Leaseholders at a Sheffield flat complex say they feel “trapped” by the “outrageous” service charges after an increase of over £200,000 across the block in a single year.
Managed by FirstPort, the flat blocks at Riverside Exchange in the Millsands area will see a “significant increase” in service charge according to a letter from the company – from £433,505 in 2024/25 to £637,729 2025/26.
Among those affected is Elliot Hughes, 30, who moved into Pinsent Block, Millsands, in 2021. Struggling daily with broken lifts to his seventh floor flat, and a whole host of other maintenance issues, he says the experience of owning his first home has been crushed by the “anxiety inducing” financial burden that the “redundant” service charges have caused.
READ MORE: Care home resident died after paramedics told ‘not to take her to hospital’
Elliot lives on the 7th floor of his flat “without a lift” -Credit:Lyra Auld
Elliot said: “It’s definitely taking the shine off being a homeowner. The pay increase is anxiety inducing. I don’t want to leave which is lucky – right now it’s impossible to sell or even explore remortgaging because nobody else is interested as the service charges are so high.
“You feel trapped. There are other leaseholders in the development I know who are trying to get out and they physically can’t.”
Elliot explained that “considering the costs” – he seldom reaps the rewards of his contributions. Elliot said: “I started noticing the issues in the building maybe about a year on from when I moved in.
“The lift has always been incredibly temperamental, which we just put down to power cuts and the power outages and stuff like that. But since then, there have have been so many problems at the flat – including with the main gate.”
In August, Elliot – along with the other tenants at Riverside – received a letter of estimate of service charge for the Year to August 31, 2026.
The letter included a whole host of extra fees for the leaseholders which hiked up the price, including:
-
A 5 per cent increase on last year’s staff costs costs “as unfortunately the staff costs had been underestimated last year”
-
General maintenance, which the letter stipulated could be “challenging to forecast”
-
Health and saftey, which “following the Grenfell tragedy” now means additional checks need to be undertaken for High Rise/High Risk buildings such as those at Riverside Exchange
-
A 5 per cent increase on water and sewage costs
There had also been an increase cost to the reserve fund across the Cracknell, Pinsent and Redgrave blocks. The letter explained that “due to the age of some of the assets at Riverside” the reserve fund contribution had been increased from £22,500 to £40,000 for Cracknell and Redgrave and from £25,500 to £60,000 in Pinsent.
Elliot explained how “unfair” it felt having to pay extra for the reserve fund in particular – something he feels should not be an issue for residents. He said: “Due to lift replacement in particular, the service charge has really gone up but that’s not the point of a reserve – it’s not supposed to be ‘topped up’ immediately.”
At the beginning of this year, more than 30 MPs – including Sheffield MP Abtisam Mohammed – co-signed a letter written by Rachel Blake MP to FirstPort. The letter raised concerns that “immediate action” needed to be taken over the “completely inadequate” service.
Posting on ‘X’ after signing the letter in November, 2024, MP Abtisam said: “Service charges mean many leaseholders in Sheffield Central are living in unaffordable homes. The services provided are often completely inadequate and charges are opaque.”
Elliot said: “Talking to them is like trying to draw blood from a stone – it’s really disheartening.”
In response, FirstPort explained that the service charge across the 160 units at Riverside Exchange vary from person to person. A spokesperson from FirstPort said: “We understand that rising service charges are a concern for homeowners, and we will only ever apply increases where we are required to do so in order to make sure the development remains safe and well-maintained.
“Service charges at Riverside Exchange cover essential external costs such as communal maintenance and repairs, electricity, water, and health and safety requirements. Recent increases to the service charge have been driven by mandatory regulatory requirements like fire door inspections and building safety cases, which are essential for the safety of residents.
“We are in regular communication with homeowners, and the property manager is available to discuss any questions or concerns they may have.”
Get all the latest and breaking Sheffield news straight to your inbox by signing up to our newsletter here.
Get all the latest and breaking South Yorkshire news straight to your inbox by signing up to our newsletter here.