Head along the cobbled streets of Brick Lane, in the heart of London’s East End, and you’ll find Encore’s office based in the Capital. Part of the Encore family, alongside our six other offices across England, our London base reflects the vibrancy and dynamism of its setting.
With 44 experts located at our office in the Capital, it’s a hub buzzing with the challenges, trends and successes of property management in London.
With most of the developments managed by our London office located within the M25, the team looks after estates of all different types and sizes: from converted mansion buildings to high rise blocks; new build estates to listed buildings.
As our Regional Director in London, Claire Hamilton, explains: “Our team must be on the ball. Property management in London is as diverse as the capital itself.”
That’s why we spoke with our experts to get to know how property management in the capital is (and isn’t) different, what makes it so dynamic and what they think the future might hold for property management in London…
Health and safety has always been top of the agenda for Encore. But legislative changes introduced as part of the Building Safety Act 2022 have had huge and far-reaching consequences on property management. That has been felt acutely in London, particularly as many of the development’s managed by our team in the capital are high-rise apartment blocks over 18 metres tall.
The changes have meant property managers have had to absorb new knowledge relating to the legislation, and new processes, systems and technology have been implemented to ensure compliance. The financial impact of meeting the regulations must be carefully accounted for at each development and our teams have been project managing remediation works.
Take Building Safety Cases for example: these are a compilation of documents identifying a building’s safety risks, explaining how those risks are being managed. They’re a key requirement recently introduced as part of the Building Safety Act 2022.
Completing these cases has been a priority for the Encore London team in recent months, and it’s been a company-wide effort with experts across Encore involved in delivering these for each development. But the extensive work has been worth it – our proactive approach to compiling what is needed has been praised by clients and consultants alike.
The pace of change started by these changes in building safety legislation isn’t going to stop. Although remediation works to make buildings compliant with new legislation will be completed, the Building Safety Cases and corresponding Resident Engagement Strategies will need to continue to evolve. And a continual focus will need to be placed on them to ensure they’re fulfilled.
At the same time as building safety presents new and changing challenges for property management in London, leaseholders are more knowledgeable. More people now understand what property management entails, what a service charge is and the value it provides.
Although it’s not necessarily a trend exclusive to the capital, London brings with it unique pressures. For instance, there can be higher premiums for securing the right contractors to deliver work at a development in London and the cost of city-living is known to be high. As a result, London leaseholders will often be even more focussed on what value they’re getting for their service charge.
Take a client the London Encore team has been working with since 2023, for instance. Encore took over management from a previous managing agent and have since been working to rectify several inherited financial issues, from overdue service charges to unpaid energy accounts.
Trust was at an all-time low amongst residents at the estate when the handover to Encore commenced, and there was a general unrest amongst leaseholders for transparency over costs and service charges.
Since taking over management of the estate, Encore has worked incredibly closely with the client - the estate’s developer, the previous managing agent and, vitally, the Residents’ Association. Meetings, resident surgeries, frequent communications and work from Encore London and our wider teams have meant the tables have been turned. Leaseholders have described Encore and their Estate Manager as “a breath of fresh air” and financial stability is returning for the estate.
Through meticulous work, the Encore team have restored trust and delivered positive results achieved for leaseholders and clients.
Many estates in London have extensive on-site amenities, ranging from leisure facilities such as cinemas, through to landscaped spaces open to the public. To run these facilities and to provide a positive resident experience, an onsite team needs to be present.
The team may include concierge, cleaners, estate operatives, facilities managers and security under the direction of a site-based building manager. Many residents will recognise these site-based teams as a luxury. But they are a valuable part of the community and necessary for the effective management of complex schemes.
Operating a site-based team does represent a considerable cost to the service charge, so our role as managing agent is to ensure the cost is optimised. That means having an efficient structure, people who are motivated and properly trained to deliver.
When we start managing an existing development with a site-based team we often find the team has been left to fend for itself in the past. As a result, team members can be demotivated, have inefficient work practices, don’t know what is happening on the estate and, unsurprisingly, they don’t put their best foot forward to residents.
That was exactly the case when we took over the management of a prestigious East London scheme. With complex plant, large open spaces and numerous amenities for residents, the on-site team is pivotal to the smooth running of the development. But, for some time, the team had lacked purposeful direction and investment. Staff were demoralised and customer ratings were low.
Explaining Encore’s approach when taking over management, Jason Grieve, Estate Operations Director, says our first step was to listen.
“No managing agent can advise their client on what their site team should look like until they fully understand the asset together with the expectations of its residents and clients.”
Next, we commenced a staffing strategy to turn around outdated working practices, persistently vacant roles and an over-reliance on agency staff.
The result is a clear, reformed staffing structure in place at the development. Staff were empowered within their current roles to ensure 24hr line management for a 24hr team. Working patterns were realigned and we invested in competency-based, accredited training pathways. Staff, residents and clients now all know who is doing what, and when, thanks to our transparent sharing of our scope of services.
We were able to achieve all of this with no increase in costs. Resident satisfaction has improved, there are no current staff vacancies and, vitally, the team is happy.
As Jason puts it: “Our detailed and time-invested process is why Encore is leading the way in terms of staff retention and satisfaction – and that’s crucial to the smooth property management of London developments.”
As these positive relationships are being built on the foundations of transparency and integrity, the Encore London team is seeing more and more developments turn to them for support with community engagement too.
Alongside making places look great, and ensuring they function well and are financially sound, as managing agents we’re well-placed as a line of communication between residents, and we have insight from developments across the country to help inform community engagement strategies.
As Richard Nubel, Regional Manager in London, explains: “Sometimes, London can be tarnished with a ‘reputation’ for a lack of neighbourliness and community spirit. But the London developments we look after are turning to Encore more and more to make community engagement part of their core.
That can mean ensuring there’s community-wide communications, through to facilitating events. Like at an estate in Aldgate where we’re busy planning a seasonal event for residents that aims to bring neighbours together. Or at a highly-sought-after scheme in Blackfriars where we host an annual summer party. This year we were delighted to welcome over 50 residents.
For other estates, events are a key part of helping residents and clients get to know the team that’s looking after their community. We’ve organised Meet and Greets, so we can continue to build the strong relationships that help their communities to thrive.”
With developments now often involving a broad spectrum of stakeholders, from developers to Resident Management Companies, to leaseholders and investors, Encore is well positioned to help each of them realise the benefits of a thriving community.
As Richard adds: “Another aspect of our role in community is demonstrated at a development we manage where the client and landowner is an NHS Trust in London. A core part of our remit is centred on community engagement.
For example, the green spaces on the estate need to offer a place where residents and nearby neighbourhoods can exercise, relax and play. They’re a crucial part of the community’s engagement strategy. But for that to happen they need to be well looked after, safe and accessible for all and residents need to be engaged in the benefits the spaces offer. As managing agent, we’ve been able to make that happen.”
To wrap up, London Regional Director, Claire, concludes “the work our London property management team do perhaps goes against what many may expect from looking after estates in the capital. We help to shape the world around us, making places better and protecting the investment people make in property.
The landscape of property management is ever-changing, and the trends and challenges of looking after developments in London will evolve with time. But wherever a development is, our approach to property management is always grounded in looking after estates as if we live there ourselves.”
Ultimately, our goal is to make places better and give those who we work with a brilliant customer experience. These principles never change.
