JOB VACANCY: LEAD PROPERTY MANAGER

Fantastic opportunity for an exciting FULL-TIME fast-paced role with prospects for extensive professional and personal development.

We are looking for a highly motivated, solution-focused and positive individual who understands the complexities of the sector and enjoys a challenge. A PASSION for PROPERTY, CUSTOMER CARE and PEOPLE is a must! 

Chapmans is a growing and highly rated property lettings and management business based in Roseburn in Edinburgh. We provide a vital service to both our Landlords – who need someone they can trust to manage and let their properties but also to our Tenants, for whom we are providing a home and a safe and happy place to live.  We provide this service with passion and care to a wide range of Landlords – from Investors, First-time Landlords, Executries and clients moving to us from other agencies. Our Landlords live locally and abroad.  Our Tenants are diverse and can be students, families, elderly people, executives and young people moving out of their family homes and living independently for the very first time.

This is a fast-paced business environment which is ideal for an ambitious, quality-driven individual with a positive attitude who has a passion for property and people.  This is a real opportunity for someone keen to build an exciting career in property, who is eager to join a business that gives you the opportunity to provide excellent customer service due to our low staff to property ratios. If you think you have the skills needed to represent our team and award-winning agency, we have an exciting opening for an experienced Lead Property Manager.

Salary:  From £24,000 – final salary dependant on applicant and experience

Hours: Monday – Friday 9-5.30pm but with flexible working options following a probationary period.
There is potential for flexibility and an element of home working in the future.

Start Date: As soon as possible, however, we will wait for the best and right candidate

OVERVIEW OF LEAD PROPERTY MANAGER ROLE:

The Lead Property Manager would take lead responsibility for managing and growing a portfolio of properties with the support of our Portfolio Assistants.  Your role would involve taking ownership of the lead relationship with our Landlord clients.  You will be supported by our Head of Maintenance Manager and our Portfolio & Maintenance Assistants, but you will have the ultimate responsibility of ensuring the property records, maintenance and tenancy are as up-to-date and accurate as possible. The role would include, but is not limited to: Tenant and Landlord correspondence, tenancy changeovers and check out work, deposit negotiations, property inspections and identifying maintenance issues and opportunities for renovations, staging and refurbishments in line with the client’s own goals for the property.  You will also need to take ownership of maintenance issues that arise from inspections and when our Head of Maintenance is on holiday.

You will take the lead in the client relationship and be able to confidently have strategic and high-level conversations with the Landlord as well as being expert at end of tenancy deposit negotiations.

This is an exciting but demanding role where commitment, positivity and personal drive is essential.  The ability to manage expectations and successfully marry the demands of Tenants with the needs of our Landlords requires exemplary interpersonal skills and high levels of customer service.  We need someone to be willing to go the extra mile to ensure the smooth resolution of any issues to guarantee Landlord and Tenant satisfaction levels remain at our current 5-star levels.

We feel this is a really exciting opportunity for the right individual to join a successful, growing and highly regarded business.  There will be lots of opportunities for seeing the wider picture of our successful letting agency, as well as scope to help influence the future direction of the business.

The successful candidate should be highly motivated and be able to hit the ground running. They must enjoy the complexities of the sector and relish a challenge and be enthusiastic about finding the best solutions. We are a growing, but close-knit team of professionals who work well together to create a happy, fun and client centric workplace.

Primary Roles/Responsibilities (should be comfortable with these from day 1):

1. Inspections – minimum of 2 property visits each year to the property from a maintenance management and rental assessment point of view. Timely follow up following these visits is essential.
2. Property Turnarounds – working with the support team and Head of Maintenance to ensure efficient property turnarounds upon departure of Tenants, arrange all works as required, communicate with Landlords as necessary, oversee works, negotiate with Tenants about deductions before putting deposit return to SDS. We aim to avoid disputes but proficiency with the Adjudication Process and ability to submit a good case is essential.
3. Maintenance – must have excellent proficiency in dealing with all maintenance (minor and escalated) although you will receive support on more complex cases.
4. Tenant/Client liaison
5. Property Valuations
6. Aptitude and desire to take on new business

Experience required:

