Celebrations as office move marks new milestone for property firm

Property management specialist Common Ground has moved to a new office as it continues its impressive growth.

Staff and managers celebrated the switch to the new base in Chiltern House, Station Road, Henley-on-Thames last week having moved from a previous location outside the town.

Alan Draper, Managing Director of Common Ground, said: “The staff requested a town centre location so they can go into town on their lunch break.

“Our office requirements have changed due to our new hybrid working model with staff working from both the office and home, so we felt this new location was more appropriate.”

The celebration also marked the milestone of the firm managing more than 100 developments. A total of 102 developments are now being managed covering 2,298 flats and 613 freehold properties/houses – a rise of 19 per cent in the last year.

The firm’s geographical reach has also expanded into Beaconsfield and Newbury while it also manages properties in London, Swindon, Kent, Reading, Windsor and Surrey as well as more in Oxford, Henley and Buckinghamshire. Earlier this year a new office was opened in Ealing in London.

Alan added: “A significant new acquisition is Carruthers Court in Newbury which is a development of 102 flats on the Newbury Racecourse and we are looking to pick up further new business within the town as we feel there is a lot of opportunity there.

“We’ve continued to grow at a good rate, adding three new staff in the last 12 months with more expected to join later this year.”

The company’s team of property managers has also increased from 13 to 16 in the last year including two new positions of maintenance manager and assistant property manager.

Edward Hughes recently joined the firm as a senior property manager from Breckon and Breckon in Oxford. He has 15 years’ experience in block management and is member level qualified within the Institute of Residential Property Management (IRPM), the highest level of qualification.

Meanwhile, Alan has written a white paper, Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure in Communal Living Environments, for the IRPM.

The industry body published this to members in May and Alan presented the key insights into the challenges of installing electric vehicle charging points into leasehold properties at its annual conference attended by more than 600 delegates.