There are many positives about owning a leasehold property:  sharing costs of major works, insurances, health and safety procedures, amongst many others. However, the pitfalls can be huge if there is bad block management in place.

Many buildings are managed by resident management company directors that have basically  fallen into the role, generally, not because they are trained in the ways of property management, but because they have a vested interest in how the building is run and, on many occasions, because no one else wants to take up the responsibility.

Consequently, it can be a thankless task.  Other leaseholders look to these pro-bono directors, assuming that they are the professionals, but although they may have some knowledge, very rarely are they experienced in this complex area.  Other’s expectations of them are extremely high:  well they are directors after all!

So the key is to outsource the management to a professional property management company, or block management company as they are now commonly known.

A good company will solve all of the problems for the resident management company directors and act as the independent party to ensure that the terms of the lease are delivered absolutely with no grey areas.

So if you are a resident management company director, our advice to you is: don’t try and do it yourself:  unless of course you have lots of time on your hands and are prepared to study for your IRPM or ARICS qualifications! Just hire professionals who will do it all for you!