The Oaks

It is important that customers do not face any unexpected financial burdens in their new home resulting from, for example, the need to undertake any major refurbishment or structural repairs on the development. In order to provide confidence that there is enough money available to meet this work, the service charge includes a small charge to help cover unexpected costs such as these. This is called the Contingency Fund, and is similar to a ‘sinking fund’. It is a specific fund kept in the development’s own bank account. It is held in trust and its use is restricted to the maintenance of that development and cannot be accessed by McCarthy & Stone. It is there for the benefit of all homeowners and finances the replacement of carpets and furniture in the shared areas and longer-term repairs and renewals such as roofs, window frames and replacement of lifts.

In order to keep this weekly cost – and hence the service charge – to a minimum, the development’s specific Contingency Fund is ‘topped up’ by a one-off charge of 1% of the resale price upon the sale of the apartment, in addition to a small charge in the service charge.
With regard to subletting on leases prior to October 2014, we will charge a concessionary rate (irrespective of the provisions in the lease, which may be higher) of one month’s rent for each year that the apartment is sublet (or pro-rata for less than a year).

This is a concession from the terms of the lease which are in essence one month’s rent for each six month sublet period.  This concession will apply for a maximum period of two years, after which time we will revert to the terms of the lease. 

For leases from October 2014, the subletting contingency fee has been reduced to a contingency fee of 1% of the annual rent (or pro-rata for under-letting of less than one year).  Where the underletting is for more than a year, the contingency fee is 1% of the annual rent payable annually on the anniversary of the commencement of the term.

There is also a small administration fee collected by MSMS / YLMS to cover their costs to check that the incoming occupier meets the terms of the deed of conditions (i.e. meets the age criteria and is capable of leading an independent life) and provide information about the development, the service charge and insurance. Contact our Property Transfer team on 01202 508299 for more details.

Our service charges are fixed on an annual cycle and reflect the costs of the services we procure on behalf of our homeowners.

We share the individual costs that make up the service charge with homeowners and outline the methods for calculating the resulting charge. The service charge for each year is agreed in consultation with homeowners through an open book budgeting process.

We do our very best to negotiate the best cost with third party service providers on behalf of our homeowners. As part of our system of checks and controls to ensure they are treated fairly, we regularly monitor service charges in our managed schemes against current market practices and third party providers to ensure we offer competitive rates. We have developed a simple chart to help Customers make a direct comparison for use during the sales process and a full breakdown of the service charge budget is available from our Sales teams and House Managers at all new developments.  

While this will depend on individual circumstances, we find that, in most cases, service charges for one of our apartments are lower than like-for-like costs in a Customer’s previous property.  In addition, heating costs are very often lower due to our modern construction methods and, most likely, the more manageable size of the new apartment.

When Customers discuss the purchase of a McCarthy & Stone apartment with us, they receive a service charge leaflet and our Sales Executive sits down with them to help them fill in the costs, review what is covered in the management services and compare them to day-to-day running costs in their current home.  Our Sales Executive ensures that they have a detailed knowledge of ongoing costs before a sale is completed. 

Our management businesses, and service charges, reflect the expectations of our Customers and the Landlord (McCarthy & Stone Retirement Lifestyles) and the range of services required under the terms of the lease.  For example, we employ staff on each development, tender for all work with independent service providers and don’t take any commission or receive retrospective rebates.

In our Retirement Living schemes, the service charge covers a range of services provided for homeowners, such as:

• House Manager
• 24 hour emergency call system
• intruder alarm costs
• camera door entry system
• buildings insurance
• maintenance
• water rates
• sewerage rates
• window cleaning for external windows
• heating of the communal areas

We believe the charge provides good value for money. We do not provide any of these services ourselves, with the exception of the House Manager, who is employed by MSMS. At some of our most recent developments, the service charge also includes the cost of heating within the apartments.

In our Assisted Living schemes, in addition to the items set out above, the service charge also includes:

• the running cost of the restaurant (with a small additional cost payable per meal eaten in the restaurant, which is typically £4.00 for a three-course meal freshly prepared on-site)
• one-hour of domestic support per week from our staff on-site

Our team, which can total up to 17 people per development, is based on-site 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and is registered with the Care Quality Commission in England and its equivalent bodies in Scotland and Wales. Domestic support covers whatever time-consuming chores our homeowners would like undertaken, such as cleaning, shopping, running errands and domestic help. Our homeowners choose how best to use this support.

Additional personal care packages in our Assisted Living developments are totally flexible and can be adapted to suit our Customers’ needs, including help with going to bed and getting up in the morning, a sitting, night sleeping or waking service, preparing breakfast, getting to and from appointments or regular assistance during a period of convalescence.  All care and support services in Assisted Living developments can be provided by our on-site care staff.

Homeowners are under no obligation to take care packages from us and can use a third party if preferred.  For a list of the additional care and support packages provided in our Assisted Living schemes, please click here.