The Complete Guide to Block and Freehold Management

Block and freehold management is the organised administration, maintenance and financial oversight of a residential building and its shared areas. It brings together the freeholder, resident directors, leaseholders, contractors and managing agent so that responsibilities are understood, essential work is completed and the building is managed in accordance with its leases.

For resident freeholders and volunteer directors, however, the practical reality can be complicated. Who collects the service charges? Who arranges repairs to the roof? What happens when major works are needed? Does appointing a managing agent remove the directors' responsibilities? And how does block management differ from ordinary property management?

This block and freehold management guide answers those questions in one place. It explains what each service covers, how responsibilities are divided, how service charges and major works are handled, and what to consider when choosing a managing agent.

The precise responsibilities for any building depend on its leases, ownership structure and management agreement. The information below is therefore a general guide rather than legal advice about a particular property.

What Is Block Management?

Block management is the day-to-day management of the structure, communal areas, finances and shared services of a residential block or converted building. It is concerned with the building as a whole rather than the inside of an individual flat.

A block management company may be appointed by a freeholder, Resident Management Company, Right to Manage company or another party with responsibility for the building. The managing agent then carries out the agreed work on that client's behalf and reports back to the people authorised to make decisions.

Block management can apply to many types of residential property, including:

• Victorian or Edwardian houses converted into flats
• Small resident-owned blocks
• Purpose-built apartment buildings
• Mixed-age residential developments
• High-end residential buildings
• Blocks owned by individual, joint or corporate freeholders

What Services Do Block Management Companies Provide?

Block management companies coordinate the administrative, financial and practical work needed to keep shared residential buildings running. The exact service varies according to the leases and management contract, but it commonly includes the following areas.

Building Administration and Communication

The managing agent acts as an organised point of contact for directors, freeholders, leaseholders and contractors. Typical tasks include:

• Maintaining resident, contractor and building records
• Responding to enquiries about communal matters
• Issuing routine notices and updates
• Recording maintenance decisions and approvals
• Reporting current issues to directors or freeholders
• Helping communications remain clear and appropriately documented
• Service Charge and Financial Administration

The agent may prepare budgets, issue service charge demands, monitor payments and provide financial reports. Where the lease permits or requires it, the process may also include supporting a reserve or sinking fund for future expenditure.

Repairs, Maintenance and Contractors

Block managers receive reports of communal problems, obtain quotations, instruct approved work within their authority and monitor contractors. This may cover cleaning, gardening, roofs, external walls, communal lighting, drainage, entrance systems and other shared elements.

Compliance and Building Records

Managing agents can coordinate agreed compliance-related tasks, arrange relevant assessments and help maintain supporting documentation. Responsibility does not simply disappear when work is delegated, so directors and freeholders should receive clear reporting and professional guidance where specialist advice is required.

How Does Block Management Differ From Property Management?

Block management looks after the shared building; rental property management looks after an individual let property and its tenancy. The two services can overlap, but their main responsibilities are different.

Block management usually covers:

• Communal hallways, entrances and grounds
• The building's structure and shared exterior
• Service charge budgets and expenditure
• Communal repairs and planned works
• Communication about building-wide matters
• Shared compliance and safety requirements

Single-let or rental property management usually covers:

• Finding and referencing tenants
• Tenancy agreements and check-ins
• Rent collection
• Inspections inside the rented property
• Tenant repair requests
• Check-outs and deposit-related administration

A landlord who owns one flat may therefore deal with two forms of management: the block manager for the shared building and a letting or property manager for the tenancy inside the flat. W12 Property Solutions provides both block and freehold management and separate single-let management support for landlords.

What Is Freehold Management?

Freehold management is the management of the shared responsibilities attached to owning or controlling a residential building's freehold. It supports the freeholder or resident-owned company with the financial, administrative, maintenance and lease-related work required to run the building.

The responsible client could be:

• An individual freeholder
• Two or more joint freeholders
• A resident-owned freehold company
• A Resident Management Company, usually called an RMC
• A Right to Manage company, usually called an RTM company
• A property investor or corporate building owner

Freehold management commonly involves many of the same practical activities as block management, including maintenance, service charges, contractors and leaseholder communication. The difference is mainly one of perspective: freehold management focuses on supporting the party that holds or exercises the relevant management responsibilities.

What Does a Freehold Management Company Do?

