The driving force behind this new initiative is Shane Bland, Founder & Director of Virtu. In this expansion he will be joined by Property Manager, Richard Moynihan who has joined Midlands-based Virtu from sister company Centrick as well as Client Services Manager Mike Broughton, who boasts over 25 years’ experience in horticulture & landscaping.
Shane explains:
“Due to the fact that the majority of new housing developments no longer benefit from a local authority taking over the communal areas, residents are having to face the prospect of managing these themselves; often resulting in a real hike in costs.
“A traditional managing agent primarily only looks after leasehold properties, which is considerably more complex than freehold properties and therefore results in the need for higher management fees. Our own experience across a multitude of developments compounds this; so rather than burdening freehold properties with the same structure and costs as leasehold schemes we decided it would be more effective to create a bespoke solution.”
Virtu’s Mutual Ground sees the team provide a high-quality service, while keeping the management fee to a minimum. What’s more, it offers a focused solution for housing developments that ensures the things that matter most take priority.
The Mutual Ground service will see Virtu take ownership for a wide range duties. This includes routine grounds maintenance, delivered by highly trained grounds keepers, creating bespoke specifications for each development; specialist services – such as gate automation, water pumping station and tree surgery – carried out by one of Virtu’s approved contractors; and audit and accountancy services, working closely with the team at Centrick, a top tier ARMA-Q provider of Service Charge management, to benefit from a high level of compliance and expertise.
Furthermore, residents will benefit from Virtu’s new online portal, allowing them to find all the relevant information for their development, including how to make payments, resident requests, selling a property, development maps and ground maintenance specification.
“I’m delighted to be debuting the Mutual Ground service alongside Richard & Mike. Mike has been involved in horticulture and grounds maintenance for most of his life and his experience and knowledge perfectly complements Richard’s background in managing housing developments. I truly believe we are the ideal team to deliver this new offering to residents, and I’m looking forward to making life a little easier for our customers.” concluded Shane.
To find out more, visit https://virtuproperty.co.uk/mutual-ground/
