Change of your landlord

When did the change happen?

The change took place on Wednesday 27th March 2024.

Will the services Legal & General Affordable Homes offer me change from the services I received from Orbit?

Like your previous landlord, we are a provider of affordable homes (a Registered Provider). We offer an equivalent range of services to those provided by Orbit.

Who are Flagship Homes?

Flagship Homes is also a provider of affordable homes and owns over 30,000 properties. They work across the South of England and have built strong relationships with local partners and communities. For Legal & General Affordable Homes, Flagship Homes oversee all the landlord related services on our behalf, and they are your main point of contact for any general queries.

Who should I contact if I have a question about this change?

If you have questions, the easiest way is to raise a query through My Brolly. This is our online customer portal and further details about how to register for this will be provided soon. If you have any urgent queries, you can contact Flagship Homes using their contact details below:

– Email: LandG.info@flagship-homes.co.uk
– Phone: 0808 196 2229

Contacting Legal & General Affordable Homes

If you have any queries related to your home or the service we provide, the easiest way to contact us is through My Brolly. You will receive login details shortly so you can access this portal.

Once logged in you can use the Help & Queries section to raise your query.

Will the way I pay my rent change?

Yes, you will no longer pay your rent to Orbit as you do now. You will be able to pay us in one of two ways – either by Direct Debit (see below) or by card directly online in My Brolly.

What will happen with my current Direct Debit?

As part of the transfer from Orbit, unfortunately, we did not receive your current Direct Debit details from them. This is because they use a separate account system, so we will ask you to provide your bank details so we can set this up directly. This can be done easily through My Brolly once we have sent you your login details.

The amount of rent you pay will not be affected, but the day of the month we ask you to pay might change – we collect all Direct Debit Payments on or shortly after the 1st working day of the month.

I am in credit/arrears on my rent account, will this all transfer to Legal & General Affordable Homes?

Yes, your closing balance with Orbit will be transferred to us. If you had a credit on your account with Orbit you would still be in credit with us and if you are in arrears, Flagship Homes will work with you to agree on a plan moving forward.

Can I download a copy of my rent statement?

Yes, once you are registered on My Brolly, you can visit the Account & Profile page and click on ‘Rent Statements’ at the top of that page.

Will my rent and service charge change?

Your rent and service charge will not immediately change as a result of the transfer to Legal & General Affordable Homes Ltd.

Any future rent increase will still apply as per the conditions of your lease. Your service charge is based on the costs of delivering services, which are reviewed and reconciled annually. You will receive formal notification in advance of any increases, in line with your lease.

The management fee you pay as part of your service charge will change as it is based on the costs we pay Flagship Homes to look after your home. This cost will be different to the charges Orbit applied. This is set out in more detail below.

You say our service charge management fee will change, why is this and by how much?

As a result of the sale of your home from Orbit to Legal & General Affordable Homes, some elements of your service charge will increase, as mentioned during the consultation process. The two areas impacted are the management fee and insurance costs and the changes are set out below.

Management Fee cost

The management fee you were paying covered the cost Orbit charged for managing your home. During their consultation process, Orbit confirmed that if they had remained as your landlord their management fee was due to increase to a similar level to the charge we will apply.

The fee Flagship Homes charge for managing your home is £426.06 including VAT per annum. We appreciate this is considerably more than your previous charge. This will not be applied until we complete our reconciliation process of service charge costs in September 2024.

This management fee will also increase in line with inflation each year and you will be notified as part of your annual rent and service charge notification.

Buildings Insurance cost

Within your service charge costs, Orbit charged you a fee for building insurance. This does not include any home contents cover which is your responsibility to take out for yourself.

These costs will increase but we are committed to reducing the impact of this for you. So, we will keep the charge for the insurance portion of your service charge the same as it is now for two years after the date of the transfer (the 27^th March 2024).

When the new insurance charge is set to be introduced, this will be based on the market conditions at the time, and we will notify you on what this change in cost will be.

I receive Housing Benefit or Universal Credit to support with the payment of rent, what should I do?

If you receive either of these payments directly to you, you will need to ensure that you pay us directly using the payment options listed above.

If these payments are made directly to Orbit you will need to contact the relevant agency and change the landlord to Legal & General Affordable Homes. This will ensure that any payments are allocated to us correctly. If you are unsure on how to progress this, please contact Flagship Homes and they will explain what needs to be done.   

Will you receive my contact details?

Yes, we have received your email and phone number from Orbit as part of this transfer. It is important to ensure that your contact details are up to date, so please check your phone and email address on the letter provided and if these are blank or incorrect, please contact Flagship Homes on the details above so it can be updated.

Will my lease for the home change?

No, your lease remains the same and we will take over responsibility for this from the transfer date.

Can I still sell my home?

Yes, as your lease conditions are unchanged, you are able to sell your home as per the clauses in your lease. If you would like to discuss this with someone, you can raise a query via My Brolly and Flagship Homes will contact you to discuss the steps needed to progress a sale.

Do I still have the option to staircase and buy more of my home?

Yes, this is dependent on your lease conditions and if there are any restrictions to staircasing. However, if you are able to buy more of your home, and your lease allows this, then we are happy to discuss next steps on how to apply for this. If you would like to discuss this with someone, you can raise a query via My Brolly and Flagship Homes will contact you.

I live in a flat and the block was not owned or managed by Orbit, is this now changing?

No, Legal & General Affordable Homes have bought the leasehold interest in your specific property and not any further communal areas within apartment blocks. The company which manages your block will remain unchanged and if you contact them directly to discuss any wider estate management matters, you can continue using this same contact.

If Orbit previously owned the freehold of your block, then this will be transferred to us.

My Brolly is an online customer portal, which will allow everyone living in one of our homes to log on at any time and manage most aspects of their home – from reporting a repair, asking a question and paying rent – everything will be in one place.

Can I report issues in my home using My Brolly?

As a shared owner, most problems that occur in your home will be your responsibility to repair.

If you have an issue in your home that needs to be repaired which you think we are responsible for, you can let us know by logging into My Brolly and clicking on the ‘Report a New Fault’ button.

Can I edit my contact details in My Brolly?

It’s important to keep your contact details up to date. You can update your email and/or phone number by clicking on the Account & Profile section in My Brolly.

Can I update who lives with me in My Brolly?

You can directly update your household members, should anyone move out or if someone moves in with you. You can visit the Account & Profile section and navigate to ‘Household Members’. Here you can click ‘Add more’ to let us know that someone else has moved in with you, or ‘Remove’ if someone has moved out.

What if I don’t have a login or password to use My Brolly?

If you have not received a link to log into My Brolly, please email customercare@landgah.com and we will arrange to re-send the details to you.

Can anyone else in my household also register to use My Brolly so we have more than one account?

Yes, if there is a joint shared owner, they can also have full access to My Brolly. To do this, the current account holder can visit the Account & Profile page and click ‘Provide My Brolly Access.’ Access can only be provided for another joint owner and no other household member.

How is my data processed?

Your data is processed in line with our privacy policy.