Setting up the right to manage
Planning for managing the building
You need to start planning ahead and collecting information. It’s best to start this early in the process, so that the right to manage company is ready to take over management when the time comes.
The management of any building can be complicated, and particularly for larger blocks there is a lot to take on. It’s a good idea to use a managing agent, who can give professional advice to help you prepare.
Gathering information
You have various rights to get information from the landlord at different stages of setting up the right to manage.
If you’re appointing a managing agent, they can work with the outgoing managing agent to get information.
What you need depends on the building, but it might include:
- the name and address of your immediate landlord – this should appear on all rent and service charge demands
- the name and address of any other landlords with interests over the immediate landlord, for example if there is a freeholder plus a head lessee, or if the freehold is split between more than one owner – you can get this from the Land Registry for a small fee
- the full names and addresses of all the leaseholders in the building
- details of any non-residential or commercial use in the building
- financial information such as whether there is money owed to the landlord (arrears)
- the insurance arrangements for the building
- how the building is currently managed, and the name and address of the managing agent if there is one
- details of all contracts for the maintenance and services for the building
- the overall state of repair of the building and any needs for major works, repairs or improvements, including copies of any recent survey reports
Rights to information for the claim notice
Under section 82 of the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002, you can serve a notice on the landlord asking for any information that the right to manage company needs for deciding what to include in a claim notice. The landlord must provide the information within 28 days.
There is no prescribed wording for this notice. You can send a letter listing the information you need.
Rights to information for managing the building
The landlord is also required to provide any information or records that the right to manage company needs in connection with managing the building – for example, contracts, the accounts for the building and the service charges, any proposals or specifications for future works, and maintenance schedules.
You can serve a notice asking for this information at any time. The landlord must provide the information within 28 days, as long as this is after the date the right to manage company takes over (acquisition date).
This means it’s best to serve the notice at least 28 days before the acquisition date, so that the landlord provides the information on or immediately after the acquisition date.
It's in the landlord’s interests to provide the information you need so that the building can be properly managed. But you may still need to plan for any delays.
The right to manage company will need to pay the landlord’s reasonable costs of complying with the notice.
Using a managing agent or self-managing
You need to decide whether to use a managing agent, or whether the company will manage the building itself.
There is no legal requirement to use a managing agent, but it’s usually best to have one, unless the building is very small and simple to manage. The managing agent will be instructed by the right to manage company, so the leaseholders will still be able to make decisions.
You need to look into the costs of employing a managing agent and what services they will provide. You might decide to continue with an existing managing agent that the landlord has been using, or find a new one. You could interview several managing agents to help with the decision.
Self-managing
If you plan to manage the building yourself, you need to make sure that you and the other leaseholders have the skills and knowledge to do this.
Training is available from a range of organisations including LEASE.
It’s important to remember that the fabric of the building is still owned by the landlord. The right to manage company will have a duty to the landlord not to allow it to deteriorate through neglect, mismanagement or under-spending on maintenance.
The right to manage company must be prepared to manage the building sensibly, and in accordance with the terms of the lease.
Plans and budgets
Although it’s not a legal requirement, it’s important to produce a draft budget, to show how the right to manage will affect costs for leaseholders, and what the right to manage company expects to deliver. Sometimes the lease also requires a budget to be produced.
For larger buildings you need a planned maintenance programme. It’s best to get professional help from a surveyor for this.
Find out more
For more information on what is involved in managing the building, use our guide running a right to manage company.
- Last updated:
- 16 December 2025
- Next review:
- 16 December 2027
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