Service-charge comparison guide

Compare two buildings without hiding the differences.

Separate operating costs, reserve contributions, major works and In plain EnglishRent reserved by a lease. It is separate from service charges and administration charges.Read the official guidance. Then compare the services, accounting basis and evidence behind the figures.

Cross-building comparison

Compare the charge, the services and the evidence.

Compare two different buildings or the same building across two accounting periods. The guide separates operating costs, reserve contributions, major works and ground rent, then keeps differences in services, basis and evidence visible.

What are you comparing?

Building A

Accounting-period start Accounting-period end Evidence basis Region Flat floor area (m²) Flat value (£), optional Homes in building Floors Passenger lifts Concierge or staffed hours each day Lease allocation (%), optional contextThe entered flat charges already include the apportionment. This percentage is compared as context and is not applied again.

Communal heating or hot water Gym, pool or leisure facilities Managed parking or gates Material gardens or grounds

Annual amount charged to this flat

Management (£) Insurance (£) Cleaning and grounds (£) Communal utilities (£) Routine repairs (£) Other operating services (£) Reserve contribution (£) Major works or one-offs (£) Ground rent (£), kept outside service charge

Building B

Communal heating or hot water Gym, pool or leisure facilities Managed parking or gates Material gardens or grounds

Annual amount charged to this flat

Comparison result

Annualised amounts based only on the information entered. Ground rent remains outside the service-charge total.
Measure	Building A	Building B	Difference

Largest normalised operating-cost differences

Use LEASE-iQ® to check the lease basis

What the numbers cannot decide

A lower charge is not automatically better.

Different services, building condition, procurement, claims, planned works and lease In plain EnglishThe method used to divide a building cost between flats. Look for the percentage, fraction or other method in the lease.Open the plain-English glossary can change the figures. Reserve adequacy requires the reserve balance, planned works and a credible long-term maintenance plan. Percentage of property value is descriptive only.

LEASE on service-charge calculation HM Land Registry Price Paid Data ONS inflation context

Model version BT-SCC-2026-08-24. Sources checked 26 August 2026. Inputs and results stay in this browser and are not uploaded or stored.