Amongst  all the bad press that is circulating about the poor service managing agents provide, at Block Recruit we felt it was time for a change. We hear every day about the amazing service managing agents are providing to their clients and it should be celebrated! Introducing #LeaseholdChampions.

"Kasia joined SPL Property Management in September 2016 as a Property Manager Administrator and has been following our training programme to develop her knowledge and experience in Residential Leasehold Management. 

From her first interview, Kasia has impressed with her dedication to the role. Having been asked to look at the websites of the IRPM and ARMA prior to her interview, Kasia came prepared with articles and publications and was ready with questions designed to find out more about the role and the sector. After a year in post, Kasia has continued to impress and exceed expectations. 

With English as a second language, Kasia was initially nervous answering telephone calls and dealing with leaseholders and clients. However, she quickly got over these nerves and is now confident in dealing with even the trickiest leaseholders. Kasia takes the initiative to research words she is unsure of and ask for help when the meaning is not clear. 

Our training programme looks for our trainees to undertake the Foundation IRPM exam within 6 months of starting. Kasia worked extremely hard to read and understand the OLC Learning course, familiarise herself with Leases, legislation and health and safety documents, and go through practice exams and quizzes to pass the Foundation exam with over 85% within 3 months of starting. Since then she has continued to develop her knowledge, attending seminars and courses, viewing webinars from Brethertons in her lunch breaks and spending her weekends researching different aspects of Property Management in preparation for her Associate Exam. 

Kasia attended the IRPM Regional Seminar and benefitted from meeting others working in Property Management and discussing issues with them. Following this formal training on reading leases, Kasia reviewed the leases on our entire portfolio to enter the main points into an easily accessible database. This involved reading a wide range of leases, both old and new, and being able to quickly identify the key areas. This is now a regularly used database which facilitates answering telephone queries efficiently. 

Kasia works side by side with the Head of Property Management and on many properties, she is the main point of contact for the Directors. Many of our Clients have made it clear that they are extremely impressed with Kasia’s efficiency and pro-active way of dealing with any issues. She is comfortable advising on Lease covenants, dealing with all pre-contract enquiries, seeking out a practical method of resolving issues and advising leaseholders on year-end accounts. In addition, Kasia actively joins in discussions on property issues between Property Managers, giving insightful and well-reasoned input. 

As part of her role, Kasia regularly needs to send letters to leaseholders regarding items left in communal areas, key changes, balancing charges on year-end accounts and many other items. She takes care to ensure that as much information as possible is contained within these letters. In addition, Kasia takes the time to look at previous letters which have been sent and refer to guidance notes where she is writing on a new topic. She is comfortable responding to e-mails and takes the initiative to pick up e-mails and deal with them before she has even been asked to. This has also included sending full updates to Clients on items ongoing at their property. 

Kasia is an integral part of our team and she has a very good relationship with all staff, from the Directors, to the maintenance teams who attend site. Being a small team, this is extremely important. In addition, our external contractors and clients are always pleased to receive her cheery greeting when they attend the office. 

Kasia is now moving towards managing her own portfolio of properties and is keen to pass on her knowledge to our new Apprentice Property Manager."