A relatively new firm in the crowded central London buying agency market is expanding into property management.

Aykroyd & Co was launched in April 2018 and had what it calls “a cracking inaugural year” closing on over £60m worth of property. 

It was set up by a former director of the central London estate agency VanHan and is led by Hannah Aykroyd. It’s based in Mayfair and operates as an advisory service to overseas buyers as well as domestic purchasers. 

The firm says it looks after no more than six clients at any one time and is already ranked among the top 10 buying agencies by PrimeResi, a website dedicated to property activity within London’s most expensive enclaves.

Now its new property management division will be headed up by Natasha Willis, who worked for nearly five years at Savills managing its Belgravia and Chelsea portfolio. Before that, she worked for a boutique property management firm covering prime central London. 

The agency will be focusing on two types of property management: rental property management and vacant management. 

The rental property management service will include an initial assessment and strategy proposal and run to tenant selection, rent collection and full management, and eventually through any potential resale. 

The vacant property management service will be aimed at clients who travel extensively.

“We are bringing back a personal approach to property management with plenty of face time” says Wills.  

“We believe in the personal touch, rather than hiding behind a phone or computer. Too often property management today is reactive, whereas our goal is to take a proactive approach to management to identify and address any issues long before they arise”.