Technical Update - May 2019

The month in brief

Welcome to the May issue of the Technical Update. This month’s big news is the announcement today (9 May) that the government has allocated £200M to fund replacement of Grenfell-style cladding on private blocks.  However, questions are already being asked about whether the fund is really enough to cover the work that needs to be done, not only on buildings with ACM cladding, but also on those blocks with other fire safety issues. Also, as Andrew Bulmer points out in his CEO's Column, the devil - as always - is in the detail. Scroll down to read more.

Another issue at the top of the news agenda is climate change. So this month we take a look at the eco-friendly devices and innovations property managers may find themselves working with in the blocks of the future. Scroll down to Topic of the Month to find out more.

This month we are introducing a new regular feature, Defects Database. Property managers are specialists in the operation of residential buildings but they are not always experts on the building fabric and the way it performs. This series will take a closer look at some common defects and maintenance issues, so that block managers are armed with a basic knowledge of what may be causing the problem when they come to discuss the matter with residents and contractors.

Also in this issue, our Annual Seminar Platinum sponsor Brethertons explains the government’s proposals for Section 21 evictions, announced in April and Mark Loveday rounds up the last month’s key legal cases.

As always, if you have a comment or an opinion to share, why not join the [email protected] with title "IRPM Update Idea - FAO Marketing"

IRPM News
CEO’s column | Annual seminar – now sold out!

In the news
Government to fund cladding replacement on private blocks | Draft legislation on building regs expected by June | LEASE opens up data to the public

Health & safety
Back to basics: don’t miss obvious defects

Fire safety
Fire safety problems found in 86 HA tower blocks | Scottish consultation on high rise fire safety launched | Welsh fire safety and social housing partnership launched | Fire safety experts needed to create radical solutions

PRS and B2R
Investment in B2R at ‘record levels’ says CBRE | Is buy-to-let dead? | Government to outlaw ‘no fault’ evictions | Scotland to get more homes for rent

Social housing
Councils need more powers to borrow and build, say Lords | Help for affordable homes in Scotland

Legislation
How much notice? Brethertons takes a closer look at the proposed changes for the s.21 notice procedure

Legal update
Mark Loveday looks at this month’s key cases

Talking point
The hidden price of business ownership

Topic of the month
What eco-devices will we see in our properties in the next ten years?

New: Defects database
Tackling condensation

IRPM events
What’s happening when and where?

IRPM News

CEO’s column

The Government acts on cladding – but don’t ignore the small print, warns Andrew Bulmer. This issue will be with us for a while yet…

As we approach the second anniversary of the Grenfell tragedy, Government has finally stepped in with a promised £200m to fund cladding replacement on around 170 privately-owned high rise residential buildings (HRRBs).

I say ‘finally’, as it has been apparent for some time that government needed to intervene in the tussle between leaseholders and building owners (with property managers trapped in the middle). It’s not hard to understand why those building owners who do not have legal responsibility have resisted spending millions on remedial work, especially when supported by tribunal decisions. It wasn’t their fault the building they bought had unsafe cladding. But it certainly wasn’t the fault of innocent leaseholders either, who should be able to sleep easy at night in a safe building. Pointing at developers, quantity and building surveyors, building control, building regulations, product certification and suppliers hasn’t solved the problem either, though to their credit some owners and developers have stepped in with cash and 10 of the 176 high rise residential blocks (HRRBs) identified as being at risk have been made good. But the reality is, it was always going to take government intervention to break the impasse for most of the affected buildings.

Communities Secretary, Rt Hon James Brokenshire MP, said “While some building owners have been swift to act, and I thank them for doing the right thing, I am now calling time on the delay tactics of others. If these reckless building owners won’t act, the government will”. More on this announcement below (In the News). Building owners aren’t popular then, just at the time government is drafting a boatload of new legislation to empower the leaseholder, the customer, to have more control and influence in a reformed leasehold structure.

