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November 2004 - Issue 1 |
Hello and welcome to a first for Dockside Property Services; our new bi-annual newsletter. This will give us the opportunity of writing to each of our valued clients, to thank you for your continued patronage and to present to you a brief overview of local market conditions, together with any developments that are likely to be of interest in the future.
2004 has been a mixed year in the rental market; we have enjoyed steady levels of demand throughout the year, though rent levels have stabilized, due in the main to the high level of properties available to let. It would seem that over the last 18 months, large numbers of people have entered the investment property market place and this has resulted in a higher than average number of properties available. The catalyst for this is twofold; people quickly realised that their personal pension plan was, in most cases, not going to be able to sustain them in later years and the lenders relaxed their criteria for offering mortgages to buy investment properties. As our tenants are a switched on group, they realise what has happened and have become increasingly demanding; the key to letting your flat promptly in this market is to price it competitively and make sure it looks its best, especially important for those of you with older properties.
Perhaps the most important matter that I want to bring to your attention is the fact that we have recently opened a Royal Docks office, servicing the E16, E6 and E13 areas. We have appointed a partner in this office, Richard Baker, who comes from a sales and marketing background and is already proving to be an invaluable member of our team; I am sure we would not have been able to support the 2004 Newham Firework Extravaganza without him!
Our Royal Docks office manager, Mr Kevin Hall, has an impressive background in the property market and is helping to further refine our services.
We are also restructuring our administration department, making a substantial investment in the business to ensure that we can offer even higher levels of service. We are fully staffed and I would like to introduce Sinead Morgan and Lisa Parvitt, who will assist Karen Harper, our Docklands office manager. Lisa is our new dedicated renewals clerk and her role will be to ensure that all of your tenants are contacted 2 months prior to the end of their tenancy to establish their requirements. Not only is this beneficial if they decide to stay, but if they are moving out we will know even earlier; enabling us to minimise any vacant periods on your behalf.
Our maintenance contractors are working very hard; with over 400 units now under management, there seems to be a never-ending requirement for repairs. Our computer system is coping well and we are reducing each month the average time it takes to get a job done.
Our contractors can deal with anything from the replacement of a fuse, heating repairs, decorating, providing double glazing, and similar matters all at most competitive prices. If you have any jobs that require attention, please call to arrange a visit or quotation. Our new Royal Docks office Our maintenance help-desk software has been upgraded, we are running the very latest anti-virus software, our two offices are now joined and our Dell server has been beefed up. The sharing of information has many advantages; the key benefit being that both offices have complete access to all properties, thus ensuring maximum exposure for any property we are marketing. In addition our web site is receiving a major overhaul and the finished product will be very special indeed; watch this web space! |
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We take great care to ensure on your behalf that we regularly update ourselves on changes to both UK and EEC legislation that might affect our operations. This exercise is a costly one, but is absolutely vital to ensure the protection of your interests. As you can imagine, none of the above is either easy or cheap; it all takes time and a great deal of effort, but it is vital in order that the high standards of service you expect from us are maintained and enhanced. Therefore, we must press ahead with this constant process of improvement, despite Mr. Fortag’s increasing hair loss! |
With that in mind, it has become necessary to increase our management commission rate, the first such increase in nearly ten years. Whilst we have made every effort to absorb rising costs, we regret to inform you that commissions will be increasing to 16% from 1st December 2004. I hope you will all understand the need for us to make these changes, in order that you continue to receive the high quality service to which you are both entitled and accustomed. Two copies of our new terms of business are attached; please retain one copy for your records, returning the unbound copy to us in the envelope supplied.
Finally, we would like to thank you once again for your continued custom. It is our pleasure to serve you. Old faithful Docklands office
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