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Grosvenor Systems, the team behind one of the UK’s leading property management systems, Propman, has launched a series of free seminars to help property managers embrace technology.  The ‘Introduction to property management software’ seminars taking place at 30 Euston Square in London, will demonstrate to property professionals how technology can transform time-consuming and complex processes.   Nic Dodwell, Managing Director of Grosvenor Systems, comments:    “As the role of property management is beco

Lots of properties now have Double Glazed Windows and Doors but a common problem is condensation and white marks between the two layers of glass of the sealed units. This is known as the units have “blown”, Failed”, “Misted”, “Broken Down” the reason for units let’s call it “misting” is due to the Sun, let me explain in plain English, the Sun comes out and the sealed unit gets very hot inside and expands, then the Sun goes in so the units becomes cooler and contracts, it’s like a continuing pumping of the

QUESTION We are long leaseholders 999 years and have a Managing Agent and Directors are working together. They do not invite the leaseholders who pay service charges for the AGM and they are also controlling the Freehold Company. Although they only hold a unit the same as us. They have made themselves life Directors and control the building themselves. They have also made a Management Company where they are also Directors. No election or AGM is called for. The building leaseholders are never invited, nor

QUESTION I am a leaseholder, currently experiencing many and complex leasehold problems and problems with freeholder neighbours harassing me. My health is suffering badly and I feel I need advice. I am being harassed on a daily basis by freeholder neighbours all day every day, from very early in the morning until very late at night. If I play any music at all or have the radio on it gets worse or I get reported to the management committee and we are just going round and round and round in the same situati

One of the UK’s prominent residential ground rent investors who enjoyed a glittering career heading finance departments of some of the country’s top PLCs has admitted to grooming a teenage girl for sex. Julius Gottlieb resigned as managing director of Dorchester Ground Rent Management after he was arrested when he went to meet the 14-year-old, whom he believed he had been chatting with online. In fact, he had been chatting with a group of men dedicated to exposing child molesters. Gottlieb helped establis

Three companies were fined more than £1m after a worker died and two others were seriously injured when a temporary platform collapsed at an apartment construction site. Southwark Crown Court heard that in October 2012, a carpenter and a steel-fixer were standing on a temporary wooden platform above a stairwell opening on the 9th floor of the site in Putney when it suddenly gave way. Carpenter Justinas Kopickas was killed and Terry Cooper sustained serious injuries. A third worker was struck and serio

An Airbnb host returned from her holidays to find that guests had raided her flat and stolen more than £5,000 worth of electronic equipment. Tour guide Camélia, who did not want to give her surname, returned to the two-bedroom apartment in Islington to find that thieves had taken items including her Apple TV, Macbook Pro, iPhones, an iPad and her perfume. Camélia had agreed to rent the flat – which costs £129 a night – to three people. She told the Evening Standard: “We came in the flat and for the fi

A developer has announced the company that will manage one of London’s most upmarket new apartment blocks. SDL Bigwood will look after the maintenance work and concierge services for the Redrow-built apartments at 205 Holland Park Avenue, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. A total of 50 two- and three-bedroom flats have been built at the development, which includes nine affordable apartments and commercial units on the ground floor. Brett Williams, SDL Bigwood’s executive partner, said: “

A company that specialises in managing retirement housing has celebrated its 10th anniversary with a major milestone. Millstream Management Services (MMS) now manages more than 5,000 apartments across the country. Following additions to its portfolio from Cheshire and Cornwall, MMS has grown to operate 131 retired housing developments and provide services such as co-ordinating lifestyle events to 6,000 people. MMS, which employs 160 people across the UK, reported that it expects to continue to increas

Partners at property law firm Tanfield Chambers are celebrating after being recognised as one of the best for real estate litigation. The London-based firm has been given a Band 3 ranking for its work in residential property by Chambers and Partners UK 2017. The directory, which researches lawyers, said: “Tanfield is highly regarded with an established reputation as enfranchisement and residential property specialists. It is noted for its skill in handling a range of real estate issues from land registr

A law firm that has expertise in leasehold enfranchisement has become the latest member of a professional association that monitors the conduct and service levels of its members. Bennett Griffin LLP, which is based in Worthing, West Sussex, has joined the Association of Leasehold Enfranchisement Practitioners (ALEP). The company was established in 1990 after the merger of two local solicitor practices to provide both corporate and individual clients with legal issues and acts for both freeholders and

Owners of flats who extend the lease of their apartment are likely to face an extra bill if their premium exceeds £40,000 thanks to changes in the law surrounding stamp duty. Legal experts have highlighted that if homeowners apply to extend the lease of their main residence, they will be caught out new stamp duty land tax (SDLT) laws if it meets certain criteria, and will have to pay the higher rate if they own another property. The new higher rate of stamp duty – which is known as the surcharge – was