A freehold management company organises agreed day-to-day building matters while keeping the responsible freeholder or directors informed and in control of key decisions. Its work may include:

• Reviewing the building's management arrangements and immediate priorities
• Coordinating communication between directors and leaseholders
• Preparing service charge budgets and financial reports
• Arranging routine and planned communal maintenance
• Obtaining and comparing contractor quotations
• Maintaining insurance, maintenance and building records
• Supporting Section 20 consultation processes where required
• Helping directors plan future expenditure and reserve funds
• Referring legal, surveying or specialist issues to suitable professionals

The lease remains central. It determines what the responsible party must provide, what leaseholders must contribute towards and how costs should be divided.

How Do Block Management and Freehold Management Work Together?

Block management describes the operational work; freehold management describes support for the ownership or management structure responsible for that work. In many residential buildings, one managing agent delivers both as a combined service.

For example, a company owned by the leaseholders may hold the freehold of a converted building. Its directors remain responsible for making important decisions, but they appoint a managing agent to:

• Prepare the annual service charge budget.
• Communicate payment requirements to leaseholders.
• Coordinate cleaning, repairs and inspections.
• Obtain approval before significant expenditure.
• Keep records and provide financial and maintenance updates.
• Support consultation when major work is proposed.

This arrangement combines resident control with professional day-to-day administration. As this block and freehold management guide explains, the agent does not take ownership of the building or replace the directors; it carries out the responsibilities delegated through the management agreement.

Who Is Responsible for What in a Leasehold Building?

Responsibility is divided between the freeholder, resident company or RTM company, its directors, the managing agent and individual leaseholders. The lease and management agreement should be checked before assuming that any particular party must complete or pay for a task.

What Are the Managing Agent's Responsibilities?

The managing agent is responsible for performing the duties set out in its appointment with reasonable care, maintaining proper records and reporting to its client. It should also be clear about the limits of its authority.

An agent may be authorised to approve routine repairs up to an agreed amount, while larger costs require director approval. Emergency action may follow a separate process. Setting these boundaries at the start helps avoid both delays and unauthorised expenditure.

What Are Resident Freeholder Responsibilities?

Resident freeholders and company directors retain oversight of the building even when a managing agent is appointed. Their responsibilities can include:

• Understanding the leases and company structure
• Making decisions in the interests of the building or company
• Approving budgets, contracts and major expenditure
• Monitoring reports and asking appropriate questions
• Ensuring company filings and governance are handled
• Declaring conflicts of interest
• Making sure delegated responsibilities are being completed

Appointing an agent reduces the operational burden, but it does not automatically transfer every legal or company responsibility away from the freeholder or directors.

What Are the Advantages of Using a Property Management Company?

The main advantage of using a professional block and freehold management company is consistent oversight. Buildings require ongoing attention, and relying entirely on volunteer directors can create pressure, delays and uneven communication.

As this block and freehold management guide demonstrates, professional support can make the building easier to manage without taking important decisions away from its directors or freeholders.

Key advantages include:

Less day-to-day administration

The agent handles routine enquiries, records, quotations and contractor communication.

Clearer financial organisation

Budgets, expenditure and service charge information can be presented consistently.

Planned rather than reactive maintenance

Recurring work and future expenditure can be identified before problems become urgent.

Access to established contractors

A local agent may already know suitable tradespeople and professional advisers.

More structured communication

Leaseholders and directors have a clear route for reporting and resolving communal issues.

Continuity when directors change

Building records and processes remain organised when volunteer directors move or step down.

Practical support for compliance

Assessments, records and actions can be coordinated, with specialists involved where necessary.

Independent day-to-day coordination

Decisions can be based on the building's condition, leases and agreed priorities rather than individual preferences alone.

For resident-run buildings, the purpose is not to remove control. A good managing agent gives directors better information and more time to focus on the decisions that genuinely require their input.

What Is Not Included in Block Management?

Block management does not automatically include every cost, repair or professional service connected with a property. The scope depends on the management agreement, leases and agreed fee.

Services or costs that may sit outside a standard management fee include:

• The actual cost of repairs, materials and contractors
• Surveyor, engineer, solicitor or accountant fees
• Tribunal proceedings, debt recovery or complex lease enforcement
• Lease extensions, enfranchisement or the sale of a freehold
• Repairs inside an individual flat where the leaseholder is responsible
• Insurance premiums and utility charges
• Out-of-hours attendance beyond the agreed service
• Exceptional meetings, consultations or administrative projects

Some of these tasks can be arranged by the managing agent for an additional fee, while others require an independent regulated or specialist professional. Before appointing an agent, ask for a written schedule showing what is included, what is charged separately and which third-party costs may arise.

