Matthew Saye Director of Citystyle What service should we offer and what does an excellent service mean today? CIH Home Ownership and Leasehold Management Conference 3 February 2015
This workshop Why the need for change? Where are we currently? Interactive Your views. The five big questions. A practitioner s perspective keep that in mind!
The aims To show how things can and do change. To think about what we provide customers. Lots of examples Hopefully with some good ideas. To think about how we deliver Home Ownership Services. To look at some of the issues. Be positive about the future.
The past where we came from Limited expertise. Once mono-tenure. Low profile / organisational priority. Limited customer focus. Desire to improve / achieve?
A poor relationship Sometimes things were very bad! Confusion. Frustration. Clear dissatisfaction with service. This added up to not a lot No stars in fact!
Homeowners The challenge They have a vested interest. Maybe no experience of social housing. They have more rights. Landlords have additional obligations. More complexity.
What changed? Growth of portfolios. Reorganisations. Looking at the role and the whole business. More results orientated. Commitment to improving & achieving.
Legislation & Regulation Strengthening of primary legislation. Response to these challenges. Audit Commission and KLOEs 12 & 14. Housing & Regeneration Act 2008. TSA and HCA.
External environment Budget deficit. Grant funding. HRA reform. Still a failure in housing supply. Different responses - diversification.
Current situation Wide range of housing providers. More tenures and products. To build or not to build? Commercialisation. Competition?
The big questions 1) Generic or specialist? 2) Service charge construction? 3) A property management role? 4) Management of alternative tenures? 5) Full management of home owner blocks?
Generic or specialist? Main debate historically. Driven by demands of managing mixed tenures. Lots of organisations have changed approach. Do as much as you can? What functions to centralise? The importance of good management.
Some examples of functions Legal work. Consultation. Leaseholder participation. Service charge construction. Income recovery work.
More examples Home purchase schemes. Third party contracts. TMOs. Marketing. Agency services.
Specialisation The pros Knowing who to contact & a clearer brief. Growth of skills, knowledge & expertise. More control & clear responsibility. One team leading. More flexibility in service delivery.
Specialisation The cons What do they do? Profile brings scrutiny. Demands of true frontline service. Other service areas can look to opt out. Organisation adapting to different approaches.
Your views? Q1 Specialist or generic? What does your organisation do? Specialist or generic? What do you believe is the best approach?
Service charge construction? Service charges are at the heart of good leasehold management. The right profession? Where does the complexity lie? The internal relationships? Delivering a customer service. Challenges.
Your views? Q2 Who constructs service charges? What does your organisation do? Who constructs service charges? What do you believe is the best approach?
Should you manage? Most home ownership services evolved for other reasons. Can be specialist without being on the ground. More straightforward to implement. Can end up with the same frustrations as other areas. Is it clear for the customer?
Your views? Q3 Should home ownership services manage property? What does your organisation do? Should home ownership services manage property? What do you believe is the best approach?
Tenures to manage Long leaseholders Home purchase schemes Outright sale developments Shared equity products Shared ownership Equity share Social HomeBuy Intermediate products Rent to HomeBuy Key Worker Intermediate Rent
Tenures to manage Social / Affordable rented. Supported / Sheltered housing. Market Rent ASTs. Commercial space / units Inc. Your offices. Freeholders.
Don t forget.. Community facilities. Garages. Pram sheds. Parking spaces. Lock ups.
Owned & managed? 3 rd parties LA / ALMO / HA not the freeholder. Any legal interest in sites. Mixed management of site. Managing agents. Ground rents.
Your views? Q4 Management of alternative tenures? What does your organisation do? Management of alternative tenures? What do you believe is the best approach?
Full management? The next big shift? Even the most successful services can still struggle. Service standards. What does it mean for the social tenants? Ahead of the curve or a step too far?
How mixed tenure evolved Large purpose municipal built estates. Large estates staged growth and infill. Street properties. New social only schemes with odd sales. New schemes defined by grant / S106 / ethos. Mainly outright sale.
Homeowners & mixed tenure Different expectations higher? More complexity robust legal rights. Service charges at the heart of management. High proportion of first time buyers. Think they are paying for everyone else?
Your views? Q5 Full management of home owner blocks? What does your organisation do? Full management of home owner blocks? What do you believe is the best approach?
What do customers want? The more contact the better? Customer involvement in shaping services? Should we know best? Responsive, modern, flexible, accessible. Obviously a social landlord?
Delivering management Alternative tenures no longer marginal. Housing Directorates and their set up. Set out your service offering. Can one size now ever fit all? Beyond specialist teams.
Commercialisation Can we be truly commercial? Social business / enterprise model. Expenditure or the bottom line. Can one size now ever fit all? PR and politics.
The future No going back? Consolidation. Traditional work the minority. The government. Privatisation.
Things to consider Important points what services to provide. Economies of scale. Overall benefit is clear / ideology. Sourcing the right staff and management. The customer. Proper support and internal services.
Our approach to management What did we decide was best? Any views on the future? Any questions? Thank you for listening