run a section 20 consultation for major works
When you must consult leaseholders before major works or long-term contracts, the stages and timings, and the mistakes that cap what you can recover at £250 a flat.
How to plan major works and a reserve fund
Planning big repairs years ahead: condition surveys, a planned maintenance plan, reserve contributions and how to fund works fairly.
How to handle repairs and emergencies in your block
Who is responsible for what, how to triage reports, emergency procedures and using contractors you can trust.
Fire and building safety
Insurance
Leaseholder rights and sales
How to buy your freehold together (collective enfranchisement)
Who qualifies, how the price is worked out, the nominee purchaser company and the main steps, including changes from the 2024 Act.
How to respond to a leasehold sale pack request
When a flat is sold, the buyer's solicitor asks the company for information (often on form LPE1). What to provide, how long it takes and what you can charge.
Subletting and short lets in a leasehold block
What the lease usually says about letting flats, consents, short-term lets, and what the company can and cannot do.
Disputes
Taking control of your block
How to switch from a managing agent to self-management
Reading the agent's contract, giving notice, getting the money and records handed over, and setting up the company to manage the block itself.
How the right to manage works
How leaseholders can take over management from a freeholder without buying the freehold: who qualifies, the RTM company, the notices and the timetable.
Templates, timelines and an assistant that knows your lease
Every guide has working tools behind it in Freeholdpilot, filled in from your own documents.