What is the Right to Manage?

What it means in practice

If you exercise RTM, responsibility for services such as maintenance, insurance and day-to-day running of the building can transfer to an RTM company formed by leaseholders. Ownership of the freehold does not change; this is about who runs the building, not who owns the land beneath it. It helps to separate a frustrating agent from a frustrating structure: sometimes the person is fine, but the setup still leaves leaseholders short of real control. Terms like “claim notice” crop up quickly — use our glossary if anything sounds unfamiliar.

RTM versus keeping your current arrangement

Where a managing agent serves the freeholder, their commercial relationship sits with the landlord even when you pay the service charge. Negotiating for a friendlier replacement can help at the margins, but it does not change who ultimately controls the appointment. RTM shifts that relationship: leaseholders own the RTM company, so whoever runs the building day to day answers to leaseholders rather than acting only as the freeholder's contractor.

RTM versus buying the freehold

Collective enfranchisement is about purchasing the freeholder's interest so leaseholders acquire full ownership of the structure and land subject to that process — usually more costly and involved than RTM, which is focused on management, not owning the bricks and freehold outright. Many groups choose RTM first because it is typically faster and cheaper to reach day-to-day control; enfranchisement can remain a later goal if the building still wants it. The two routes are not mutually exclusive.

Legal basis

RTM was introduced under the Commonhold and Leasehold Reform Act 2002. The rules set out who can qualify, how notices are served, and what happens if the statutory conditions are met. In broad terms, you are either in scope and can follow the defined steps, or you are not — there is less room for “maybe” than an informal agreement. This site summarises those rules in plain English; it does not replace the legislation or professional advice. For first-pass criteria, check if your building qualifies; for a longer walkthrough, see our right to manage guide on the blog.

Who RTM is for

RTM needs at least one leaseholder willing to coordinate, enough neighbours to meet the participation thresholds, and a group prepared to form and run an RTM company — it is not something you subscribe to passively. Everyone does not have to dive in from day one, but somebody does need to take the organisational lead, and the law sets minimum levels of backing before you can complete the claim.

What RTM is not

• It is not the same as collective enfranchisement (buying the freehold) — see above for how they differ.
• It does not guarantee a particular managing agent or outcome — it is a structured process with fixed steps.
• It is not a substitute for legal, surveying or financial advice where you need it.

After acquisition

Once RTM succeeds, leaseholders steer the RTM company. Many groups retain a managing agent but appoint on their own terms — retendering when performance slips — while others prefer to self-manage aspects of the block and buy in accountants or caretaking only where useful. Conversations sometimes mention savings in the region of forty to fifty per cent compared with historic spend; outcomes really do vary by building, contracts, and how transparently work is procured. What is consistent is that decisions sit with people who live there.

Taking the next step

The formal route runs through prescribed notices and waiting periods. Read how the process works for the sequence, use the notice templates wizard when you are ready to draft paperwork for your building, and keep the handbook-style guide open as a reference while you plan dates and neighbour conversations.