Social Housing management can be tricky, here are a few ideas

Social housing is affordable housing let at low rents on a secure basis to those who are most in need or struggling with their housing costs. Normally councils and not-for-profit organisations, such as housing associations are the ones to provide social housing. A key function of social housing is to provide accommodation that is affordable to people on low incomes.

The landlord is usually responsible for keeping a home in a decent condition and doing any repairs it needs. When a tenant moves into social housing they should have some clear expectations of the condition of their home. It should be clean and fit to live in and any necessary repairs should be completed. Gas and electrical supplies, safety measures and all plumbing should be safe and working and windows and doors should be secure and work properly. The garden should be free from rubbish.

One of the main problems identified in a recent report by landlords regarding maintenance of social housing is the provision of a comprehensive whole house service that improves and maintains standards of living and quality of life for residents, while working within ever tighter budget constraints. Tenants on the other hand prioritised speed of response to a problem, and minimal intrusion into their lives while also being concerned about keeping the standard of their homes up to date. The National Federation of ALMOs Ltd, the trade body which represents all arms-length management organisations across England has said that the most efficient way of reconciling these two, at times conflicting, requirements was to establish relationships with property services companies who can understand local housing stock and maintenance requirements and establish good working relationships with the client base and the managing organisation. With a suitable maintenance provider in place planned maintenance and renovation can be scheduled as required and provision made for emergency works when the need arises.

Express Property Services offers a fully rounded portfolio of property maintenance and refurbishment services. Since 2002 we have provided a multi-service response for a wide range of clients including managing agents and housing associations. We take responsibility for each job however large or small and pride ourselves in keeping the same high standards of quality and organisation whether we are replacing a lock for a local householder or implementing a large contract for one of our commercial customers. Many of our original staff members remain with us today providing a proven record of excellence both at our head office and, equally as important, when performing maintenance tasks on site in our clients’ homes, business premises or tenanted properties. Check our website to learn more about how we can help you maintain your housing stock or get in touch.

Categorised in: Property Management

This post was written by Express Property Services