What Are RMC and RTM Companies?

RMCs and RTM companies both give residents a role in managing their building, but they arise in different ways and their legal structures should not be confused.

What Is a Resident Management Company?

A Resident Management Company, or RMC, is a company through which residents hold or exercise management responsibilities for their building. The precise arrangement depends on the leases, company documents and ownership structure.

RMC directors may need to oversee:

• Service charge budgeting and collection
• Repairs and communal services
• Building insurance arrangements
• Contractor appointments
• Leaseholder communication
• Company administration and filings
• Compliance and record-keeping

The company can manage directly or appoint a professional agent, but its directors retain responsibility for overseeing what has been delegated.

What Is a Right to Manage Company?

A Right to Manage company is a special company through which qualifying leaseholders can take over specified management functions without buying the freehold. They do not have to prove that the building was previously managed badly, but the building, leaseholders and statutory process must qualify.

Once the right has been acquired, the RTM company becomes responsible for relevant management functions. These can include service charges, communal maintenance, building services, insurance arrangements, accounting and aspects of lease administration. The freeholder normally retains ownership and certain continuing rights.

An RTM company may self-manage or appoint a managing agent. Professional support can be particularly valuable where directors have limited time or are unfamiliar with service charges, contracts, consultation and building compliance.

How Much Does Block Management Cost?

Block management costs depend on the number of flats, building condition, required services, ownership structure and complexity of the management work. This block and freehold management guide cannot provide one standard figure because every residential building requires a different level of support.

Factors affecting the price include:

• Number of flats and leaseholders
• Building age, condition and construction
• Size and complexity of communal areas
• Lifts, gates, plant or shared systems
• Existing arrears, disputes or incomplete records
• Frequency of inspections and reporting
• Current or planned major works
• Level of company-secretarial or compliance support
• Out-of-hours and emergency arrangements

W12 Property Solutions offers block and freehold management from £25 per flat per month. A tailored proposal should still be prepared after reviewing the building, leases, current arrangements and required level of support.

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How Do You Choose a Block and Freehold Managing Agent?

Choose a managing agent that can explain its responsibilities clearly, communicate consistently and adapt its service to the building.

What Should You Look for in a Managing Agent?

Consider the following points:

• Experience with your type and size of building
• Knowledge of the local property stock and contractor market
• A clear schedule of included and additional fees
• Defined spending and approval limits
• Regular financial and maintenance reporting
• A documented complaints and escalation process
• Suitable professional indemnity insurance and redress arrangements
• Secure handling of service charge money and records
• A structured handover process
• Access to appropriate legal, surveying and safety specialists

What Questions Should You Ask Before Appointing an Agent?

Ask direct questions that reveal how the service will work in practice:

• Who will be the building's main point of contact?
• How frequently will the building be inspected?
• What financial reports will directors receive?
• What can the agent approve without prior consent?
• How are contractors selected and monitored?
• Which services attract additional fees?
• How are urgent communal problems handled?
• How will existing records and funds be transferred?
• What support is provided for major works and Section 20?
• How can directors review performance or end the agreement?

How Do You Change Managing Agents?

Changing managing agents usually requires the responsible freeholder, RMC or RTM company to review the existing agreement, confirm its authority and follow the stated notice requirements. A planned handover should cover service charge funds, accounts, resident details, contracts, insurance records, compliance documents, maintenance history and current issues.

Directors should avoid assuming that all information will transfer automatically. Agreeing a handover checklist and clear responsibility dates helps protect continuity for the building and its leaseholders.

Speak to W12 Property Solutions About Your Building

If this block and freehold management guide has helped you identify where your building needs support, W12 Property Solutions would be pleased to discuss your current arrangements.

W12 Property Solutions provides a boutique, hands-on management service for Victorian and Edwardian conversions, purpose-built blocks and other residential buildings across West London, South West London and selected areas of Surrey.

With more than 20 years of combined London property experience, the team supports service charge administration, maintenance, contractor coordination, communication, financial reporting and longer-term building planning while keeping clients in control of key decisions.

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