Business North March 2021

56 | Clarke Group - making an impact T T Karen Phelps PROPERTY Clarke Group Property Management B eing selected as a finalist in the 2020 Westpac Auckland Business Awards South and East regions for Excellence in Marketing was quite an achievement consid- ering Clarke Group Property Management (CGPM) only officially launched in 2018, says CGPM branch manager Alana Harmon. She says the company has separated itself from the rest on the back of its experience managing over 140 of its own studio apart- ments around Auckland, funded and con- structed by parent company Clarke Group Management, Auckland’s largest provider of residential studio apartments. “Clarke Group director Austen Clark orig- inally founded the property management company to manage the properties developed by Clarke Group Management,” Alana says. “However after identifying a growing need for high-quality property management in the industry at large, Austen decided to extend the services to the private sector. “As Austen is involved with a number of residential developments in Auckland and is an investor himself he understands the im- portance of having a rental property portfolio managed by a professional team,” explains Alana. The CGPM team comprises more than 30 years combined experience in property man- agement. The company invests a lot of money back into its staff through on-going training and education programmes, says Alana. For example recently all staff completed the NZ Certificate in Residential Property Man - agement (Level 4). CGPM is also a member of the Leading Property Managers Association of New Zealand. “We work with proven systems to give other landlords the ultimate hands-off experience when engaging our services, whether it’s achieving a desired return, gaining peace of mind that their property is being cared for at the highest level, or acquiring new tenants, our mission is simply ‘your needs, put first’,” explains Alana. She says that the CGPM business devel- opment and marketing manager utilises the latest advertising methods to promote listings for rent and that CGPM is continually looking at new methods and technologies available to increase property viewings. “We want to attract great tenants to our properties and the way you market a property can help achieve this. “ We continue to invest in new tools for the job and utilise a number of online avenues to market new properties to prospective tenants.’’ As being a property manager is a 24-7 job Alana says that tenants and owners often call at all hours of the day and night. “Our property managers work very hard and there are occasions where we’ve been called out to sort individual disputes between tenants, asked to kill little lizards crawling under a deck or even an 11pm call requesting we come and change a light bulb. Property managers wear many different hats and no two days are the same. Communication is key at all times, especially with owners during the advertising process, throughout viewings and when considering potential tenants. “Our team carries out detailed background checks and holds one-on-one discussions with applicants. Once two or three suitable candidates have been short-listed, we let the landlord make the final decision about who they would like to live in their home.” Once tenanted the CGPM property manag- ers handle the rent collection, any arrears and take care of maintenance and repairs while ensuring the tenant and landlord both comply with the Residential Tenancies Act. Managing legislation changes and ensuring owners are aware of any new changes to the law helps avoid hefty fines and conflict. “Being property investors ourselves we understand the needs of our clients and are constantly working with them to create better pathways to success.” “We want to attract great tenants to our properties and the way you market a property can help achieve this.” The CGPM team comprises more than 30 years combined experience in property management.