The year in property started like any other: viewings were reasonably quiet as people recovered from their post-Christmas slumber. This happens every year, but it always picks up as we head out of January. Into February, and the cold air of Edinburgh, life carried on as normal. We did viewings, visited properties, helped people with their repairs and their worries. We drank tea. We looked forward to the nights getting longer and Spring springing. And in the background there was news that a virus had taken hold in China…
Fast forward two months and the whole world has been shaken up and turned upside down. I’m still drinking tea but from my living room. Viewings, visits to properties and even most repairs are no longer being carried out. The streets are mostly still as people stay at home. We are locked down. Tenants can move out, but nobody can move in, except in exceptional circumstances. We’re living in different days, all of us.
On 24th March, 1Let’s staff began to work from home. The previous night had seen the government tell us that we all had to stay home to protect the NHS and save lives. Only essential work could be carried out. As with any sudden change, there was confusion. If tenants couldn’t work, how could they pay rent? How would they move in? What would happen with repairs? It’s safe to say that the first few days were ones to get the old grey matter buzzing.
My first thought was that we would be inundated with requests for rent reductions or rent breaks. Somewhat surprisingly, this hasn’t been as common as expected. The government’s job retention scheme means that almost everyone will receive at least 80% of their wages, and this has helped. There is no provision on tenancy agreements for tenants not to pay rent, so all requests must be agreed by landlords. Every rent request has been dealt with on a case-by-case basis and will be reviewed regularly. Fortunately, we’ve been able to help everyone who’s needed it.
One of the biggest parts of a Property Manger’s job is to check and handle repairs, either through visiting properties or by information given by tenants. Once the instruction was given that only essential travel was permitted, our regular visits, which we call PPV’s (Periodic Property Visits) were cancelled. We wrote to our tenants who had upcoming PPV’s to make sure that they were safe and well (thankfully everyone who’s replied, is - phew!) and to ask them to let us know if there were any maintenance issues in their property. Unless it’s urgent, we can’t arrange a visit. However, we can take notes so when all this is over, and we’ve embraced fresh air again, we can get the issues tended to.
Of course, when you don’t have the hustle and bustle of office life, you soon grow to miss it. I’m lucky to have great colleagues, and not hearing their jokes and laughs is one of the hardest things to get used to. Fortunately, modern technology is an amazing thing and we’ve all been able to meet up virtually. We’re still having regular meetings and the laughs are still there. I have to eat my own biscuits though, and I miss the amazing cakes that Fiona brings. The most important thing is that everyone can keep in touch and know that we’re all ok. As frustrating as this is, we’re all still there for each other and we’re all safe.
We’ll keep working and helping everybody - even if the tea runs out!