The advantages of external audit for managed property portfolios
When we started specialising in service charge audits they were frequently undertaken as part of the property owner’s general annual audit. This was not a satisfactory situation because specialist knowledge is needed for accurate service charge accounting assessment. Some of the advantages of an audit are:-
- Landlords and tenants can be assured of their transparent financial relationships
- Tenants can trust that the service charge is correct and fair at no added cost to the landlord
- There can be a significant reduction in investigations by tenants into service charges, saving time and money for landlords
- Specialist advice on current techniques for the internal accounts team will be available
Since that time many large landlords in the UK have moved to providing independent audited accounts for their service charges thus removing one cause of landlord / tenant conflict
