This International Women’s Day, we’re delving into the archives of Blocktalk, the podcast for UK Property Management Professionals, hosted by Brian Welsh, Managing Director of CPL Software.
In a conversation recorded back in March 2022, Annie Flint, co-founder of Under One Roof, shares her journey and insights into the world of tenement living and property management.
Annie’s story begins with her youthful venture into flat ownership at the age of 18, when she bought a flat in Edinburgh around 50 years ago. In those days, council inspectors would routinely visit tenement buildings, identifying necessary repairs and prompting swift action from owners to address issues like faulty gutters.
When Annie moved to Glasgow, she experienced a stark contrast. Upon receiving her first factors bill in Glasgow, Annie was taken aback by the seemingly small insurance fee. Her attempts to seek clarification from the factor were met with silence. She received another bill and wrote to them, and again got no reply. Annie did not want to pay the bill if she didn’t get an answer, and the factor threatened to take her to court over the dispute.
A couple of weeks later, Annie crossed paths with John Gilbert, a conservation architect who was working on refurbishing tenements in Govan at the time. He told her about the struggles they were having to get owners to maintain the refurbished tenements.
Following these experiences, Annie and John decided they were going to write a book to help improve the situation of communal property management, culminating in the creation of the Tenement Handbook, published in 1993.
However, the ever-changing landscape of legislation and funding necessitated the shift from printed to digital resources and over time the Tenement Handbook evolved to become the Under One Roof website.
In the podcast episode, Annie recounts this journey and discusses the importance of education and collaboration when it comes to maintaining tenements. She highlights the need for a shift in how communal properties are perceived and managed:
“We still have this huge job to do to try and get people to think about flats and communal properties and the fact that they’re different from houses.”
Discussions also touch upon common complaints among owners, the implications of the Property Factors Act, the need to improve tenement legislation, and the evolving role of women in property management and related fields.
As Annie reflects on her career, she encourages women in the industry to embrace their voices and stand up for what they believe in:
“… I also think women are often averse to sticking their heads out and coming forward and having the courage of their own convictions… when I look back at the times that I’ve had most impact, I think it’s been where I’ve stood up and articulated what I thought was right, or what I thought was needed and I’ve said so very publicly… I’m sure there’s lots of much younger women in the property management industry listening. You know, I just say to you be proud of being dangerous. Go out there, put yourself out. If I think about anything in my career, where I didn’t get things done, it was where I was being timid. You know, I’ve got things done when I’ve stood up and spoken out.”
Listen to the full episode by following the links below.
