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I wrote a few weeks ago about the £1.4bn windfall coming the way of fat cat broadband providers happy to hit their customers with above-inflation contract price increases of 20% or more. Is this linked to the provision of faster broadband speeds? Well, no. Customers will carry on receiving the same service at a higher cost, including those who currently get nothing close to the hyperfast speeds offered by gigabit-capable broadband. Worse still, customers wishing to cancel these contracts and switch elsewh

You may think that flooding only affects those in low-lying or coastal areas, but the reality is that it’s also common in a lot of built up areas too. As well as natural water sources like lakes and rivers overflowing, blocked street drains and extreme rain can also cause flooding, which affects those living in cities and towns.  When apartment buildings experience flooding, the results can be disastrous for both residents and property owners. Luckily, there are several things that you can do to both redu

We are proud to announce The Hill Group has been awarded Gold accredited membership, for the second consecutive year, via The 5% Club’s 2022-23 Employer Audit Scheme. The 5% Club is a dynamic movement of employers, all of whom are inspired to take positive action for increased, inclusive, and accessible workplace training for all. With a membership which now exceeds 750 companies, The 5% Club represents over 1.6 million employees, 93,500 of whom are in “earn and learn” schemes. The Employer Audit is a uni

Nirvana Group Holdings (NGH) has acquired Nirvana Maintenance and Urban Maintenance Group, to continue its expansion into the North West. Nirvana Maintenance provides a full suite of services for residential property managers, including fire safety, M&E, general maintenance/multi-skilled, grounds maintenance and cleaning services. To date, Nirvana Maintenance has maintained 80+ client portfolios across London and the South. By acquiring Manchester-based Urban Maintenance Group, NGH now intends to deliver

The Building Safety Act 2022 (“Act”) introduces a raft of new measures aimed at improving the safety of buildings containing flats. We highlight some of the new requirements:  NEW REQUIREMENT TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO FLAT OWNERS IN HIGHER RISK BUILDINGS The Act includes requirements in relation to the information that must be provided to owners of long leases (flat owners) in higher risk buildings. WHAT IS A HIGHER RISK BUILDING? A higher risk building is one which: Is in England; Is at least 18 metre

Innovative and hi-tech businesses are being urged to seek advice after tax relief for research and development (R&D) was slashed in the Autumn Budget. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced the relief would be cut from 14.5 per cent to 10 per cent from next April and experts at accountants and business advisors Whitley Stimpson say business owners should act quickly to see how they will be affected and assess what can be done to mitigate the impact. Whitley Stimpson Director Jonathan Walton said: “Oxfordshire h

As the cost-of-living crisis bites and house & rent prices soar, many kind-hearted folks came together with the one goal in mind, to support young people and keep them off the streets.  Millennium Point once again played host to the St Basils Homelessness Sleepout where over 400 people from schools, businesses as well as individuals raised much needed funds by sleeping outside in cardboard boxes.  The generous group of fundraises were entertained during the night by The Band of the West Midlands Fire Serv

A chartered building surveyor and engineer with more than 30 years’ experience in external facades and cladding, has written to Housing Secretary Michael Gove to highlight concerns around new regulations such as the Building Safety Act 2022 and the developers’ pledge – Mr Gove’s bid to reset building safety in England. Dorian Lawrence is Managing Director of FRC, which is part of the RSK Group. He is a member of the Property Institute Building Safety Group, along with Mr Gove’s department, the Royal Insti

The Property Management Awards 2022 were held at our glamorous awards ceremony on 24 November 2022 at City Central at the HAC in London.  The awards were hosted by comedian and presenter, Joel Dommett and brought together over 840 people from across the industry, who gathered for the evening to celebrate with their peers and clients.  We would like to extend a huge congratulations to all of our winners and highly commended. Also to everyone who made the shortlist this year. We had a record breaking amount

We are delighted to announce that another Property Manager, Emma Bonham-Grant, has chosen to partner with B-hive for her new business, Domain Property Management.  Emma is based in Manchester and has been a Property Manager for 15 years. For the last 8 years she worked at the HML Group, most recently as Regional Business Development Manager for the North West. Emma’s company is very new and so it is still early days, but she is loving it already and things are going well.  Emma says, “Having only really s

As the Build to Rent market (BTR) continues to grow and offer some relief on the housing shortage market, owners are keen to maximise on their investments in this lucrative rental space. To fully leverage the rental potential in these new builds, it’s important to maintain that ‘new’ finish for as long as possible. Yes, much of this lies in the hands of the residents and setting clear responsibilities from the start but the critical component lies in interim inspections. Interim inspections to detect issu

Marketing and new business director at property group Beresfords, Nicki Treffers, took part in The Elephant Highway Cycle to raise money for UK charity, Norwood. The challenge saw 50 people cycle 568km across Botswana over a five-day period, to collectively raise an incredible £250,000. Norwood supports more than 2,500 vulnerable people and children with learning disabilities and autism, as well as their families who face challenges and require specialist help and advice. The charity delivers a wide range