Home › Block and property managers
Glossary
Glossary for block and property managers: 14 terms in plain English
Each definition is taken from one of our guides, which gives the rule in full and where it comes from. The terms are in alphabetical order.
18-month rule (section 20B)
A cost incurred more than 18 months before it is demanded cannot be recovered through the service charge unless the leaseholder was told in writing, within those 18 months, that the cost had been incurred and would be charged. Of the four statutory tests on a demand it is the only one that loses the money for good.
Source: Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, section 20B
Apportionment
The share of a block's costs that each flat pays under its lease. A flat with a 4.5% share of a £48,000 budget and a £6,000 reserve contribution pays £2,430 a year, or £1,215 on each half-yearly demand.
Source: Our own arithmetic, in tests/warden/tools-check.txt
Dispensation (section 20ZA)
A tribunal order allowing a landlord to recover the cost of works without having completed Section 20 consultation. The application goes on form Leasehold 5 and costs £200 to issue plus £300 if a hearing is listed, on fees in force from 13 July 2026.
Source: Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, section 20ZA; First-tier Tribunal fees from 13 July 2026
Forfeiture
A landlord's right to end a lease for breach, including non-payment. It is unavailable for arrears of £350 or less unless they have been outstanding for more than three years, and a service charge that is neither admitted nor determined cannot found forfeiture at all.
Source: SI 2004/3086; Housing Act 1996, section 81
Higher-risk building
A building of at least 18 metres or 7 storeys with at least 2 residential units. At that height the landlord owes the Building Safety Regulator registration, a safety case report and a resident engagement strategy. A 12-metre building with 2 flats is not higher-risk.
Source: Building Safety Act 2022
Leasehold and Freehold Reform Act 2024
The 2024 Act that changes leasehold law in stages. As at 1 October 2026 we count three commencement orders: building-safety amendments on 31 October 2024, the end of the two-year ownership rule on 31 January 2025 and right to manage changes on 3 March 2025. Part 4, on service charges, is not in force.
Source: SI 2024/1018, SI 2025/57 and SI 2025/131
Regulation 10 fire door checks
In a block of flats above 11 metres in England, communal fire doors must be checked at least every 3 months and flat entrance doors at least every 12 months on a best endeavours basis, with a record of every attempt to gain access. A 40-flat block with 12 communal doors needs 88 checks a year.
Source: Fire Safety (England) Regulations 2022, regulation 10
Relevant building
A building of at least 11 metres or 5 storeys with at least 2 dwellings, to which the Building Safety Act's leaseholder protections apply. Its landlord owes the cost caps and certificates even where the building is too low to be a higher-risk building.
Source: Building Safety Act 2022
Relevant period
The time leaseholders have to make observations at each stage of a Section 20 consultation: 30 days beginning with the date of the notice. The date of the notice is day one, so a notice of intention dated 6 October 2026 closes on 4 November, not 5 November.
Full guide: The Section 20 consultation process, stage by stage, with what each notice must say
Source: Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003
Residential PEEP
A personal emergency evacuation plan for a resident whose ability to get out without help is compromised by a cognitive or physical impairment or condition. The 2025 regulations came into force on 6 April 2026 and cover blocks of at least 18 metres or seven storeys, and blocks over 11 metres that have a simultaneous evacuation strategy.
Source: Fire Safety (Residential Evacuation Plans) (England) Regulations 2025
Right to manage handover
When leaseholders take over management through a right to manage company, the outgoing landlord or agent must supply information within 28 days of a notice asking for it. An ordinary change of managing agent is different: no statute lists what must be handed over, and the RICS code asks for a final reconciliation within three months.
Source: Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002; RICS Service Charge Residential Management Code, 4th edition
Section 20 consultation
The consultation a landlord must carry out before works that will cost any one leaseholder more than £250. Without it, or a dispensation, the landlord can recover only £250 from each leaseholder. On a £48,000 roof job across 24 equal shares that is £6,000, leaving £42,000 unrecovered.
Free tool: Section 20 checker: does this job need consultation, and what are the dates?
Source: Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, section 20; Service Charges (Consultation Requirements) (England) Regulations 2003
Section 21 summary
A written summary of service charge costs that a leaseholder can ask for. Where the charges are payable by tenants of more than four dwellings it must be certified by a qualified accountant as a fair summary supported by accounts, receipts and other documents. The section does not use the word audit.
Source: Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, section 21
Section 22 inspection
A leaseholder's right to inspect the accounts, receipts and other documents behind a cost summary. The request must come within six months of getting the summary. The landlord must open the file within one month and keep it open for two months, free of charge.
Source: Landlord and Tenant Act 1985, section 22
AEO Lookup editorial team
We write practical guides for people who run small UK firms, and we check every fact against its source on the date shown. Read how we review, or tell us if something has changed.