PROPOSED ACCREDITATION SCHEME FOR PROPERTY MANAGERS
MEETING OF STAKEHOLDERS' WORKING GROUP
HELD ON 14 JANUARY 2010 AT COSLA'S OFFICES, ROSEBERY HOUSE, HAYMARKET TERRACE, EDINBURGH
NOTE OF MEETING
1. APOLOGIES
A list of those who attended is attached at Annex A. Apologies had been received from Mia Ayres-Donnelly and Sarah Speirs.
2. MEETING HELD ON 5 NOVEMBER 2009
A note of the meeting held on 5 November was approved subject to the addition of apologies from Colin Baxter.
Matters arising:
Mediation: SK reported on an approach to Lewis Shand Smith for further information about the free telephone mediation available from the Surveyors Ombudsman Service (SOS).
The Ombudsman Service Ltd, which operates the SOS, is continuing to develop mediation as a method of resolving complaints and this more informal approach has proved very successful. There are clear advantages for both the consumer and the service provider in that the complaint is settled quickly and both parties accept immediately. The SOS Terms of Reference refer to this as a 'mutually acceptable settlement' and state that the Ombudsman will seek to achieve settlement in this way wherever practical and appropriate. If agreed by both parties, there will be no further representations or comebacks. If the complaint is not resolved in this way the Ombudsman may proceed with a formal investigation. An additional benefit for the service provider is that they do not have to provide a detailed case file. If this approach continues to grow in popularity, it should in the long term bring down the scheme's unit cost - providing another benefit for members.
It was agreed that SK should obtain more detail about the telephone mediation process, the types of issues it has generally been used to resolve and whether the process in capped in terms of time.
SK also reported on recently approved Cabinet Office guidance on Ombudsman schemes. Although the guidance does not apply to Scotland (or the other devolved administrations) the principles set out would be relevant and helpful in the process of selecting an Ombudsman scheme.
3. STRATEGIC OPTIONS REVIEW
The group considered a discussion paper and supporting annexes, which had been circulated.
A significant development since the last meeting had been that a further approach to the UK Department of Communities and Local Government has established that any move to introduce statutory regulation through Westminster is likely to be a lengthy process and further clarification of the legislative intentions and timescales of the UK Government is not likely to be available in advance of the next UK general election. Consequently at this stage it is not known whether statutory regulation will be introduced for letting and managing agents in England and Wales, whether it will extend to leasehold managers (property managers in Scotland) and whether it will be possible to tailor legislation to the different situation in Scotland.
During the discussion which followed, the working group noted that seven years had passed since the Housing Improvement Task Force first recommended that an accreditation scheme should be established and there was concern that the significant progress made since March 2009 should not be allowed to drift. In particular the group was concerned that consumers should not be left without additional protection for longer than necessary.
In conclusion the group strongly recommended that work should continue on development and implementation of a voluntary accreditation scheme. While the working group wished to progress establishment of the scheme as quickly as possible, it was concerned that the scheme should be the most appropriate for Scotland.
Members also emphasised that it was essential that the scheme should be given sufficient time to establish itself and change market dynamics before its effectiveness is assessed. Speaking on behalf of the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), KB explained that in recommending specific timescales for review of the scheme it had been OFT's intention to encourage momentum and prevent further slippage in action to protect consumers. She said that OFT would be pragmatic in respect of the recommended timescales if a scheme had been established but further time was required to prove its effectiveness. If a good faith effort was in hand, it would not be OFT's intention to undermine it in order to meet a fixed deadline.
In the longer term, the group recognised that the Scottish Ministers have made it clear that they will consider stronger measures if accreditation does not address problems identified in the industry. If the statutory route does prove necessary in the future, the group considered it essential that the regulatory model should be tailored for the specific circumstances of Scotland. In this respect the group considered that a well-designed accreditation scheme, underpinned by robust and independent third party redress, would prove a valuable foundation for the redress-based model of statutory regulation which members considered to be the most suitable for Scotland.
Speaking of behalf of COSLA, DM commented that local authorities welcomed accreditation, which would be particularly helpful in identifying good quality property managers for the implementation of Maintenance Orders and Repair Notices.
