The careful management of Birmingham’s finest pre-World War II apartments has led to more than £100,000 in savings, credits and claims for leaseholders’ funds in the last three years.
Principle Estate Management won the contract to look after the 162 mansion flats at Viceroy Close in Edgbaston back in early 2019.
The development, built in 1937, ranges from one to five bedrooms across eight buildings on an eight-acre site.
Viceroy Close was designed by Mitchell and Bridgwater in conjunction with Gollins and Smeeton, and is well-known in the city thanks to its individual sculptures by O’Connor Barrett above the doorways of all 15 entrances.
In the first year of its estate management, Principle negotiated £47,500 worth of savings on insurance, lift maintenance and utility bills.
The second year saw £12,000 more savings on utilities, plus a successful insurance claim worth £48,000 to cover problems with one of the boiler rooms.
Another £17,000 of credit is due to be collected from an historic water bill dispute in year three, and more efficient service charge collections saw the estate’s reserve fund topping £1 million for the first time, up from £368,000 from before Principle took over.
Brett Williams, joint managing director at Principle, said: “We have done an enormous amount of work at this fantastic development since taking it into management three years ago.
“We have resolved a wide array of legacy issues, both physically and financially, and have dealt with many current and new issues too.
“Our work has been led by dedicated and experienced estate managers, starting with Sudduf Houston and then continuing when Sudduf went on maternity leave in 2021 with Danielle Lannon a Chartered Surveyor and Associate Director at Principle.”
“This focus has made a difference to the lives of all residents, both in terms of the physical environment and the financial efficiency and security of the whole estate.”
Mrs Lannon explained that many of the savings were gained thanks to Principle’s constant scrutiny and careful tendering of all services, maintenance, insurance and utility suppliers.
This even included spotting previous utility bills that had in part been wrongly charged VAT at 20% instead of 5%, and getting those overpayments refunded.
Principle also had sensitive but firm conversations with several tenants to stop AirBnB lettings. This is a difficult issue, however the lease doesn’t allow this type of letting and for the benefit of the development overall we have to enforce lease compliance.
Other issues included dealing with leaks in some of the old buildings, installing new CCTV for improved security, a programme of internal decoration, repointing brickwork and various tree works and new plantings.
The CCTV project was a good example of us working closely with the residents association. The previous system had failed and had become obsolete. We put forward a proposal to install a modern replacement system. The residents association wished for increased coverage. In liaison with the chosen installer, a system was devised to provide 100% coverage of the buildings, improving security and the feeling of safety.
On the request of the residents again, we have installed a new superfast broadband infrastructure which residents can sign up to if they wish. The rise of homeworking makes this more attractive to residents.
Mrs Lannon added: “Looking after Viceroy Close involves constant hard work, but it is also an enjoyable contract because we can see the huge differences we are making to residents’ lives and the long-term sustainability of this beautiful estate.
“We are always looking ahead, and are currently surveying residents about installation of charging points for electric vehicles, and looking into roof repairs, lift upgrades and have commissioned a full report on the communal heating and hot water installation.”
Ray Dickinson, chairman of Viceroy Close Residents’ Association, said: “We have all been so impressed with Principle’s care for our development.
“We love where we live and it’s fantastic to have a managing agent that understands how we want things maintained, that communicates regularly with properly thought out strategic plans.
“And as the development approaches 100 years of age, it’s also reassuring to know that the estate’s finances have been improved so well.
“We all feel reassured that the company is run by chartered surveyors with a real love for buildings, expert knowledge of the sector and the willingness to look at individual instructions to provide a bespoke service that a unique property like Viceroy Close needs.”
