Flat-Living.co.uk Interview A look back on leasehold
Brett Williams is the outgoing chairman of the Association of Residential Managing Agents (ARMA). After three years in the role, he is proud of ARMA’s increasing influence in the managed property sector.
work closely with other property bodies, such as RICS and the Association of Retirement Housing Managers (ARHM). I have also added to the work of previous chairmen to continually improve the external perception of managing agents. One of ARMA’s key aims is to promote that we are truly professional customer-focused service providers and it is the ARMA Chairman’s role to convince the rest of the world that the ARMA members are better than the rest!
How is the market changing for managing agents?
What is your professional background and how long have you been involved with ARMA?
I am a Chartered Surveyor and a partner with Curry & Partners, which manages in excess of 10,000 flats across more than 250 developments in 30 counties. Based in Birmingham, I have 20 years experience in the property market. I have always been involved in block management and have specialised in this sector for about 10 years. Curry & Partners joined ARMA in 1998 and I have been actively involved in ARMA for a number of years, became chairman of the Technical Committee, was elected to Council and became Chairman in 2007.
What have been the key achievements of ARMA under your stewardship?
Milestones during the last three years have been: ARMA’s growing membership – earlier this year we exceeded 250 member firms; the substantially enhanced technical support now provided to members; our increasing influence on all matters relating to residential leasehold management; and most importantly the introduction of a mandatory ombudsman scheme since the beginning of 2010. I have thoroughly enjoyed my
chairmanship and have been lucky to meet and work with a wide range of professional and dedicated people.
What have you personally been able to bring to the role of chairman?
I have helped encourage membership outside the South East and have strived to
The market has been changing for a number of years, growing in size and complexity – and we also have a shifting client base with well over 60% of the blocks of flats members manage, now controlled by lessees through RMCos or RTMCos. The two big changes we have been looking for in the form of statutory regulation and new requirements for holding and accounting for lessee money, have regrettably been abandoned by the new government. As a result we are now working with the Property Standards Board and also the ICAEW, RICS and clearing banks to fill the void the Coalition has created.
How has the recession affected your members and what support has ARMA been able to provide?
The recession has not had a huge impact on ARMA members as there will always be blocks of flats and they will always need managing. New business from developers dried up for a while, but we were not as badly affected as the vast majority of property professionals. That said, our clients’ cash flows have been hit to a certain extent, where some lessees are finding it hard to pay their service charges. Support for members has not had to change, with the emphasis still on technical advice and guidance.
Do you anticipate that the new policies of the coalition government will have an impact on your sector?
Yes, but in a completely negative way. There is to be no statutory regulation, no accounting rules and at present no will for
the government to give all lessees access to an ombudsman scheme. The Housing Minister has written to me to say that the Government looks to organisations such as ARMA to do these things on its behalf.
Do you expect the sector to expand in future and if so what will ARMA be doing to secure new members?
I do expect to see growth in property management but I am concerned by the dangers of ‘pop-up’ leasehold property managers. With the housing market expected to stay becalmed in 2010, those involved in other areas of the residential property sector will continue to look for alternative sources of revenue. The Association of Residential Letting
Agents (ARLA) has warned of an influx of unregulated estate agents entering the lettings market. Now we are voicing similar sentiments over estate agents and even letting agents seeking to bolster their income streams by entering the leasehold sector. As a result, over the past 18 months ARMA has seen the percentage of firms enquiring about membership reach an all time high. However, residential leasehold management is highly complex and fraught with myriad technical and legislative requirements. A couple of days training is far from enough to equip new entrants into the sector. We have a strict requirement that any applicant firm must have two years proven experience before we will consider an application for corporate membership. ARMA does offer affiliation status, giving new entrants access to ARMA’s technical support and training and leading to full membership after two years. There will always be a need for quality entrants into our profession, which is why we actively promote careers in property management to school leavers and graduates. These careers are now professionally led through the examinations run by and qualifications offered by the Institute of Residential Property Management (IRPM), which now has more than 1800 members.
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