Building owners will have three months to access the new fund - a tight window. We also note this; “as a condition of funding, we [Government ] will require the building owner to take reasonable steps to recover the costs from those responsible for the presence of the unsafe cladding”. This is very big ‘small print’. Given neither the Grenfell inquiry nor Dame Judith Hackitt’s work (which IRPM is engaged with) are yet complete, are building owners headed to court, for the judicial system to decide who is responsible for the presence of unsafe cladding?

Heather Wheeler MP, Deputy Housing Minister will be updating us at the IRPM Annual Seminar in a few weeks’ time and there will be a session focusing on the rapidly evolving Fire / H&S landscape for property managers across all residential buildings, not just the HRRBs.

Andrew Bulmer is CEO of the IRPM

Annual seminar – now sold out!

This year’s IRPM Annual Seminar, to be held at London’s QEII Conference Centre on 13 June, is now sold out. But if you haven’t got your ticket yet, there may still be a chance, as we are working with the venue to try and find a few more spaces. If you are suffering from FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) go to the IRPM web site and follow the event links to register on the waiting list.

The Annual Seminar has grown year-on-year to become the property management sector’s biggest and best attended annual event. After selling out the 500-seat Park Plaza last year, we thought the 700-seat QEII Centre would cope with demand. That we are now able to fill one of London’s largest conference venues, is a remarkable and important confirmation that IRPM professionals are increasingly engaged with their industry and their professional body to raise standards in our sectors.

For those members who do have tickets, this year’s speakers will include:

• Heather Wheeler MP
• Lord Best
• Mark Prisk MP
• Professor Nick Hopkins of the Law Commission
• Roger Hardwick of Brethertons
• Katrine Sporle the property Ombudsman

As always, this event will be delivering genuine thought leadership, relevant in-depth insight and practical guidance for property management professionals.

Our Platinum sponsor this year is Brethertons. Click on the links below to book your slot in one of our new Consultation Bubbles to benefit from advice and information face-to-face. Book with Brethertons and our other sponsors for 2019 who include:

• Abbatt Property Recruitment
• Barrett Corp & Harrington
• Dean Wilson LLP
• Data Energy
• 4Site
• Fixflo
• Future Group
• Seclec

We look forward to seeing you in June.

 

In the news

Government to fund cladding replacement on private blocks

Around £200 million is to be made available to remove and replace unsafe cladding from around 170 privately owned high-rise buildings. The government has stepped in to speed up vital cladding replacement by fully funding the work, eliminating excuses used by some building owners and protecting leaseholders from the costs. Around £200 million will be made available to remove and replace unsafe aluminium composite material cladding from around 170 privately owned high-rise buildings.

Announcing the new funding, Communities Secretary, James Brokenshire, said: “Although temporary measures are in place to ensure people living in these buildings are safe, too many owners are treating this as a permanent fix. Others are trying to pass on the costs to residents by threatening them with bills running to thousands of pounds.

“The government appreciates the work of Grenfell United and the UK Cladding Action Group who have campaigned prominently, outlining the challenges in getting private building owners to fund the replacement of cladding on their homes”.

The latest figures show that 166 private buildings are yet to start works on removing and replacing ACM cladding, compared to 23 in the social sector.

Building owners will have three months to access the new fund. Government will then look carefully at those who fail to remediate and consider what further action can be taken. The government has already fully funded this work in social housing developments.

Draft legislation on building regs expected by June

The government is expected to publish draft legislation to implement a new post-Grenfell system of building regulations by the end of May, with the new regime possibly in place by 2021.

Multiple industry sources confirmed at the beginning of the month (source: Inside Housing) that civil servants are aiming to start the consultation on legislation before the end of May and certainly before 14 June - the second anniversary of the Grenfell Tower fire. It is expected to last around eight weeks.

It is likely that included in the new regime will be:

• a designated ‘dutyholder’ in every building, who will take on new responsibilities for building safety.
• A new regulator responsible for building safety.
• Changes to the current rules governing building control, making it impossible for developers to choose their own building control regulator as they can at present.

The government is also expected to consult on ways to better engage residents in decisions about their building and address their safety concerns.

LEASE opens up data to the public

The Leasehold Advisory Service has announced it is making data from its extensive database on Residential Leasehold enquiries freely available.

