Recent reviews on HomeViews relating to the COVID-19 crisis highlight the enhanced level of service that many BTR residents enjoy. We take a look at what BTR landlords and their management teams are doing to help tenants at this time. The sector again appears to demonstrate a unique ability to go the extra mile in the level of service it offers residents.
The current COVID-19 situation and lockdown is reminding us about what really matters. Along with family support, friends and healthcare, the quality of housing we enjoy is also being brought into sharp focus.
Many of us are set to spend long periods at home. Balconies have become yoga studios, dining tables are work desks and Zoom is the new boardroom. We understand all too well why ‘bring your child to work day’ only happens once a year. Our homes are now places for work, rest, childcare, shopping and play. So what are BTR developments offering that’s different?
Building management
Our recent 2020 National Build to Rent Report revealed how important good building management is for tenants to feel that their rental experience is a good one. In terms of overall scores, the best BTR developments all scored highly (at least 4.5 out of 5) for building management.
Tenants regularly mention their building management teams in reviews. More recent entries like the one above have started to mention how building management teams are responding to the COVID-19 lockdown and giving extra help to residents. This review of Fizzy Canning Town highlights the huge benefit of regular communication between management and tenants.
Home working
The review below highlights how well-suited the Fizzy Hayes development is for residents who need to work from home. This is clearly currently even more of a benefit than usual:
The management teams at Fizzy’s developments (all known as ‘BOBs’) are also offering virtual socials and online BOB meetings. These allow tenants to raise questions and generally stay in touch. Essential Living and Bravo are among a number of landlords currently offering enhanced WiFi connections for free. This is allowing residents to work from home without service disruptions or slow speeds.
Resident services
We’re also hearing good reports of the extra measures many BTR landlords are putting in place at this time. These aim to help residents with social distancing and self -isolation measures. The management team at Essential Living’s Union Wharf development have built connections with local retailers to help maintain essential food deliveries – especially useful for residents who are self-isolating.
While many communal spaces within BTR developments have closed, many landlords are managing access to courtyards and outdoor spaces to allow residents to exercise. All have implemented extra cleaning rotas and protective measures for both residents and staff. Virtual tours are being offered by Get Living, Grainger, Urban Bubble and many other operators keen to protect teams and residents as much as possible.
Our best-performing BTR developments continue to demonstrate why their residents rate them so highly. There are now over 40,000 BTR homes in the UK and another 110,000 on the way (Savills/BPF). The current crisis is highlighting the importance of learning from these success stories to sustain and improve standards for the future.
