A lettings business in the North-East has announced plans to open another nine branches in the region over the next three years and then take its brand nationwide.
Ajay Jagota, who started KIS Lettings as South Tyneside Lettings and Management in 2006, is forecasting that turnover will increase from its current £500,000 to £5m.
KIS Lettings, which is based in South Shields and has offices in North Shields and Sunderland, currently has 15 staff but is recruiting more, and has just invested in a new bespoke IT system.
Jagota says this has cut costs by around 20%, allows managers to get an immediate financial picture up to five years into the future and provides easy-to-access information for the 300 landlords whose properties the firm manages. The firm specialises in affordable rental properties.
He is currently looking at potential sites to open in Newcastle and said he launched the company after identifying a gap in the market for a competitively priced lettings management agency.
He said: “Most management agencies out there are charging 10% of the monthly rental cost but at KIS we charge just 5%.”
He added: “In the short term, I’m looking to grow the business to at least 12 branches over the next three years. But, once we have branches covering the whole of the North-East, my long-term vision is to possibly make KIS a national brand.
“We deliver a quality service at a very competitive price and I don’t see any reason why we can’t branch out to become a successful national letting agency.”
Comments
Ajay, well do to you for your ambitious plans.
I’m sure it can be done with hard work and determination.
Only time will tell if you can enough landlords onboard to make the number work.
I think it’s time the industry was modernised. I do agree that property is a peoples business, but times have changed and people are happy to deal more business over the phone. I love your website, who are you using for your site development and your lettings software? As a matter of interest, have you though about be a virtual letting agent, where you have no shop front.? I believe this is the only way you can sustain your business on 5% management fees. Best wishes with your business expansion.
I'm from the KIS development team, thanks for bringing to our attention, it was indeed a sample file from a test account. We used this for testing of PDF generation, multiple pages etc. Of course all client data is only accessible via valid credentials. Although this was a sample we've removed from our servers to avoid confusion.
I would agree that no professional letting outfit canc harge a fee of 5% (without hidden charges, kick back off contractors and/or exceptionally high tenanct charges)
Considering the lower rental prices in the north east, I can imagine that there is no incentive to conduct repairs, deal with utilties or third party persons as the commission does not allow many man hours.
Finally as my first boss use to say ' low fees tends to attract those landlords who refuse to do repairs or buy the cheapest replacements available'.
@Ray Comer Same thing I've got - want to go halves on land reg searches?
@group 4 & ajay jagota
wow, I can believe this sort of information is open to public view!! Is this a sample or live? The Data Protection office will have a field day with you if this is actual tenants and landlords!!
https://docs.google.com/viewer?a=v&q=cache:pW_1-9Bufu8J:https://www.kislettings.co.uk/dashboard-statements-pdf-download/file/cs9308-1306170281+kisgroup+org&hl=en&gl=uk&pid=bl&srcid=ADGEESizH39n-A2iityedqPCBCXO1PWFkr2gBwCEib1MrFvJElj3Oc1fWWLh7dVnyyEnhQSobJTakJ3XOtngOpLFHHQH82FbMq2epUL2Y-9w5LTaqiVc616TKc_BEKeO5H9qULz8p6WW&sig=AHIEtbTtD6nRPy85oJ3rrZ_qqYxKvz21Yg
@Ajay Jagota on 2012-02-16 14:36:05
Of course methods etc. change and did many times over the 35 years of my own multi disciplined firm
You do not comment on my comment on your figure 300, or reply to my question - do you not believe it is basically a face-to- face people business?
However, whichever way the cookie crumbles I wish you luck because everyone needs that.
Type kisgroup.org in to Google search. 3rd result will give you a link to a 'secure' PDF of names, addresses and commissions earnt. Genius. In other news: Spare barge-pole for sale in north-east area........
West London letting and Managment drop me an email at info@kisgroup.org marked for my attention as im always willing to meet like minded business people.
Ray Evans - We live in an ever changing market and what has worked in the past is certainly is no gaurantee for future success.
To some of the comments posted on here - you inspire all of us at KIS Group - and only time will tell!
Ajay Jagota - Good luck to you buddy! im sure theres a few agents in london who could learn something from what you are trying to achieve. your landlord software looks interesting, would love to learn more.
to sustain a properly run management business at 5% can be achieved if monies are invested wisely and wisely is exactly what Ajay has done in the form of bespoke IT solutions which i would welcome with open arms.
Anybody who starts a lettings agency from scratch and builds it to a half million pound business in five years or so gets respect from me - I did something similar and I know how much hard work is involved.
Anyone who thinks that having done so they can turn it into a five million quid business in three years by opening nine more branches has either got access to an almost bottomless pit of working capital or is living in cloud cuckoo land.
I don't see what is new here. We have lots of competitors who try the same trick. Lots of advertising for their super low management fees followed by an ever increasing setup fee as they realise they cannot sustain such cheap fees in the long term. Thankfully in our area Landlords have begun to realise that the service and security of their Letting Agent is a more desirable quality then low fees.
@Ajay Jagota on 2012-02-16 10:14:25
Would you not agree that 'Residential Property Managment" is different to 'Sales' and is fundementally a face-to-face 'people' business and that technology, whilst important in todays marketplace, is secondary?
He says "....300 landlords whose properties the firm manages" NOT 300 properties.
How many properties is not stated but double that number may be eneough for his existing set-up?
However, I am still doubtful that 5% for FULL management is sustainable in the longer run.
Didnt they say a similar point about easy jet and Ryanair? Maybe it's about time the letting industry embraced technology to enhance the letting experience and improve efficiencies which I have yet to see in the market place? I take your point on board that it's all about numbers- we have seen huge growth in our numbers and continue to experience new landlords joining us daily as we offer not only 5% but a unique landlord login tool offering complete transparency - www.kislandlord.co.uk - take the tour online maybe it may help explain how we feel we can pull off the "3 card trick"
Not sure how you can currently support 15 staff and 3 branches with only 300 managed properties charging 5%?
Landlords are always attracted to low management fees but I fear they will not stay low forever or service levels will slip to an all time low.
Good Luck!
Good luck to Mr Jagota - but am I the only one who sees this all ending in tears?
It is impossible, simply impossible, to su=tain a properly run business at 5% full management fees, if that is what he is saying.
The only way that can ever work is if you have huge volume, minimal voids and fantastically efficient systems to the point of being faultless.
That is a very hard three card trick to pull off.