The data will be published every quarter and LEASE hopes it will help educate and inform flat owners about the leasehold sector. An example of the data collected is that there were:

• 1.5m total visits (UK only) to LEASE website (2018/19).
• 147k total page views of Service Charges advice guide (2018/19).
• 47% of enquiries from clients in London (2014-19).
• 47% of enquiries from clients outside London (2014-19) with 6% from unknown locations.
• 84% of enquiries related to a flat (2014-19).

The underlying data supporting these findings is available to download as a

 

Health & safety

Back to basics: don’t miss obvious defects

According to anecdotal evidence from fire and life safety consultant DP Maree, property managers too frequently miss basic health and safety faults in the blocks they operate. In the current issue of its Fire & Safety Bulletin, the company points out the most common health and safety issues requiring action in the residential blocks that they are asked to inspect. These are:

Missing safety signage, such as fire action notices, Fire door keep locked and Do not use the lift in the event of a fire signs.

• Slip, trip and fall hazards, such as uneven surfaces on pathways and cracked access steps.
• Missing or damaged handrails, such as those along unprotected drops or steps.
• Inadequate lighting in car parks and bin areas.
• General obstacles in the circulation areas, such as poor storage of bulky items and damaged trees.

If you recognise any of these problems from a block you manage, then it is vital to ensure such issues are rectified immediately, both to protect the wellbeing of your residents and to avoid a potential claim for negligence.

For more information and to download the latest Fire & Safety Bulletin.

 

Fire safety

Fire safety problems found in 86 HA tower blocks

Housing association Hyde Group found fire safety problems with all 86 of its tower blocks when it inspected them after the Grenfell Tower fire, said chief executive Elaine Bailey in April (source: Inside Housing).

Speaking at a Fire Protection Association seminar the CEO said following the fire, Hyde carried out ‘Type 4’ fire risk assessments on all 86 of its buildings over 18 metres in height, finding that “100% of buildings inspected [had] had their safety compromised in some way”.

Problems included “serious and widespread compartmentation breaches”, “flammable and/or sub-standard cladding installations” and “missing or poorly installed fire stopping and fire breaks”.

As a result, Hyde is carrying out “significant remediation” on 10 of its tall buildings, as well as “thousands of remediation actions” coming out of the fire risk assessments. The housing association is now in the process of taking legal action “in a number of cases” over work that it does not believe was done to the appropriate standards. These cases are being disputed.

Scottish consultation on high rise fire safety launched

Residents in high rise flats in Scotland are being asked to give their views in a public consultation, which aims to improve their fire safety (Source: Fire and Risk Management Journal).

The Scottish government plans to simplify guidance for high rise residents and those responsible for fire safety in high rises, and has proposed a campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of dumping rubbish or unwanted items in common areas.

Other proposals include creating a ‘consistent position’ in regards to storing, removing and enforcing the prohibition of combustible materials in common areas, as well as introducing Scottish guidance on fire risk assessments. The consultation will close on 17 July.

Welsh fire safety and social housing partnership launched

The Fire Safety Partnership for Social Housing in Wales is to give housing associations free advice on enforcement and compliance. (Source:  Fire and Risk Management Journal)

The UK’s first co-ordinated fire safety partnership for housing has been set up by Community Housing Cymru (CHC) alongside South Wales Fire and Rescue Service (SWFRS) and is the result of a year of collaboration between the Welsh social housing sector and SWFRS.

The partnership will give the association access to free advice on fire safety enforcement, legal issues, compliance and existing protocols, and is open to all CHC members. A working group has also been set up to support the PFAS, and will be responsible for commissioning advice on behalf of the sector.

Fire safety experts needed to create radical solutions

Is there someone in your organisation or among your clients who is an expert in fie safety? Developers, engineers, building owners, tech start-ups and coders are needed to join a central London Hackathon that will bring experts  from the built environment and the digital world together to develop new, commercially viable solutions that will radically change the face of fire safety within UK buildings and worldwide.

