The HMO ManorMind - Who’s idea was this??

Now, this is a story all about how

Networking got flipped-turned upside down

And I'd like to take a minute

Just sit right there

I'll tell you how 40 of the best took over a town in the middle of no-where.

The very first HMO Manor Mind, like all new ideas, was an experiment. Our hypothesis;

“What would you get if you put some of the best and most progressive minds in the HMO sector together in a manor with 27 beds, a heated pool, hot tub, games room and banquet hall?”

I don’t think anyone could have quite prepared us for the answer that we would get.

“What an event! Was the only place where I could meet the big players, as to be honest you won’t find them at normal property events. Can’t wait for the next one!” Ruth Hunter

“You’ve ruined networking for me. How will we ever top that?” Ian Bluck

“What a day and night! HMO history in the making!” Wendy Whittaker-Large

Even though we set a loose agenda for the day we did away with many of the formalities that you’d associate with a networking event. There was a palpable passion in the room and an energy that transcended the need for small talk. This was 40 of some of the brightest and most progressive minds in the industry coming together to learn from each other and have the opportunity to really chew the fat on some of the most burning issues that we’re facing. If you ever wanted proof that the future of shared living is in safe hands then this was it.

On Thursday 23rd of February, Fawley Court in Herefordshire played host to this inaugural event and it felt like a family reunion - a coming together of a community of people bonded together by a shared goal. Guests arrived from far and wide (some even cutting holidays short in order to be there) and everyone ‘showed up’ in a metaphorical sense as much as in a physical one. The evening was kicked off with the first of two round table discussion points;

Battle the rising costs: Bills and Expenses

For many HMO operators, the ‘bills in’ nature of tenancy agreements has meant that the energy crisis is one that had been felt acutely by most in the room. But what was fascinating is how a shared problem can be addressed in so many different ways, and this was the beauty of getting such a variety of professionals together to discuss this topic.

Robin Grant spoke of the adoption of sensor technology in each room to control individual heating zones, whilst Daryn Brewer talked about how in their more recent conversions they have been fitting all of the cables for solar panels - even if they weren’t installed as part of that conversion, they were future proofing themselves against further increases.

Trisha from Elgie Group spoke passionately about their design led approach that is at the centre of moving their conversions over to being exclusively electric and the use of isolators in each unit, as well as sensor technology that triggers the heating only when there is someone in the room. Lucy Reah was in agreement and showed that even though their refurb costs had risen significantly they were all aimed at vastly reducing their energy exposure in the long run. Lee Dumbarton picked up the conversation with the challenges that they face through less commonly considered things such as electric car charging, tenants who exclusively work from home and even Bitcoin mining (something that everyone had a horror story about). Piers Tussaud eloquently summarised it as being a situation where we, as HMO operators, “can only control what we can control”. Educating tenants and keeping open lines of communication were cited as things that were under our control and have an impact.

After the initial ‘solution’ conversation, the discussion developed more pragmatically. There was a general agreement that the current energy crisis was short lived and energy was subject to free market forces and goes up and down based on various factors. This was pitched in contrast to the cost of doing business - corporation tax, council tax; all costs that only ever go one way, and that is up. Wendy Whittaker-Large gave an impassioned summary of the increasingly taxing environment that small landlords find themselves in, yet it is these very landlords that form the backbone of UK housing creating beautiful and safe spaces for millions of tenants.

At 6:30 we moved the discussion to the next key topic;

Customer Experience: Value & Strategy

The care those in the room had for both tenants and the ‘product’ that they provided (beautiful housing) became evident as soon as the second session started. What became equally evident was how, as a business owner, you could build a team around you that shared this level of uncompromised service without them having to be involved on a day to day basis.

Vann Vogstad from COHO offered his perspective as the founder of a tech company. In tech, culture and service filtration is vital because of the scale at which they operate. It’s not physically possible for the founder or CEO to do everything, so their job is to set the culture and then hire for cultural fit rather than for specific job roles. Williams Johnson Mota from B-Hive Living captured this perfectly when he stood and spoke about how they “don’t sell rooms - they sell lifestyle” and how their appointed Head of Experience ensures that culture transcends his team - a culture that is rooted in their company mission which is to allow people to live a more healthy and connected lifestyle.

The conversation continued as people spoke passionately about how they sought to raise customer standards and experience but it was Kris Sparrow ??? HMO and SA Investment Specialist from Ideal who countered this by suggesting that no matter what top notes you hit with your customer experience, if you’re failing at the basics then this is what will ruin you as a business. Socials and discount vouchers are all well received, but if that tenants loo hasn’t been working for two weeks then they hold no value at all. Ruth Hunter from Veredus carried this on and spoke of how she offers her tenants a 24/7 counselling service to help them navigate anything that they may be experiencing.

What was evident from these discussions and debates was the passion in the room. At times they were fiery and highly charged and at other times the room echoed with people laughing in agreement over a shared experience but it was clear that everyone there took something away that they’d not previously considered and as the food and drink started flowing so did the follow on conversations.

By 8pm the games room was pumping, the hot tub and pool full. The party atmosphere continued right into the early hours of the next morning and despite a few sore heads everyone left The ManorMind topped up to full with new ideas and energy to continue to improve their own businesses and the HMO industry as a whole.

As a collective everyone there shared the same business model - to provide shared living accommodation. What ManorMind did was to create a community out of these people. A community that is going to make waves. A community that will be instrumental in the success of our sector.

Until next time…