Questions RMC Directors Should Ask a Managing Agent

Adil Hassan

Priority First Team

September 21, 2026

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11 min

Last updated: 21 September 2026

Priority First advises that RMC directors should ask a building management company about fee structures, professional accreditation, track record with comparable blocks, maintenance response times, client money protection, and Building Safety Act 2022 compliance before appointment. In 2026, London leaseholders sit on RMC boards with no formal training, so a structured questioning framework — covering these six areas — is the clearest safeguard against a poorly performing managing agent.

Key Takeaways

RMC directors carry personal exposure under company law and lease terms, even though the residential leasehold sector itself is unregulated for managing agents.
Priority First notes that The Property Institute (TPI), formed from the 2023 merger of ARMA and IRPM, sets the main code of practice and qualification framework that a competent UK managing agent should follow.
Client money protection and professional indemnity insurance are non-negotiable checks — a managing agent handling service charge funds without ring-fenced client accounts is a serious red flag.
The Building Safety Act 2022 places non-delegable duties on accountable persons for high-rise residential buildings, meaning RMC boards cannot fully outsource fire and structural safety responsibility to an agent.
Priority First's operational data shows that photo-backed, checkpoint-level reporting — used across a 16-building prime London estate producing 250–280 patrols per building — gives boards the kind of verifiable evidence that generic managing agent reporting often lacks.

What is an RMC director and what questions must they ask a managing agent?

An RMC director is a leaseholder, or sometimes a landlord nominee, who sits on the board of a Resident Management Company — a private company limited by guarantee that owns or controls the freehold or head-lease of a residential block on behalf of its leaseholders. Because most RMC directors are unpaid volunteers with no property background, the questions they put to a prospective or incumbent building management company function as their main line of defence against mismanagement.

The scale of this knowledge gap is well recognised across the sector. News on the Block has noted that "the problem is that many lay directors are as they suggest are not competent in building safety" — a gap that structured due diligence on fees, accreditation, insurance, and legal compliance is designed to close. Flat Living frames the same problem from the agent's side, asking prospective managing agents "what do they see as the main challenges facing RMC directors, and how do they help to meet these challenges?" — a question every board should put directly to a shortlisted firm.

What questions should RMC directors ask about fees and service charge calculations?

RMC directors should ask a managing agent to itemise every fee separately — the base management fee per unit, ground-rent collection charges, Section 20 major works fees, and any commission earned on insurance placement or contractor work. Service charges fund the day-to-day running of the building, so directors need to see exactly how the agent's fee sits within that budget, not buried inside it.

Ask whether the fee is charged per unit or as a percentage of total expenditure, since a percentage-based fee can create a perverse incentive to spend more. Ask how the agent accounts for interest earned on reserve fund balances, and whether that interest is credited back to leaseholders. The RICS Service Charge Residential Management Code sets best-practice standards for exactly this kind of financial transparency, and any agent following it should produce a clear, itemised budget without hesitation.

Finally, ask for a worked example of last year's service charge reconciliation from a comparable block, so directors can see the format before signing anything.

What qualifications and professional memberships should a building management company hold?

A qualified managing agent is one that holds recognised industry accreditation from bodies such as The Property Institute (TPI) or the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), because the residential leasehold sector itself has no statutory licensing regime. Scanlans Property Management puts this starkly: "the residential leasehold sector is unregulated, and therefore anyone can set up as a managing agent without any qualifications of experience."

That absence of statutory regulation is precisely why professional membership matters so much as a screening tool. Priority First points to TPI, formed from the 2023 merger of ARMA (the Association of Residential Managing Agents) and IRPM (the Institute of Residential Property Management), as the body that operates a Code of Practice covering complaint handling, financial conduct, and staff competence.

RMC directors should ask:

Is the firm a member of TPI, and can it provide its membership number?
Do individual property managers hold, or are they working towards, an IRPM qualification?
Is the firm regulated by RICS, and does it follow the RICS Service Charge Residential Management Code?
How many years has the firm operated, and how many RMC-managed blocks does it currently hold?

What are RMC directors' legal duties under the Companies Act and lease terms?

RMC directors hold statutory duties under the Companies Act 2006, including the duty to act within the company's powers, promote its success, and exercise reasonable care, skill and diligence — obligations that exist regardless of whether a managing agent is appointed. Appointing an agent delegates day-to-day administration; it does not delegate legal accountability.

