Housing and Property Management Apprentice – A day in the life of Thomas Rowley
I am currently working towards my Housing and Property Management qualification here at Beyond Housing, based in the Scarborough area.
My usual day starts at 8:30am, in which I start in the office where I through my emails and plan out my days/week in my calendar. Within the housing sector, various jobs need to be done to ensure that things run efficiently. This includes shortlisting our properties on the choice-based lettings website – North Yorkshire Home Choice. The properties are fit to the ‘advert criteria’, in which I have to follow (as well as all the policies) to allocate them appropriately to applicants. Further admin jobs include conducting a Gas Cap Risk Assessment for tenants who currently have their gas capped off at their property (this ensures they are not at any risk) booking appointments for housing officers, answering email queries and sending letters.
Jobs outside of the office consist of ‘sign-ups’ at the properties that have previously been allocated to customers. You do this by showing the new tenant around the property to ensure they are happy with everything, then complete the legal documents to finalise the property handover. Another job is to collect keys from vacating tenants and check the property’s condition as it may need to go to the void team for repairs and maintenance. I also conduct various home visits, customer care visits and property inspections.
I would highly recommend an apprenticeship to anyone looking to work towards a future career. It’s a great way of gaining a qualification by developing skills on the job, while earning at the same time.