Member Article

Town & City Management Ltd achieves accreditation to ARMA-Q standards

Town & City Management Ltd has announced it has achieved accreditation to ARMA-Q, the new regulatory regime for residential leasehold managing agents, which goes live in January 2015.

Its accreditation puts the company at the leading edge of best practice in property management.

From 2015 flat owners, who use ARMA-Q accredited agents to manage their property, will be guaranteed a number of safeguards including:

Higher professional standards and levels of customer care A transparent and open service Access to an independent regulatory panel

To achieve accreditation, managing agents must demonstrate that they comply with more than 160 rigorous industry standards. It’s the first time such measures have been introduced for agents in England and Wales, where there are an estimated five million leasehold properties.

Despite collecting more than a billion pounds in service charges from leaseholders each year, managing agents are not regulated by government. Unless they are members of a professional body, agents are unaccountable, which leaves the system open to abuse and inconsistent service levels.

ARMA-Q is being introduced by the industry’s trade body, the Association of Residential Managing Agents (ARMA). The organisation is aiming to push up standards of property management across the board and plug the gap left by the lack of statutory regulation.

Peter Bigge, Founder of Town & City, which has its head office in Darlington and bases in Eastside, Kings Cross Station, London and, Colton, Leeds, said: “Town & City has built a solid reputation as a quality provider of property management services.

“This prestigious accreditation is an independent validation of the exacting and rigorous standards that we embrace within the company. Receiving ARMA-Q status, before it goes live in the New Year, demonstrates Town & City is out in front when it comes to ethical business principles and practices.

“We also fully endorse the implementation of the continual raising of professional standards in the residential leasehold sector through initiatives such as ARMA-Q.”

ARMA’s chief executive Michelle Banks said: “Choosing the right managing agent can be a bit of a minefield. The industry’s not regulated so they don’t have to belong to a professional body or comply with specific standards. We’re introducing ARMA-Q so leaseholders can be confident they are choosing a quality agent.

“From 2015 anyone appointing an ARMA-Q agent to manage their property can have peace of mind that they conform to high standards, are bound by a consumer charter and are regulated independently. ARMA-Q accreditation is voluntary - managing agents don’t have to sign up. So those that do are showing a clear commitment to providing the best service.”

Town & City Management Limited, which was established in 2002 and has offices in Darlington, London, and Leeds, is an independent Property Management and Block Management company specialising in Residential Leasehold Management.

Currently managing a portfolio of 160 developments, Town & City Management Limited aims to continue to grow and expand its management portfolio by providing the highest level of services, professionalism and expertise in its chosen business sector; supplying residential leasehold management to its clients, both current and future. During recent years its vision was to expand geographically and it has completed this carefully controlled and gradual expansion.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Recognition PR Business Team .