This distinction has sharpened considerably since the Building Safety Act 2022. Under Section 111 of the Building Safety Act 2022, an RMC acting as an accountable person for a high-rise residential building (generally 18 metres or seven storeys and above) can appoint a Building Safety Director, but the government's own guidance on the role of accountable persons for high-rise residential buildings confirms this liability is non-delegable. Building Safety Hub provides further legal analysis of exactly how this appointment mechanism currently operates in practice.

RMC directors should ask their managing agent directly: which specific duties under the lease and the Building Safety Act does the agent perform on the board's behalf, and which remain the board's own non-delegable responsibility?

How should RMC directors check a managing agent's track record and references?

RMC directors should request client references from at least three comparable RMC-managed blocks, ideally of similar size, age and location, before signing any management agreement. A managing agent with genuine confidence in its service will readily supply named contacts at other buildings rather than curated testimonials alone.

Ask referees directly about response times to maintenance issues, clarity of service charge accounts, and how disputes were handled. Ask the agent for its client retention rate — how many RMC contracts it has lost in the past two years, and why.

Portfolio-based evidence matters just as much as references. Priority First's own operational data illustrates the standard boards should expect: across a 16-building prime central London estate live since March 2026, Priority First has completed more than 4,100 patrols with 250–280 photo-backed checks per building, giving the estate provable, per-building evidence rather than one vague "round complete" note. Ask any prospective agent whether it can produce equivalent, site-by-site evidence for its own service delivery — not just an annual summary.

What should RMC directors ask about client money protection and insurance?

RMC directors must confirm that a managing agent holds client money in a ring-fenced, designated client bank account, entirely separate from the firm's own operating funds, before any service charge money is handed over. This single check protects leaseholders if the agent becomes insolvent.

Ask whether the firm carries professional indemnity (PI) insurance, and at what level of cover — guidance from The Property Institute treats adequate PI cover as a baseline expectation for practising managing agents. Ask whether client accounts are audited annually and whether accounts follow ICAEW TECH 03/11, the joint ICAEW, RICS and ARMA technical guidance on residential service charge accounts.

Also confirm whether the agent holds a client money protection (CMP) scheme membership, and ask to see the current certificate rather than a verbal assurance.

How do RMC directors compare quotes and service levels between agents?

RMC directors comparing quotes from different building management companies should request an identical scope of service from each, since fees are only meaningful when measured against the same list of duties. A cheaper quote covering fewer visits, less reporting, or slower response commitments is not actually cheaper.

Comparison factor	What to ask each agent	Why it matters
Fee basis	Per-unit or percentage of expenditure?	Percentage fees can incentivise higher spending
Site visit frequency	How many inspections per month, in writing?	Verifies service intensity, not just promise
Maintenance response	Target response time for urgent vs routine issues	Sets an enforceable service-level benchmark
Reporting format	Portal access, or emailed statements only?	Determines transparency between board meetings
Major works handling	In-house Section 20 administration, or outsourced?	Affects cost and speed of large projects
Notice period	3, 6 or 12 months to terminate?	Determines how easily the board can exit a poor contract

Ask each shortlisted firm for a like-for-like written proposal against this table before making a final decision.

In-house self-management vs appointing a managing agent

Some RMC boards choose to self-manage rather than appoint an agent, usually to save on management fees. This works only where directors have significant spare time, financial literacy, and appetite for legal risk; most boards find that professional management fees are offset by reduced director liability exposure and access to accredited expertise the board itself does not hold.

What common mistakes do RMC directors make when appointing a managing agent?

RMC directors most often go wrong by appointing on price alone, without checking accreditation, insurance, or comparable references first. This single shortcut accounts for a large share of the disputes that later reach the First-tier Tribunal (Property Chamber).

Other recurring mistakes include:

Failing to read the termination clause before signing, then finding themselves locked into a 12-month notice period
Not asking how reserve funds are invested or reported
Accepting verbal assurances on insurance and client money protection instead of requesting certificates
Assuming the managing agent, rather than the board itself, carries legal responsibility for building safety
Never requesting a sample service charge account from an existing client before signing

"Rankings tell you who has scaled, not who turns up when a lift fails at the weekend. The strongest facilities management companies are the ones who already know the building because they are already in it for security, so nothing gets handed to a stranger. Look for one accountable team, not a list of subcontractors with a shared logo." — Mo Hassan, Managing Director, Priority First

What should RMC directors ask about major works, Section 20 and fire safety compliance?

