A Blocks Online Alternative for Self-Managed Blocks
3 July 2026 · 6 min read
Blocks Online is a well-established, award-winning UK block management suite — built by residential managing agents for residential managing agents. It does service charges, ground rent demands, credit control, supplier invoices, financial reporting and a property portal. If managing blocks is your profession, that depth earns its keep. If you are a volunteer director of one building, most of it is built for someone else's job.
What Blocks Online is built for
- Managing agents and property management companies running portfolios.
- Full service charge and ground rent accounting.
- Credit control and supplier invoice tracking.
- A leaseholder property portal and ticketing.
Why self-managed blocks look for an alternative
Self-managed blocks and RMCs usually already have an accountant for the books. They do not need credit control workflows designed for an agent chasing hundreds of leaseholders, and pricing is quote-based through the provider rather than instant and free. What they actually struggle with is simpler: getting residents to read notices, recording votes, and keeping documents findable.
A communication-first alternative
CommonCouncil is not an accounting suite — it is the communication and governance layer for a single block. Announcements every resident sees, recorded votes with a permanent tally, a document library, and AI that turns a forwarded contractor email into a draft update. It is free during early access and set up in minutes, with no onboarding project. See the full side-by-side on our CommonCouncil vs Blocks Online comparison.