Hosted by the Association for Project Safety (APS), the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET), and Hack_Construct, the free-to-attend, two-day Hackathon will take place at the IET London: Savoy Place on Thursday 23rd and Friday 24th May 2019 and will build on an initial concept day, held last November.

Rick Hartwig, Built Environment Lead at the IET, said: “Following the Grenfell Tower tragedy in 2017, and subsequent recommendations by Dame Judith Hackitt in her 'Building a Safer Future' report, the construction industry is now looking to offer potential solutions to improve fire safety design and regulations.”

The IET, the APS and Hack Construct are aiming to speed up the pace of change to deliver radically safer buildings by harnessing a powerful combination of gaming and new technology with the traditional engineering and safety skills to find new tools to ensure fire safety is built in right from the design and development stage. The event aims to bring industry experts together to come up with new proposals which can be taken forward for further development to radically improve fire safety.


PRS & B2R

Investment in B2R at ‘record levels’ says CBRE

The UK Build to Rent (B2R) sector continues to go from strength to strength, with record levels of investment in the first quarter of 2019, fresh research revealed by Landlord Today shows.

The CBRE UK Residential Investment Market view Q1 2019 shows that between January and March 2019, there was a total of £1.04bn of investment into the UK private rental sector for B2R schemes including several forward funding deals, and some direct site acquisitions. This is four times higher than in Q1 2018 and is among the strongest quarterly investment volume recorded over the past four years. There are close to £780m of deals under offer.

Institutional investment into B2R has translated into more than 140,000 homes across the UK which are either completed or in the pipeline, with an increase of 1,981 homes from Q4 2018, according to figures from the British Property Federation.

Is buy-to-let dead?

According to a report in The Times in April, the decline in buy-to-let lending is raising fears about how the private rental market will cope with demand for properties from young people unable to afford their own homes or get social housing.

The Intermediary Mortgage Lenders Association has called for a period of “policy consolidation” to assess tax changes on the property market. The trade group estimates that between 2000 and 2017 landlords invested £289 billion into rental accommodation, meeting rising tenant demand by bringing 1.8 million properties to the market.

Kate Davies, executive director at the association, said: “The raft of regulatory and tax changes that have hit the buy-to-let market in the last year have far-reaching effects that are yet to be fully realised.

“Various interventions by government have apparently been aimed at encouraging more first-time buyers and making investment in buy-to-let less attractive to existing and potential landlords. But the private rented sector plays a vital role in our housing supply. It’s essential that a balance is struck, if tenants are not to be disadvantaged by shrinking stock and higher rents.”

Government to outlaw ‘no fault’ evictions

In April, the government announced plans to put an end to “no-fault” evictions, while at the same time strengthening Section 8 of the Housing Act 1988. 

At present, under Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988, landlords can evict their tenants – without giving a reason - by giving them two months’ notice at the end of a fixed-term tenancy. Evidence from local authorities around the country shows that Section 21 evictions are frequently responsible for making families and single tenants homeless, putting further strain on councils’ already stretched resources and adding to the problem of rough sleeping.

The proposed removal of Section 21, means landlords will always need to provide their tenants with a reason for ending a tenancy, for example, breach of contract or wanting to sell the property. Tenants will be able to choose to end the tenancy, as long as they provide sufficient notice to the landlord.

The proposed new Section 8 grounds for eviction aim to strengthen the rights of landlords who want to recover their properties, including when they want to sell or move into the property themselves. A limit may be imposed on Section 8 until the tenancy has been in place for two years, although there is no consensus at present around whether or not to enforce longer tenancies and any legislation on changes to tenancy lengths will be “accompanied by appropriate safeguards for landlords”.

The Government will work with the Ministry of Justice and the Courts and Tribunal Service on reforming the court processes for possession. Proposals include:

• speeding up and simplifying the court process to make it easier for landlords to obtain possession; and 
• freeing up enforcement agent (bailiff) resources to enable them to prioritise possession cases once the court has granted a warrant for possession.

The National Landlord’s Association (NLA) has been quick to slam the government’s proposal to remove Section 21 arguing that it “has become a backstop to overcome the ineffective Section 8 process”.

