New Page — The Gables House

Tarah Welsh

Housing correspondent

In 2016, Michele McInroy was overjoyed to pick up the keys to her new home - a two-bedroom flat in a refurbished building in Woolwich, south London. But her joy soon soured.

Communal areas were neglected, lifts didn’t work and repairs went unfixed, Michele says. Earlier this year, her service charge increased to around £10,000 a year, marking a 320% rise in five years.

Michele, who works as a civil servant, hopes to move from the capital to Dundee to be closer to her grandson but she is struggling to sell the flat - and believes that the service charge is making it harder still. “I'm losing time that I could be spending with my family that's really precious to me,” she says.

“I just feel trapped and there is absolutely nothing I can do.”

Across England and Wales, other homeowners are telling similar stories, as annual service charges have risen significantly. The average is currently £2,321, up 44% since 2016, according to estate agent Hamptons. In London it’s £2,500, marking a 52% increase in the same period.

Others I have spoken to say their service charges have increased by 400-500% in that time.

Image caption,

Michele's service charge is now around £10,000 a year

Among them is Gaz Rahman, whose annual service charge for his flat in the London borough of Tower Hamlets hit £4,654 in 2024, up from £960 five years earlier. “There's no accountability,” he argues. “It just doesn't add up.”

Sue Robertson, who owns a one-bedroom flat in West Sussex, reports that her service charge has shot up by 320% since 2019 - from £750 to £3,198 a year.

Some leaseholders have opened up about the devastating effect of these costs on their lives - among them are cases of bankruptcy, pressure on relationships and mental health. Sue Robertson tells me that she was hospitalised after attempting suicide. The financial pressure was, she says, a major factor. “Everything just got too much for me.”

For years, politicians have said they planned to address this issue. Then, last week, the current government committed to abolishing leasehold. Housing minister Matthew Pennycook said in a statement that there will be a consultation and white paper early next year - but for some this has come too late.

And the question that remains is, how did it reach a point where the government needed to intervene?