• Letwell Accreditation: CIH level 3 certificate in letting and managing residential property OR equivalent ARLA Propertymark
• At least 2 years’ experience in property management
• Must have a full clean driving licence
• Strong ability for dealing with tenancy deposits and disputes and arbitration
• Good knowledge of current letting industry & legislation (including post Covid-19 implications)
• Experience of SME Professional software

Attributes:

• Thrive within a small but growing team
• First-class communication skills (both oral, virtual & written)
• Quick & creative thinker
• Calm demeanor & efficient problem/conflict solver
• Good negotiating skills
• Genuine multi-tasker
• Attention to detail
• Smart personal presentation
• Self-starter but also happy to be directed
• Knowledge of maintenance issues and demonstrate knowledge on how issues can be solved
• Constant curiosity and desire to improve
• Ability to project manage and handle contractors to get the best outcomes
• Awareness of insurance claims
• People management – from Contractors to Tenants
• A good balance of Gravitas and Empathy
• Negotiation skills and the ability to persuade different people to meet in the middle
• Time management/Priority management
• Delegation
• Ability and desire to take ownership of issues
• Completer finisher
• Ability to diffuse stressful situations
• Aptitude with technology and able to ‘Google’ it
• Team player – as a small team we have to cover each other for holiday periods and therefore a strong willingness to get involved and ‘muck in’ when required,  ensuring all the business’ needs are met, is essential.

Chapmans’ Values

Our business is built on reputation and recommendations and we believe strongly that our values are truly representative of how we go about doing business.

We are dedicated to making sure the experience and service our Landlords and Tenants receive from us reflect these values day in and day out.

Integrity – Trust is at the heart of our business ethos. At all times we aim to be transparent, reliable, enduring, educational and positive in the way we behave and communicate. This way, everyone who deals with us can feel secure in the knowledge that we will always do the right thing for you and your rental property.

Professional – We are constantly striving to be at the top of our game, hold numerous professional memberships and accreditations and have been doing this for a long time – so you can feel confident that ‘we have got you!’ Our common-sense, considered approach is balanced with an innovative, forward-thinking outlook where solutions are found, and potential pitfalls of a heavily regulated sector, avoided.

Quality Service – Our size helps us offer a flexible, compassionate, supportive and comprehensive service – one that is tailored to suit each and every one of our client’s individual needs and circumstances. Our standards are very high – as is our passion for the service we offer and ultimately, how that service is delivered and experienced by all parties. Chapmans do more!

Approachable – What we do is hard work and can be very challenging, but you will never hear anything but a friendly, informed and upbeat voice on the other end of the phone. We love what we do and we feel this comes across in how we conduct ourselves and our business daily.

Collaborative – We care deeply about all those who come into contact with us. We look to build long lasting relationships with all our Landlords, Tenants and Contractors – displaying understanding, empathy, respect, loyalty and common-sense with everyone’s best interests at heart.

Our commitment to you:

We would hope that by working with Chapmans you would feel:

• Pride in working for a 4.8 Google star-rated service company
• Pride in knowing you are doing a brilliant job
• Satisfaction in knowing you are fulfilling an essential role in helping to create the best possible home for 100s of families and households
• Relish the fact you are looking after our Landlord’s most valuable assets and possibly securing their retirement/ day-to-day income

We would offer you the following:

• Being part of a supportive and inclusive team
• A busy but rewarding day and career
• A promise that no day will be the same
• A promise that you will constantly learn and develop
• Career progression
• Hugely transferable skills

Start Date: ASAP but will wait for the right candidate

Remuneration: Information on application plus pension and performance-related commission.  Starting salary dependent on experience, ability and qualifications and size of portfolio you can successfully manage.

How to Apply: 

Please send your CV to laura@chapmanspm.co.uk with a covering letter answering the following questions:

1. If someone, a friend or colleague, were to describe you, what five words would they use?
2. Why do you want to continue to work within the Letting/Property sector? What excites you about it?
3. Why are you applying for this role?
4. What experience do you have in managing renovations, refurbishments or general maintenance?
5. Why should we consider you for this role?
6. Where do you see yourself on the salary scale?
7. Would you consider yourself a positive role model in the workplace? Use an example if you have one.

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LEAD PROPERTY MANAGER VACANCY