Richard Lambert, CEO of the NLA, talking to Landlord Today, said: “Landlords currently have little choice but to use Section 21. They have no confidence in the ability or the capacity of the courts to deal with possession claims quickly and surely, regardless of the strength of the landlord’s case.

“The government should look to Scotland, where they reformed the court system before thinking about changing how tenancies work. If the government introduces yet another piece of badly thought-out legislation, we guarantee there will be chaos.”

A consultation on the proposed changes to get the views of landlords, tenants and other PRS stakeholders is expected in the near future.

For more on Section 21 evictions from Brethertons, go to Legislation below.

Scotland to get more homes for rent

People renting in Scotland will soon have more choice in where they live and greater security over their home through a £30 million investment from the Building Scotland Fund.

The loan funding will allow an additional 1,800 properties to be built for private rent.

The hope is that the Build to Rent model can help reduce the stress and uncertainty of repeated moves for tenants as investors typically plan to keep properties for a minimum of 30 years. The properties are also professionally managed, meaning tenants can expect a high-quality property and a better overall renting experience.

The investment from the Scottish Government’s Building Scotland Fund will be delivered through Sigma Capital Group plc.

Social housing

Councils need more powers to borrow and build, say Lords

In April the House of Lords Committee on Intergenerational Fairness and Provision made recommendations to the government, including that local authorities should be given greater borrowing freedom and more powers to build on public land (source: Inside Housing).

A large part of the report deals with the housing crisis, with a particular focus on the need for more social housing. According to the committee, one solution is to ease the ability of local authorities to borrow to fund housebuilding.

The report notes that the government has already scrapped the cap on the amount councils can borrow against their Housing Revenue Accounts. However, because budgets have been stripped back, this is considered unlikely to be enough to get councils building again. The committee also called on the government to take action on land. It argued that there should be a central government capability: “to understand fully what land public bodies own, how public sector bodies use that land and where it can be disposed of”.

Help for affordable homes in Scotland

Commenting on the announcement, Housing Minister Kevin Stewart said: “We believe that everyone should be able to live in a warm affordable home. Our investment and delivery of affordable housing is the biggest since devolution and I am determined to see it benefit communities across Scotland.

“This investment backs up our ambitions with financial certainty. We will continue to work in partnership with councils and housing associations to deliver quality homes to meet local needs.”

 

Legislation

How much notice?

Brethertons offers an insight into the proposed changes for the s.21 notice procedure

For those that work within the housing sector it has become apparent that there is increasing pressure on local authorities and housing associations to provide housing for tenants that are no longer able to remain in privately rented accommodation.

There are a variety of reasons for this and one should not forget that while a s.21 notice (operational pursuant to s.21 the Housing Act 1988) is one mechanism to obtain possession of a privately rented property, Landlords can seek possession via the s.8 notice route where there has been a breach of the tenancy agreement (rent arrears or otherwise).

The change has been put forward by the government with the motive of decreasing homelessness and the amount of people that are required to reside in temporary accommodation following an eviction, which it is hoped will then reduce the demand for public-sector housing. While the proposals for reform are currently in their infancy, an “open-ended or indefinite” tenancy will inevitably also create more security of tenure for private tenants. 

Current Law
A s.21 notice, often described as a no-fault eviction, is used by landlords to regain possession of their rented property where there has not been a breach of the tenancy agreement. Since 2015, this area of law has undergone significant reform affording protection to tenants against retaliatory eviction while also affirming to landlords the importance of complying with their regulatory obligations in relation to gas safety, energy performance and deposit protection.

In the large majority of cases in order for a s.21 notice to be valid a Landlord must show that:

• A current Gas Safety Certificate has been provided to the tenant at the outset of the tenancy and a further copy is provided on a yearly basis when the check becomes due;
• A hard copy of the property’s Energy Performance Certificate is provided to the tenant at the outset of the tenancy;
• A hard copy of the current How to Rent Guide is provided to the tenant at the start of the tenancy; and
• If a deposit has been taken in relation to the agreement, it must be registered with an approved deposit scheme and the tenant must have been given the relevant prescribed information about the deposit.

