Featured Articles

John Mills of the Association of Retirement Housing Managers despairs at this latest Government debacle. The Home Information Pack (HIP) saga limps along. As you recall anyone putting their flat up for sale after June 1, 2007 was to be required to have a HIP available before marketing commenced. But on the May 22 the Government announced a series of changes and a delay until August 1, 2007. This was after the Minister responsible had argued for and won a vote to implement HIPs. So this is how it stands:

Buy-to-let has never been more popular: there are more than a million buy-to-let properties in the UK, and buy-to-let mortgages total over £85bn. News on the Block recently met two investors who are breaking new ground in this area. Buy-to-let mortgages have been around since 1996, but have dramatically changed the shape of residential property investment. They have provided the man in the street easier access to property investments than ever before and these days it’s not unusual for people to own a se

Property management issues will be addressed in a special breakout session at Property Week’s RESI 07 conference for which the full programme has now been unveiled. Improvement in property management is seen as vital in attracting more institutional investment into the sector. Howard Morgan, managing director of the Real Service Group, will lead the workshop on ‘Modernising Management’ that features Nicolas Shulman, founder of News on the Block, Roger Southam, MD of Chainbow and Liz McAllum, director of

The residents of a block of flats in Bayswater are celebrating the successful recovery of commercial rates amounting to a staggering £86,414.80. County Estate Management (CEM) was appointed as the managing agent of the building in July 2004. Having reviewed the budgets and expenditure, CEM queried with the residents why commercial rates were being applied and paid for in respect of the health club situated at 50 Kensington Garden Square (50 KGS). In conjunction with Nick Clabbon and Company, a specialist

Peverel OM’s interactive customer website, Avenue, has won this year’s RICS Award for Property Management Strategy and Delivery – Private Sector. Managing director at Peverel, Lee Middleburgh said: “As a leading agent in the property management field, it is important we look for new and innovative ways in which to deliver quality management services to our residents and clients. Avenue has been so well received that we are already developing the site to offer even greater functionality.” Adam Cooper at

Residents of Britannia Village – a development of 850 homes in East London – are keeping a watchful eye on newly appointed management company, Chainbow, as the firm sets about transforming life at the Village. Chainbow has been selected by the new directors of the Britannia Village Managing Companies (the leaseholders) to make the site safer, cleaner and a more pleasant place to live. Roger Southam, chairman and chief executive of Chainbow said: “When a development has been through an unsettled phase,

Jordans has entered into a contract to provide company administration services for Crest Nicholson residential developments across the southeast. Jordans will provide company secretary administration and accounting services for more than 30 companies that Crest Nicholson have set up to manage residential sites. Lee Grove of Jordans said: “The consequences of not keeping your property management company in good order can be disastrous. The Companies Act imposes a wide range of obligations on all companies

Q Tell us about your background and how you came to your role at Crabtree? A After leaving school I studied at Moray House College in Edinburgh and then moved to London in 1985. I took up a position managing a community centre in Neasden. After two challenging years I decided I wanted a career break. Friends suggested I might make a good property manager and I applied for a job at Simmonds and Partners. I found I was able to combine my people skills with my interest in buildings. After the company was ta

Richard Benson, estate management director of Kinleigh Folkard & Hayward, provides expert advice on block insurance from a managing agent’s viewpoint. When buying a home within a block of flats one of the most important questions to ask is regarding the insurance; who is responsible for buildings insurance, is there a block insurance policy and ultimately, what is the leaseholder covered for by the freeholder, head lessor or management company?   As a legal requirement, it is not possible to get a mor

Brevent Insurance, the UK’s leading independent specialists in apartment block insurance, has shaped a number of unique policies with leading insurers to meet the needs of the flat and mixed-use property sector. Ian Reid, Brevent’s MD, warns leaseholders to check what they are paying for.   We regularly receive requests from leaseholders to help them resolve matters when they find out that they are paying for two buildings insurance policies on their flat. This is known as dual insurance and occurs when

County Estate Management (CEM) has responded to the growing need of resident management companies to insure buildings under a competitive, tailor-made policy. CEM has partnered with Oamps Special Risks to bring an insurance solution to the residential sector. The product has been devised for a residential estate consisting of approximately 400 units. The estate is insured for property, terrorism, liability, engineering and directors and officers liability. At this property, three out of five phases have

The traditional way in which flats are being purchased and managed is putting pressure on residents and tenants as they take up responsibility for the insurance and management of the block. Stuart Alexander, an independent Insurance Broking firm, is tackling the issues surrounding this added level of responsibility for residents and tenants, and have developed a new insurance product called Flatprotect. Flatprotect focuses on the fact that right to manage companies, residents’ associations and flat-owne