Owning a property can be expensive, in fact it’s probably the most expensive purchase you’ll ever make, and the costs don’t stop at the sale price. The running costs of a home, at any size, can be a strain on your finances and when it comes to your monthly bills, you want the best price possible.
When it comes to protecting your most valuable asset, your home, ensuring you have the right property factor in place is incredibly important, not just in the service provided but also in the price you are paying.
In this blog post, we explore what can influence the cost of property management services, the misconceptions between factor fees and management fees and the questions you should be asking to determine not whether your property factor is expensive, but whether your property factor is good value for money.
What is the role of a property factor?
A property factor or property management service, plays a crucial role in maintaining the shared spaces of your property. For example, at Taylor & Martin we facilitate a wide range of general upkeep such as gutter cleaning, landscaping & gardening, maintenance of equipment such as lifts, door entries and gates. Plus, ongoing property maintenance, proactive maintenance projects, repairs caused by wear and tear over time, plus urgent issues that need to be actioned quickly.
As part of their ongoing maintenance of their managed properties, factors will arrange regular site visits to ensure that the property meeting safety and compliance standards.
They will also manage finances such as handling management fees, ensuring contractors are paid and often managing a sinking fund for the development.
At Taylor & Martin we work in partnership with a trusted broker to find homeowners the most suitable building and property owners liability insurance. Once the right insurer is identified, we support with instruction, claims handling and renewals. We can also handle any claims from start to finish.
Taylor & Martin receives no commission or mark ups on facilitating insurance policies or any other contracted work. Only the management fee, which is detailed further in the blog post, goes directly to Taylor & Martin.
It is also important for property factors to have great relationships with contractors and manage those relationships effectively, to ensure that they are relying on the best service providers. They also work with estate agents and solicitors on a regular basis, especially when it comes to the legalities of selling and buying factored properties.
What are my factor fees?
Understanding the costs associated with your property factor and the breakdown of these costs is very important as well as the terminology associated with ‘factor fees’. The common misconception is that all fees paid are due directly to the factor, but the factor acts as an agent and recharges services on behalf of owners. At Taylor & Martin we work hard to ensure that our invoicing is clearly structured and that there are no hidden charges. For example, your quarterly charges will include your apportionment of costs for:
- Communal buildings insurance
- Communal cleaning
- Annual gutter cleaning
- Communal ground maintenance
- Any other regular maintenance
- Taylor & Martin management fee
Only your management fee goes directly to your property factor, all other charges are paid to the relevant supplier which we receive zero commission for and no mark ups are applied.
You can also find out more about sinking funds and floats in our handy FAQs section.
What should my management fee cover?
In the case of Taylor & Martin, our management fee covers:
- Arranging and administering maintenance and repair of communal areas of the property
- Arranging and administering insurance provision via an appointed insurance broker on behalf of homeowners
- Assisting in the administration of common buildings insurance, in relation to common parts
- Liaising with contractors and tendering for competitive price and service
- Entering into contracts with contractors and service suppliers
- Checking work undertaken by appointed contractors has been completed to a satisfactory standard and invoices are accurate
- Dealing with homeowner’s complaints regarding inadequate work or services undertaken by a contractor or service supplier
- Arranging for prompt payment of all contractor and service supplier invoices
- Issuing of accurate accounts on a quarterly basis, including all associated fees to the property
- Following Taylor & Martin’s debt recovery procedure including working together with solicitors and taking time to pursue outstanding debts on behalf of owners
- Providing regular communications with all homeowners
- Meeting homeowners, contractors, and other third parties where required.
- Provide homeowners with advice on maintenance works that may be necessary ranging from general garden maintenance, replanting, tree surveys and modification works.
- Facilitate, chair and provide minutes of Homeowners Meetings
- Providing out of hours emergency call service
- Collect and administering homeowner’ advance funds and sinking/reserve funds where appropriate
Can I see exactly where my money is being spent?
Your bills should be simple and transparent, and you should be able to request a breakdown of what you are paying and why. If there are any unexpected changes, you should be notified of these in advance. At Taylor & Martin, this is something we endeavour to achieve for all of our homeowners.
It is also important to check the agreement for regular scheduled maintenance, when this should happen, and which contractor is responsible. If you feel that the level of service is not as expected, or things are being missed, you should report this to your factor.
Also consider how reactive they are in an emergency; can you reach them out of hours? What is their communication like when you are reporting issues? At Taylor & Martin we have dedicated property managers assigned to each development who care for a select portfolio of properties to ensure they can communicate regularly. Our phone lines divert to a member of staff 24/7 for any out of hours emergencies.
What can I do if I’m not happy with my current property factor?
If you are unhappy with your current provider, whether that’s through poor service or you’ve established you’re not getting value for money, switching is possible. In many cases, you only need the majority vote from your neighbours to make the change.
Just like any other service provider, start by checking your agreement for notice periods or any associated fees.
At Taylor & Martin we can make switching to us very easy, and can help with writing letters, using the right terminology, and communicating with your neighbours.
Choose a property factor that cares for your shared spaces and protects your home like it’s their own. Contact us today about Taylor & Martin and we will be happy to provide a comprehensive management proposal including the services we offer, associated fees, estimated costs and the simple steps for switching.