Landlord options
As with all proposals for legal reform, significant consultation and consideration will be required before any changes in the law are enacted. The recent changes to the s.21 procedure between 2015 and 2018 took affect via transitionary provisions which may be a strategy that is adopted again. In the meantime, landlords should take the opportunity to review their property portfolio however small or large and consider what their short and long term plans are for each property while continuing to ensure that they are complying with their regulatory obligations some of which are set out above.

For more on Section 21 evictions go to the PRS & B2R section.

Legal Update

Access all areas?

Mark Loveday takes a closer look at a recent case dealing with alterations carried out without permission and the landlord’s right to enter.

In the recent case of New Crane Wharf Freehold Ltd v Dovener [2019] UKUT 98 (LC), Judge Behrens, 2 April 2019, a leaseholder carried out alterations to a flat which a landlord considered were unauthorised. Wishing to obtain access to the flat to inspect, the landlord’s solicitors wrote to the leaseholder requiring access on specified dates, but the tenant failed to respond.

The landlord did not attempt to gain access on either occasion. The lease required the leaseholder “to permit the Lessor and its agents and workmen at all reasonable times on giving not less than forty eight hours’ notice (except in case of emergency) to enter the Demised Premises for … [various specified purposes]”.

The landlord submitted that “permit” involved some positive assent by the leaseholder and that mere silence or acquiescence was not enough. It was argued that an approach which required landlords to attend for inspections on the off-chance they would be allowed access would be a waste of time and expense. The leaseholder’s failure to respond to a reasonable request for access was therefore a breach of the terms of the lease.

The Upper Tribunal disagreed with this analysis. Although the granting of “permission” to enter required a positive act by the leaseholder, the crucial issue was the time the leaseholder had to do that positive act. There was nothing in the words of the lease which required the leaseholder to “permit” access before the date in the landlord’s requests. Although it might be commercially convenient to require the leaseholder to tell the landlord it would “permit” access in advance of those dates, there was no reason to imply a condition into the relevant clause of the lease that the leaseholder must do so. Since there was no evidence the landlord tried to gain access on those dates (and was refused), there was no breach of the covenant to “permit” entry.

The Upper Tribunal went onto consider (per curiam) the position if the leaseholder had actually said in advance that it would refuse access. In such a case, it would normally be reasonable for the landlord to rely on that refusal as a breach of covenant and the landlord would not need to attend. But if the refusal was unclear, or the tenant later recanted, the landlord might well still have to attend and try to gain entry.

What can property managers learn from this case?
Leases commonly require leaseholders to “permit” access by their landlords or agents for various specified purposes. This case decided that under such a provision, a leaseholder is not generally required to give positive permission for access before the date and time of the requested visit. So, if a tenant does not respond to a request to inspect, the agent should not simply cancel the appointment.

 
This month’s must-read cases

Triplerose v Stride [2019] UKUT 0099 (LC)

Service charges – variation of lease – whether lease fails to make “satisfactory provision” for repair or maintenance – whether compensation payable for any loss or damage suffered by lessee – sections 35 and 38 Landlord and Tenant Act 1987. 

 
Evans v Fleri County Court (Cardiff) [2019] 4 WLUK 370.

Devolution means that Welsh tenancy legislation is increasingly diverging from the regime in England. In one of the first cases under the Housing (Wales) Act 2014, a Welsh County Court has held that s.44 of the 2014 Act means a landlord must be both registered and licensed in order to terminate an assured shorthold tenancy by giving notice under Housing Act 1988 s.21.

Mark Loveday is a leading Barrister with Tanfield Chambers specialising in leasehold management and enfranchisement work

Go to the Resource Hub for more case law, which is updated on a regular basis.

 

Talking point

The hidden price of business ownership

Most property management companies are SMEs and many IRPM members run their own businesses. New research carried out by accountants Haines Watts takes a detailed look at the impact of running a business on the lives, finances and mental health of owners. The results are fascinating.

