Utilities & administration
The paperwork of a home, kept in hand.
Practical assistance with utility accounts, service providers and property-related bills, including the organisation of payments where authorised.
The problem
Household admin does not stop because you have gone home.
Electricity, water, gas, internet, the alarm company, the pool invoice. A Portuguese household generates steady correspondence, not always in your language and not always on a schedule that suits you. A letter that lies unopened in a post box, or a supplier who cannot reach you, can turn something simple into something awkward.
We help keep everyday household administration under control. We can be the contact your suppliers call, help you understand what has arrived, and make sure that what needs your attention reaches you.
What we can help with
Day-to-day support.
Providers and accounts
- Liaison with utility and service providers
- Help with arranging or changing household services
- Scheduling meter readings and supplier visits
- Help communicating with local suppliers
Invoices and payments
- Keeping track of property-related invoices
- Passing on what needs your decision
- Organising payments you have authorised
- Keeping you informed of what has been paid
In practice
Situations this helps with.
A letter you cannot place
A notice arrives from a supplier while you are abroad. We can tell you what has come in and help you work out who should deal with it.
The internet needs a technician
Your connection has failed and the provider needs someone to let the technician in. We can arrange that visit and be there to provide access.
Several small bills
You would rather not handle every invoice individually. Under an agreed arrangement, we can organise authorised payments and keep you up to date.
Authority and limits
Your money stays under your control.
We only organise payments you have authorised, and only in the way set out in your agreement. We do not hold open-ended authority over your finances, and what we may do on your behalf will be agreed with you in writing.
This is practical household support. It is not legal, tax or accounting advice, and it does not replace your lawyer, accountant or tax representative. Where a matter calls for one of them, we will tell you.
Hand over the routine, and keep the decisions.