RMC directors should ask exactly how a managing agent runs a Section 20 consultation — the statutory process under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 requiring leaseholders to be consulted before major works above a set cost threshold proceed. Ask how many Section 20 projects the firm has run in the past three years, and request a reference from one.

Ask how reserve funds are calculated, reviewed and topped up ahead of anticipated major works, since an underfunded reserve forces sudden, unpopular one-off charges. On fire and building safety, ask whether the agent maintains an up-to-date Fire Risk Assessment, whether it has experience registering buildings with the Building Safety Regulator, and how it supports the RMC's role as an accountable person under the Building Safety Act 2022.

For blocks that also carry security or concierge arrangements, ask whether maintenance, fire safety and security reporting sit on one accountable system or are split across disconnected suppliers — fragmentation here is where compliance gaps most often appear.

Your RMC managing agent due diligence checklist

Request an itemised fee schedule covering management, ground rent, and major works charges
Confirm TPI membership and ask for IRPM qualification details of named property managers
Obtain written confirmation of ring-fenced client accounts and current PI insurance cover
Request three references from comparable RMC-managed blocks and call each one
Ask for the firm's target response times for urgent versus routine maintenance requests
Review the notice period and termination clause before signing anything
Confirm the agent's approach to Section 20 consultations and reserve fund management
Clarify who holds Building Safety Act accountable person responsibilities in writing

FAQ

What questions should RMC directors ask before appointing a managing agent?

RMC directors should ask about fee structure, TPI or RICS accreditation, client money protection, insurance cover, and references from at least three comparable buildings before appointing any managing agent. These five areas cover the most common sources of later dispute.

What are the key responsibilities of an RMC director?

RMC directors hold statutory duties under the Companies Act 2006 to act within the company's powers and exercise reasonable care, alongside lease-derived duties to manage service charges and building safety properly. Appointing a managing agent delegates administration but not this underlying legal accountability.

What is the difference between an RMC and an RTM company?

An RMC (Resident Management Company) typically owns or holds the head-lease of the building from the outset, whereas an RTM (Right to Manage) company is formed later by leaseholders exercising a statutory right to take over management from a landlord. Both structures can appoint a managing agent to handle day-to-day operations.

Can RMC directors be held personally liable under the Building Safety Act 2022?

RMC directors generally do not face personal criminal liability simply by serving as a director, but the RMC itself, acting as an accountable person, carries non-delegable duties for buildings covered by the Building Safety Act 2022. Directors should still confirm exactly which safety duties their managing agent performs on the company's behalf.

How do I check if a managing agent is properly accredited or insured?

Ask the managing agent directly for its TPI membership number and a current professional indemnity insurance certificate, then verify both independently rather than accepting a verbal assurance. A reputable agent will provide this documentation without delay.

How much should a managing agent cost for a residential block?

Managing agent fees vary by block size, service scope and location, and are typically charged either per unit or as a percentage of total service charge expenditure. RMC directors should always compare quotes against an identical scope of service rather than fee alone, since a lower headline fee often reflects reduced service intensity.

What red flags indicate a poor-performing managing agent?

Warning signs include reluctance to provide references, vague answers about client account arrangements, no clear response-time commitments for maintenance, and resistance to sharing a sample service charge reconciliation. Any of these should prompt further scrutiny before signing or renewing a contract.

Securing and managing your building with Priority First

RMC boards asking a managing agent about maintenance response, reporting transparency and building safety compliance are really asking one underlying question: can this provider prove what it does, building by building, night after night? Priority First answers that question through checkpoint-level, photo-backed reporting rather than generic assurances, giving boards the same kind of verifiable evidence increasingly expected of any accountable building partner.

Priority First's operational data shows 100% of checkpoint completions across its managed sites now carry a watermarked photo with officer ID, GPS and timestamp — a standard developed across prestige residential portfolios in Chelsea, Knightsbridge and Mayfair, where 28 of Priority First's 37 documented client contracts are based.

If your RMC board is reviewing its current managing agent or building management arrangements, contact Priority First's Facilities Management team for a site review and quote.

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