Rent and Service Charge Accountant

First Choice Homes Oldham; Hartford; Hybrid; GBP 40,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading housing association in the United Kingdom seeks a Rent and Service Charge Accountant to join their Finance team. This hybrid role offers flexibility with work-from-home options and emphasizes the delivery of accurate financial information. Candidates should have AAT Level 4 qualifications and experience in service charge accounting. The position includes responsibilities such as leading the annual budget process, maintaining financial records, and ensuring compliance with regulations. A competitive salary and robust benefits package are offered.

Benefits

Competitive salary

37-hour working week with hybrid options

30 days' annual leave plus bank holidays

Defined contribution pension scheme

Healthcare cash plan

Discounted gym membership

On-site wellbeing room and café

Qualifications

• Experience in rent or service charge accounting or a similar financial role.
• Strong understanding of financial controls, reconciliations, and auditing principles.
• Confident working with large data sets and explaining financial information.

Responsibilities

• Lead the annual budget process for rents and service charges.
• Produce accurate annual rent and service charge calculations.
• Maintain and reconcile rent ledgers, ensuring data integrity.

Skills

Analytical skills

Detail-oriented

Strong Excel capability

Education

AAT Level 4 qualification or equivalent

Part-qualified or qualified by experience (ACCA/CIMA)

Tools

Financial management systems

Housing management systems

Job description

Overview

First Choice Homes Oldham (FCHO) have a fantastic opportunity for a Rent and Service Charge Accountant to join our Finance team and play a key role in delivering accurate, transparent and compliant financial information that supports strong decision-making across the organisation. This is a full-time (37 hours per week) hybrid role, where you'll split your time between home and 2 days per week in our friendly, collaborative office in the centre of Oldham. The impact you'll make In this role, you will ensure the delivery of accurate, compliant and timely rent and service charge accounting across FCHO. You'll lead key areas of annual budget‑setting, financial reporting and reconciliation, while continuously improving our systems, processes and controls. Working alongside colleagues in Finance, Income, Home Ownership, Housing, Development and ICT, you'll help ensure we maintain robust financial integrity and deliver excellent services to customers.

First Choice Homes Oldham (FCHO) is a housing association providing safe, affordable, and high‑quality homes across Oldham and the surrounding areas. We own and manage over 11,500 properties and have the highest regulatory (G1/V1) Governance rating. Every day, we're proud to make a real difference in our communities.

Responsibilities

• Lead the annual budget process for rents, service charges and sinking funds, ensuring compliance with Government Rent Policy and the Regulator's Rent Standard.
• Produce accurate annual rent and service charge calculations, ensuring alignment with tenancy agreements, leases and best practice.
• Oversee the timely upload of all rent and service charge data into relevant systems.
• Calculate leaseholder actuals and address surpluses/deficits as part of the year‑end process.
• Produce monthly management accounts under the supervision of the Finance Business Partner (Revenue), ensuring strong controls and audit trails.
• Report on rental performance, variances, shops, garages and bad debt provision.
• Maintain and reconcile rent ledgers, ensuring data integrity across Finance and Housing Management systems.
• Support development and testing of rent and service charge systems and interfaces, enhancing reporting and controls.
• Build strong working relationships across the business, providing advice and training to colleagues on rent and service charge processes.
• Ensure compliance with financial and audit controls, including reconciliations and validation of system data.
• Respond to service charge queries and complaints, delivering timely and accurate resolutions.
• Undertake site visits to support complaint resolution and ensure data accuracy.
• Lead on setting service charges for new developments and support tariff calculations for district heating systems.
• Support ongoing review of service charge strategy and process improvement.
• Provide guidance, support and development to the Rent & Service Charge Assistant.
• Prepare annual budgets and forecasts for rental income, including shops, garages, leaseholders and void loss.
• Analyse stock data for financial statements and regulatory reporting, including the SDR.
• Support year‑end rental and leaseholder accounts and external audit requirements.
• Contribute to the delivery of excellent financial and management accounting across FCHO.

We need great people to work with us - it's an exciting time to join as we work towards out big ambitions, supporting the growth and prosperity of our local region.

Ideal Candidate

You will be analytical, detail‑oriented and confident working with large data sets, with the ability to explain financial information clearly to a range of audiences. You'll enjoy improving processes, ensuring compliance and delivering high‑quality financial insight.

Qualifications

• AAT Level 4 qualification or equivalent experience / part‑qualified or qualified by experience (ACCA/CIMA).
• Experience in rent or service charge accounting or a similar financial role.
• Strong understanding of financial controls, reconciliations and auditing principles.
• Excellent analytical skills with strong Excel capability.
• Experience working with financial or housing management systems.

Benefits

• Competitive salary
• 37‑hour working week with hybrid working options
• 30 days' annual leave plus one company shutdown day and 8 bank holidays
• Option to purchase additional annual leave
• Defined contribution pension scheme (up to 10% employer contribution)
• Death in service benefit
• Healthcare cash plan and private health insurance
• Access to Doctorline - 24/7 GP support
• Colleague benefits platform with discounts and wellbeing tools
• Discounted gym membership
• Professional subscriptions paid (where essential)
• Enhanced maternity, paternity, adoption and sick pay
• On‑site wellbeing room and café
• Long Service Awards

Salary: £39,781.90

Inclusivity

Inclusion and accessibility We are committed to building an organisation that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives and skills & are proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. As an equal opportunities employer, FCHO is committed to the equal treatment of all current and prospective colleagues and does not condone discrimination on the basis of age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, gender identity, or marriage and civil partnership. We aspire to have a diverse and inclusive workplace and strongly encourage suitably qualified applicants from a wide range of backgrounds to apply and join us.

We care that you have a great experience with us at FCHO and if you need us to make any reasonable adjustments to make your experience smoother, please let us know & we'll do all we can.