SW commented that future work on tendering for a host organisation should explore any opportunities for streamlining and economies of scale, in order to avoid a proliferation of small accreditation bodies.
Annex A - the group considered Annex A, which included latest estimates for membership take-up and annual subscription fees based on both flat rate and tiered approaches. It was noted that the estimated membership of 116 did not include property managers who manage fewer than 100 properties and therefore estimates for the membership fee had been prepared on the basis that these smaller property managers (under 100 properties) would not be charged since they are assumed not to be joining. There was, however, a consensus among members of the group that accreditation would not be valued if it was offered free and all property managers should be charged a fee - even if it was a nominal amount in the case of small factors (SG anticipated that small housing associations are likely to be deterred by higher subscription charges).
KB considered it important that those who currently self-factor should be targeted in an attempt to persuade them of the benefits of using a property manager.
4. STANDARDS
The working group considered Draft 8 of the core standards, which had been circulated.
Members of the group were invited to return any further comments on the standards by 31 January at the latest. AMcD and LMacD also to discuss and return any amendments to standards 12a, 12b and 13 before this date.
At the suggestion of CFS it was agreed that the core standards will be subject to a 12 week public consultation in addition to previously agreed plans for consumer and industry testing/engagement. A rationale for the standards will be required for the purposes of the consultation - agreed that SW/SK will prepare a policy context for the standards as a whole (mentioning the prospect of statutory regulation).
Agreed that a meeting of the standards sub-group (including CFS representation) to be arranged to agree the draft standards for consultation and consider the more detailed rationale required to accompany specific standards. The resulting document will be presented for consideration and approval at the next meeting of the full working group.
5. THE NEXT STEPS
· Members of the group to return any comments by 31 January at the latest on: Draft 8 of the core standards, suggested rationale for individual standards, Annex A of the strategic review paper (in particular the approach to subscription charging). Please e-mail all comments direct to SK.
· Early meeting of the standards sub-group required to consider final amendments and rationale.
· The revised standards to be presented for consideration and approval at the next meeting of the full working group.
· Industry and consumer testing of the core standards to be carried out as soon as possible after the standards are approved by the working group.
· The standards to be subject to a 12 week public consultation, aiming for an April start.
· Tendering for the host to be progressed as quickly as possible, with draft specification being presented to the next meeting of the working group. Agreed that a sub-group should be established to take this forward (membership not to include any members with an interest in tendering for the host role).
· An awareness raising campaign is being progressed as part of a wider campaign being developed by the Scottish Government in partnership with local authorities (Best Value Network).
6. DATE OF NEXT MEETING
10 am on Thursday 25 February 2010 (Highlander House, Glasgow)
Housing Markets & Supply
January 2010
ANNEX A
PROPOSED ACCREDITATION SCHEME FOR PROPERTY MANAGERS
STAKEHOLDERS' WORKING GROUP
14 JANUARY 2010
LIST OF PARTICIPANTS
· Chartered Institute of Housing Scotland: Natalie Sutherland (Policy and Practice Officer)
· Consumer Focus Scotland: Jennifer Wallace (Principal Policy Advocate) and Douglas White (Senior Policy Advocate)
· Convention of Scottish Local Authorities: Douglas Munro (Accounts Manager, Housing Investment, Glasgow City Council)
· Edinburgh Stair Partnership: Sarah Burns (Homeowners & Private Rented Services Manager, City of Edinburgh Council)
· Glasgow Housing Association (Management) Ltd - Alison McDiarmid (Operations Director)
· The Law Society of Scotland: Lionel Most (Conveyancing Committee)
· Office of Fair Trading: Kyla Brand (OFT Representative in Scotland)
· Property Managers Association Scotland: Lorraine MacDonald (Vice-President)
· Scottish Federation of Housing Associations: Sheila Gilmore (Consultant for SFHA factoring Good Practice Guidance)
· Scottish Government: Lucile Rankin (Property Advice Division); Simon Stockwell (Family and Property Law); Stephen White and Shona Keenan (Housing Markets & Supply)
· Trading Standards: Colin Baxter (Trading Standards Manager, City of Edinburgh Council)
APOLOGIES
Mia Ayres-Donnelly (Scottish Housing Regulator)
Sarah Speirs (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors in Scotland)