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64 articles
Apportioning Liability – Not my job!
Apportioning liability to a defect or damage seen at checkout can either be a straightforward or a complicated process. This can also be very much dependent on both your experience and the information you have available to make a qualified judgement. So how do you apportion liability? Apportionment is the term usually associated with making […]
Why Detailed Property Inventory Reports Matter
Why Are Property Inventory Reports Important? A property inventory report is essential for helping to prevent disputes with tenants, and ensuring that your rental property is in the same condition (less fair, wear and tear) at the end of a tenancy. What Role Does Inventory Management Play in Tenancy Agreements? Since the launch of mandatory […]
Are Inventory Clerks safe working in properties?
For many inventory clerks, the news that the housing market can continue to operate has been a welcome relief. In some ways, it provides a much needed ‘sense of normality’ – if that is even possible at the moment! But as we near the end of the first week of Lockdown 3.0, there is concern […]
Why property professionals shouldn’t adopt an ‘I’m alright Jack’ mentality
As a property professional, if you were to take a quick survey about the housing industry what do you think your score out of 10 would be? Do you know how many pieces of legislation affect or impact our roles as clerks, what the industry is facing in the next six months in regards to […]
The Challenges of Property Reporting – Communication
Property reporting these days can be a real challenge. When juggling time constraints alongside the need for increased safety, using PPE, managing issues and demands of tenants, agents and landlords can prove difficult. Even though protocols are in place to socially distance at the property and check outs are now (largely) unaccompanied, there are still […]
Q&A – InventoryBase Academy Self Employment Initiative
On the 5th October, we saw our first Facebook live Q&A session for new clerks and providers take place. We are looking to change careers and to help boost work opportunities and support within the property sector. Our Head of Training Sián Hemming-Metcalfe, talked about the need for quality reports and how InventoryBase Academy can […]
Inventory Clerks – A Real Person Behind The Mask
Inventory clerks can often be totally overlooked throughout the lettings process. A recent blog posted by Apropos pointed out how much the agent and landlord relationship has changed due to the pandemic and how crucial advising and supporting of landlords and tenants is as we experience yet another wave is going to be key to […]
Introducing the InventoryBase Academy Self Employment Initiative
We live in challenging times with every type of industry having to change and adapt like we’ve never seen before. Here at InventoryBase Academy, we recognise that there is a need to offer accessible training and development opportunities to help people to develop new skills and find work. So why the need for our new […]
Recruiting Great Inventory Clerks – Your 5 Step Guide
It’s been a busy start to ‘life after lockdown’ and with the lead up to summer gathering pace, many inventory providers and letting agents are now recruiting great, experienced and reliable inventory clerks and property inspectors. As we all know; recruiting great inventory clerks can be quite tricky and rarely straightforward. Finding the right candidate […]
Inventory Reports: Are you pricing them right?
You’ve taken the first step at becoming an inventory clerk. You’re thinking about how your reports are going to look, who will buy them and how you will deliver them. But how do you price your inventory report? To understand what your reports are worth you need to understand the market you are investing your […]
Safeguarding awareness – Every childhood is worth fighting for
As an operational Governor working in Her Majesty’s Prison Service (1991-2011), I was responsible for an Offender Management Unit. We dealt with safeguarding, offender casework, their rehabilitation needs and also the families in joining up the cognitive therapies and probation case management to help offenders reintegrate back into society and the family unit. It was […]
Property Inventory Training – How to become an inventory clerk
Finding the right career or job can be quite a daunting process. If you are unsure as to what you want to do and how your skills will transfer from your current role to your chosen profession, making the leap will bring with it a lot of mixed emotions. Being an inventory clerk or inventory […]
InventoryBase Academy – Interim Property Visits – How we are supporting inventory professionals
At InventoryBase Academy, we all know the impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to be felt in both terms of individuals being tested positive and the very sad news of fatalities both here in the UK and worldwide. We want to do whatever we can to help you to reduce the risk to both yourself, your clerks […]
InventoryBase Academy – Inventory Providers in 2020 – Practical Solutions for Practical Problems
These have included ARLA, RLA, and SafeAgent who have focused on ways to improve the tenant experience as well as safeguard the industry against potential changes that could cause disruption. These include the scrapping of the so called no fault eviction – section 21, the overhaul of section 8, the potential introduction of a new housing court. The manifesto’s […]
Do Inventory Clerks Need Insurance?
As a practicing inventory clerk you should be insured whether you are self-employed, a sole trader or a limited company. Most high street agents require clerks / companies that provide inventory services to have insurance as it protects them against claims from tenants and landlords. For most clerks (self employed / sole trader) you will […]
Practical Property Reports Training – January 2020
Just released! Our highly anticipated first practical training course dates for January 2020 are now open for enrolment. Following on from our successful e-learning course “Learn how to produce professional inventory reports” our CPD accredited practical training is led by industry expert, Siân Hemming-Metcalfe. And as an InventoryBase Academy graduate, you are exclusively invited to […]
All I want for Christmas is… A warm property to inventory!
Winter has well and truly arrived and with it lots of cold properties to inventory! As a hands on inventory provider I dread the cold winter months as properties are sometimes colder inside than out! And with the reduced sunlight you are often rushing around trying to fit in the jobs before its too dark […]
How Housing Policy Changes Have Affected Every Group In The Private Rented Sector – FixFlo Report
A very useful report from Fixflo has been published outlining how the lettings market is managing the recent housing policy changes and how they have affected practically every group in the private rented sector.For me the key takeaways are: 18% of agents in England and 32% in Scotland responded saying they were ‘not at all […]
Finding Work After Armed Forces – Where Next?
Many (many) years ago I had the privilege of working with the Army at the Military Corrective Training Centre (MCTC) in Colchester. I was part of a Prison Service initiative where we worked alongside the armed forces to help rehabilitate young people to reduce reoffending. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with our uniformed colleagues and […]
How to Price Your Inventory Report
It can be quite difficult to understand the cost of a report if you do not know how many rooms or areas are to be included so the following is a guide to getting the pricing right first time. The floorpan shown is a large house located in the Dorset region. Some inventory providers quote […]
Seven Ways to Price Your Inventory Reports
I came across a very useful article in Donut where they discuss how to price your product which for inventory providers is easier said than done. Why? Because we are battling two fronts: the amount the client is willing to pay versus the actual costs of providing the service. Clients inherently want everything for nothing yet they […]
Trading Standards Issues Stark Warning To Stop Tenants Being Ripped Off
As this article in Property Wire shows https://www.propertywire.com/news/uk/trading-stand… more and more agents / landlords are being fined for ‘rogue practices’ which is a very positive step as it helps those that want and do provide a great service to improve and grow. But as inventory suppliers we are also at risk from such individuals so what can […]
Can Inventory Providers Effect Change In The Industry?
We are working in an industry that is going through massive legislative change and, in the main, it’s seen as a positive step certainly in order to safeguard tenants and for many, is long overdue but there is a real risk that as inventory providers we will be left to ‘fend for ourselves’ as letting […]
DPS Case Study Reveals Why Impartiality Is Key To A Successful Dispute
With over 60,000 disputes adjudicated on by the Dispute Resolution Service they know a thing or two about evidence and the need to provide detailed information during a dispute. This case study; originally highlighted in Estate Agent Today showcases how conflicting evidence from the landlord and tenant can hinder the dispute process. The situation A […]
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