The most rewarding aspect of running a business was found to be “being in control” (24%) followed by “freedom” (19%) and “building something significant” (18%). All very positive. However, there is a downside. For many business owners, the income from their business is essential to support their own and their family’s financial needs, which can be very stressful, and many owners wrestle with their life-work balance. Anyone who runs a business knows that weekends and holidays are often taken up with work and devoting enough time and energy to family life,  while still doing what is best business-wise often seems near impossible.

As a result, the report found that almost three quarters of business owners struggle with their mental health, although only 14% said this was of major concern to them.

Other findings from the survey of 500 UK business owners in companies with between £1 and £50 million turnover and with between 10-49 employees include:

• 73% of business owners have never taken more than a week off;
• 69% of business owners work at weekends;
• 30% have put off investment in their business because of the need to have a personal income;
• 67% say that their family is dependent on the income from the business; and
• 75% say that their spouse works in the business too or has no alternative income of their own.

It is no surprise that these tensions are causing a strain. Two thirds of those surveyed say that pressure to maintain their income to support their families is a significant or very significant cause of personal stress. The report also finds that this family pressure is a more significant driver of stress than is pressure to grow the business.

However, despite these negative aspects, the survey also found that business owners are also both inspired and inspiring. Almost all (94%) feel motivated by their business and many are also highly motivated by the love of being their own boss.

What is clear, is that almost all business owners are actively choosing the entrepreneurial path rather than treading it reluctantly and accept that this means taking the rough with the smooth.

SME businesses are the backbone of the UK economy – and the property management sector – and it’s not sustainable for thriving businesses to exist at the expense of their owners’ wellbeing.

Support is available to small business owners in many forms, including from both family and external advisers and the report concludes that for the benefit of their own mental health, anyone running their own business who feels they are under extreme pressure should seek help and advice early.

Read the full series of research reports from Haines Watts.

 

Defects database

Residential property managers are experts in the operational aspects of leasehold blocks but they are not often specialists in construction methods and materials. When it comes to building defects, some basic knowledge goes a long way – especially when talking to contractors. So in this new series, we will be asking building surveyors to explain the background to some familiar defects, starting with a really common problem – condensation.

Tackling condensation

Condensation is often misdiagnosed as penetrating damp, so if your block has a damp problem, it is important to confirm or eliminate condensation first, says Andrew Banister.
 
Condensation tends to be a seasonal issue and so there is a condensation season, which is typically from September to March, though this is changing as we are seeing higher temperatures in September.

Warm air holds more moisture than cold air. When warm air is cooled, such as when the heating is switched off at night, it will deposit the water that it can no longer retain as condensation on a cold surface.

There is more than one type of condensation. BS 5250: Code of practice for control of condensation in buildings, gives four different types:

• Surface condensation – this is the most commonly found.
• Interstitial condensation – occurs within or between the layers of the building, such as the underside to a cold deck roof.
• Reverse condensation – a form of interstitial and occurs to southern facing walls that get sunlight after a wet period.
• Radiation condensation – another form of interstitial, which occurs when there is rapid heat loss by radiation on a clear, cold night.

Mould is often an indication of condensation but a lack of mould does not rule out condensation and visa-versa.

If residents in a block you manage have a damp problem then the first step is to recommend that leaseholders follow this advice during the colder months which may confirm condensation is the problem or help to eliminate it.

• Avoid drying washing indoors. If there is no option, then use a room with an open window and close the door to the rest of the flat.
• When bathing or cooking ensure all doors are closed to other parts of the flat, open a window and turn on extractor fans – clean fans regularly and make sure they are in working order. Consider upgrading the fan if it is old.
• In bedrooms, make sure trickle vents are in working order and leave them open. We can exhale up to 500ml of water during the night – that’s nearly a pint’s worth!
  Maintain adequate working and opening windows. If a window is stuck closed, call out a window specialist to ease and repair. 
• Recommend that residents maintain a constant general level of heat in their flats during the colder months. Low to mid heat levels are ample when no one is home. This can then be increased in the evening avoiding sudden bursts of heat, though this does rely on having a thermostatically controlled heating system. The aim here is to ensure the air and building fabric temperature are elevated during times of colder weather.

