Annual Grounds Maintenance Charge

maton91

Hello all,

On another thread I have had an offer accepted and have started the coveyencing process

The EA has passed a message on from the vendor saying the house I am buying along with the ohter houses on the estate requires paying a ground maintenance charge per annum. This year has been paid for until the next term which is in Jaunary and for this year it is a total of £60

The house I am buying was built in 2014 and is a Freehold so not liable for any lease charges to the freeholder. Ground maintenance was something I wasn't expecting but have been reading that its a common thing now in new/new-ish estates

Should I be concerned? £60 per annum doesn't seem too bad and would be happy to pay it (heck, even if it went up to £100 I'd be happy!) if it meant surroundings were well kept but thought I'd ask for some guidance. Is this something I should raise with the EA/conveyencer for more details?

Thanks in advance

Golden_Glow90

Yea it’s normal for new builds. It’s not ground rent but a maintenance charge for communal areas. So pretty much like council tax except council tax doesn’t cover roads not adopted by the council so you pay the management company. They then maintain the roads, cut the grass, repair streetlights, etc. £60 is really good. We pay £120 where we are now and the new house we’ve bought it’s £250

JReacher1

This is quite common these days. 

Be aware though that the standard charge may be £60 a year but any exceptional items will be charged to everyone on the estate and you don’t have any control over it e.g if a communal wall falls down on the estate the management company will fix it but then charge everyone on the estate to do it. 

I pay £120 a year but this year it’s been £240 due to some trees needing pruning. 

maton91

Thanks guys for your reply, doesn't sound like too much of a concern then. I've informed my solicitor anyway which I'm sure they would've picked up but any info at this early stage no doubt helps

My next query is what does your council tax cover if you pay an annual charge to a third party company?

Golden_Glow90

maton91 said:

Thanks guys for your reply, doesn't sound like too much of a concern then. I've informed my solicitor anyway which I'm sure they would've picked up but any info at this early stage no doubt helps

My next query is what does your council tax cover if you pay an annual charge to a third party company?

Your council tax will be things in the council area so main roads, pruning trees, bin collections, social care, police and emergency services and so on

JReacher1

maton91 said:

Thanks guys for your reply, doesn't sound like too much of a concern then. I've informed my solicitor anyway which I'm sure they would've picked up but any info at this early stage no doubt helps

My next query is what does your council tax cover if you pay an annual charge to a third party company?

It keeps council tax lower across the borough by making residents on new build estates pay for the upkeep of their estate. 

maton91

JReacher1 said:

maton91 said:

Thanks guys for your reply, doesn't sound like too much of a concern then. I've informed my solicitor anyway which I'm sure they would've picked up but any info at this early stage no doubt helps

My next query is what does your council tax cover if you pay an annual charge to a third party company?

It keeps council tax lower across the borough by making residents on new build estates pay for the upkeep of their estate. 

I see so without the annual charge there's a possibility the house could've been a band B rather than a band A?

user1977

maton91 said:

My next query is what does your council tax cover if you pay an annual charge to a third party company?

Your council tax is, as the name suggests, a tax. It's not a charge for particular services any more than any other tax you pay is.

JReacher1

maton91 said:

JReacher1 said:

maton91 said:

Thanks guys for your reply, doesn't sound like too much of a concern then. I've informed my solicitor anyway which I'm sure they would've picked up but any info at this early stage no doubt helps

My next query is what does your council tax cover if you pay an annual charge to a third party company?

It keeps council tax lower across the borough by making residents on new build estates pay for the upkeep of their estate. 

I see so without the annual charge there's a possibility the house could've been a band B rather than a band A?

Hmm not sure about that to be honest. Basically if the council fully adopted every new build estate then these costs would increase the councils budget for the year and this would need to be passed on in council tax to everyone. 

skycatcher

Ours was £75 when we moved in 2 years ago. We had large trees we wanted them to remove as they totally shaded our back garden. It took a lot of chasing and badgering but they did remove them and every one got a one-off bill for £5. (80 houses in our development). I felt is was a bargin (to us anyway!). From looking at the accounts most of the cost goes on insurance and admin and little to the upkeep of the area.

maton91

Again, thanks all for your replies, very reassuring!

My main concern was with the bad press about 'fleecehold' properties but if the ground maintenance is only £60 a year (appreciate this could fluctuate), would this be a case of being a 'fleecehold'?

Are there any other things I should be wary about regarding this annual charge? My solicitor has now been made aware but good to have some knowlege in the back pocket!