BEST PRACTICE SPONSOR 2020
THE PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW
Highlighting best practice
22 | CENTRAL HOUSING GROUP
local authorities. We fully understand
our local authority clients’ concerns and
we are not simply driven by financial
motives but also by a genuine desire to
assist their tenants and help to manage
many of the housing issues they face.
Understanding leads to quality
This understanding was central to
our original decision to establish our
business. We fully understood and
shared the key housing objectives of
local authorities and we knew we could
procure higher quality properties than
our competitors but remain more price
competitive and we also knew that
as a consequence of the relationships
we had developed during our time
working for Barnet Council we could
be entrusted to deliver these services
to a superior standard. Drawing on our
collective experience, we recognised that
the letting process could be improved
and we wanted to lead the charge.
Our original confidence has been
validated by our company performance.
In 2014 and in 2019 we won awards
from the UK Landlord Accreditation
Partnership as Best Green Agent,
both awards that recognise our
work to improve the standard of our
property stock and our commitment
to engagement in a variety of green
initiatives. Our work has included the
extensive installation of loft insulation,
environmentally higher graded gas
central heating systems and the latest,
more energy efficient Dimplex electric
night storage heaters, all free of
charge to landlords, thereby improving
the overall energy standard of their
properties and also reducing energy bills,
to the financial benefit of our tenants.
These measures demonstrate our
commitment to both the landlords we
work with and to our tenants. Many
agents are not willing to go this extra
mile but we understand the wider
benefits and have therefore always
been committed to improving the
energy status of the properties we
manage. As the government continually
improves the required EPC standard,
we thought we would be proactive and
aim to ensure our properties meet and
even exceed environmental and safety
regulation well into the future.
We have instigated a regimented culture
of inspection for the properties that we
manage and every property is inspected
The Central Housing
Group team
The regulatory
environment
can be likened
to snakes and
ladders
“
“
23CENTRAL HOUSING GROUP |
every two months at the very least. This
forms part of our contract with local
authorities but it also helps us to prevent
any maintenance problems before they
arise, identifying issues at an early stage.
Much like with our desire to improve
the energy ratings of our properties, we
focus on being proactive rather than
reactive, getting to the root of the issue
rather than waiting for it to develop
into something more serious. This focus,
and our commitment to carrying out
all improvements thoroughly, are key
aspects of our best practice.
Adapting to an ever-changing
regulatory environment
Over the last 20 years there has been
a constant flow of new legislation that
has been introduced by successive
governments. There are now in excess
of 175 different pieces of legislation
that affect property letting and we
have to continually adapt to ensure we
remain compliant. For a typical landlord,
with a few properties at most, it has
becoming increasingly complicated to
comply with this ever-changing and
demanding regulatory landscape. There
are many problematic requirements that
have been introduced. For instance, if a
landlord applies to court for possession
of their property, there are several new
details that must be satisfied and if
any are overlooked, the proceedings
can be dismissed by the court. The
regulatory environment can be likened
to snakes and ladders, so if you’re not
careful, you can easily fall into trouble.
These issues are exacerbated for
smaller landlords. When you own one
or two properties, keeping pace with
this changing legislative environment
can be particularly difficult: legislation
designed for larger concerns can often
choke their smaller counterparts.
We have worked hard to support
our clients through this. Fortunately,
because of the high standard at which
we work, we are able to routinely deal
with a lot of these issues. Furthermore,
some local authorities offer exemptions
on their landlord licensing schemes, in
their respective boroughs, for properties
that are let by specialist agents like us,
because we believe they recognise that
these properties already meet or even
exceed their required standards for use
as temporary accommodation.
As we look ahead, we remain firmly
committed to maintaining the high
standard of our properties and the
way in which we manage them. Every
property we procure must be of a
certain standard in order to maintain
this quality. Beyond this, each landlord
needs to understand the way we work.
This understanding helps to foster
long term relationships and this model
has proven to be a success: many of
our landlords have been with us since
our inception. Although our primary
focus is consolidating the progress we
have made, we also remain aware of
any growth opportunities that arise,
specifically seeking new properties
to replace lost housing stock when
landlords leave the sector.
We remain
firmly
committed to
maintaining
the high
standard of
our properties
and the way in
which we
manage them
“
“
Winners, Best Green
Agent, UKLAP awards
2019
»ACCREDITATIONS
»Members of Safeagent
»Members of the Property Redress Scheme
»London Landlord Accreditation Scheme Approved
»Members of the UK Association of Letting Agents
»ISO 9001:2015 certified – management standard
»ISO 14001:2015 certified – environmental standard
Rt Hon The Lord David Blunkett
Rt Hon The Lord Eric Pickles