If these easy action points don’t help, then it is worth commissioning a surveyor to investigate further, who will have a multitude of tools at his/her disposal: moisture meters, hygrometers and even salt testing kits.

They will be able to determine whether your block’s damp problem is due to condensation or to another form of water ingress, such as penetrating damp. More on that in the next issue.

Andrew Banister MRICS is Regional Director North, at Earl Kendrick Associates

 

Topic of the month

What eco-devices will we see in our properties in the next ten years?

Whatever you may think about Greta Thunberg’s school strikes and the disruption caused by climate change activists such as Extinction Rebellion, one thing is certain - they are making us all think harder about the way we live.

In the property industry we can expect legislation to ensure developers focus new build developments firmly on renewables and on eco-friendly forms of heat and power. We all know change is needed. So how will property managers be able help their business and their residents to reduce waste in the future? 

Individual flat owners can make a big difference to the environmental impact of their blocks and in future we will be installing a whole range of eco-friendly devices in our homes to help reduce our carbon footprint and ramp up our ability to reduce, re-use and recycle products that we now just throw away. Aldous Hicks, CEO and Co-founder of ReCircle Recycling Ltd takes a closer look.


Energy production
New storage batteries currently in development promise to unlock a range of in-home energy production methods. Batteries will then be able to store power at a local level and perhaps even distribute power across a community. But what will we use to generate the power?

Solar tiles
Solar panels are constantly improving in efficiency and several companies are now developing solar tiles. The benefit of solar tiles is that they can be retrofitted onto any property with a roof. A drawback, however, is the low energy production in less sunny countries.

New wind turbine designs
Imagine fitting an attractive and super-efficient wind turbine on a roof – a piece of art that generates almost all the power needed. Take the Liam F1 Urban Wind Turbine from Dutch tech firm, The Archimedes. The spiral design resembles a big rotating flower. At 80% efficiency, it is a forerunner of the high-efficiency turbines of the future.

Bio-fuel synthesiser
Burning anything to create energy is likely to lead to more CO2 emissions. However, scientists are working with species of bacteria and algae to make the bio-fuel process cleaner. Microorganisms can break down organic material and CO2, passing the energy straight into a battery. Food waste and human excrement will feed the machine, providing energy-free sewage treatment and no need for composting. Biofuel synthesisers will be fitted to the toilet and waste disposal pipe, turning our organic waste into clean energy.

Going waste-free

Recycling appliances
A closed-loop economy means processing products and packaging back into their original form, or equivalent. Currently we can’t do this because of the high cost and low-reliability of separating out different materials for recycling.

If we can bring the guaranteed correct used-material separation and processing of products and packaging into, say, a flat, or block of apartments, then we can produce close to 100% pure materials ready to sell back to manufacturers.

ReCircle is currently working on a home and business appliance to do this. It will use a sensor to ensure different materials are never put together. This means the inherent material value is not lost due to being mixed with other different materials – the major problem with the current recycling system.

The near-pure used-materials are washed, ground or compacted to contaminant-free sized-reduced pure products ready for storage. The pure close-loop recyclable products will then be collected on-demand from buildings, when the storage containers are full.

3D printer potential
3D printers promise all kinds of efficiency savings as well as the construction of new energy-efficient products. Think of the reduction in energy needed to transport products.

It may be possible to combine technologies like a recycling appliance and a 3D printer, ensuring that everything you print can be reprocessed into future ‘ink’ to make more products. Individual homes and other building can instantly become closed-loop in themselves.

Aldous Hicks is the CEO and Co-founder of ReCircle Recycling Ltd.

IRPM events

What’s happening when and where?

Visit the Events page for more information

9 May 2019 – Member Exam, London & Birmingham

13 June 2019 – Annual seminar

14 August 2019 – Associate Exam Workshop, London

15 August 2019 – Associate Exam Workshop, London

11 September 2019 – Associate Exam, London & Birmingham

25 September 2019 – Member Exam, Glasgow

26 September 2019 – AGM 2019

26 September 2019 – Fellows Day 2019