How Asset Management Can Help The UK Housing Market

This means:

• Realigning of budgets
• Reduce survey costs on stock
• New focus on safety with sheltered accommodation  regards Fire protection
• Tower Block new investment
• Policy shift to NEW homes
• Reduced spend on cyclical maintenance programmes on housing stock
• Change of policy from PVC replacement to Wood and repairing.

All of these have had a dramatic effect on our day to day workloads but also forcing organisations to reduce their Cyclical Maintenance programmes within their Asset Management.

Asset Management is the range of activities undertaken to ensure that the Housing Stock meets the needs and standards for the future. As is clear, asset management goes beyond investing in good repair and improvements. It must consider quality and value for money, particularly the whole life of a home and how future running costs will affect customers.

It has been proven that a wooden window properly repaired will last in excess of 50+ years whilst a PVC unit on average lasts 17 /20 years then needs replacing, this is false economy at best. Particularly since the Repair Care resin system costs on average about 15-20% of the cost of a new unit! There are obvious environmental benefits with repairing over replacement since the number of PVC replacement units fitted has been reduced massively. More importantly the money saved over the period has amounted to millions of pounds saved on budgets. This has allowed the saved money to be spent on other areas such as new build or other priorities.

There is now a focus on awarding 25 year “partnership” contracts for the regeneration of housing stock to include Life Cycle Costings on many stages of maintenance whether this be Kitchens, bathrooms or roof repairs and windows. Repair Care International have for many years been a market leader in Europe, particularly in Holland, for reducing costs on surveys and repairs. By being specialists in surveying housing stock, we are able to produce an individual unit report for repair of windows based on a true 25 year Life cycle costs.

We are excited to be working alongside some major UK companies on this new system. As a company we are proud to say that,  Repair Care can and will reduce the costs on repairs but also save you a significant time on survey costs which can be in excess of £650 per dwelling at current levels. As proud sponsors of the CIH Housing Event next month and the Homes Exhibition in November, we are hoping to work together with more housing associations to maintain their housing stock for the future to come.