Property Guardians
Choose a guardian company who is a member of the PGPA
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know that the building you occupy meets safety and standards regulations - only PGPA members must subject their properties to independent audits carried out by Fire Officers
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your fees and payments are kept safe
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a genuine independent redress scheme non-members cannot offer
So what now?
To find out more about becoming a property guardian, or if you own a vacant property that you want to keep secure - commercial, residential or a public building - then contact any PGPA member:
Ad Hoc Property Management VPS Guardians Live-in Guardians
Question:
What do you do when you have a cost-of-living crisis, and...
1. There are 600,000 properties sitting empty
and
2. There are a million+ people seeking more affordable acommodation?
Answer:
If you are the government or a local authority, you encourage 'meanwhile use' for temporarily vacant properties to be kept secure and provide affordable, safe accommodation. Simple.
So please, if you are a local authority, or in the Department for Levelling up, Communities and Housing, stop prevaricating, get Planning, Housing, Security and Economy officers on the same page, and make it happen.
More vacant properties secured by guardians means:
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Less vandalism, graffitti, and the chance of squatters - local authorities save ££££s on environmental/clean-up costs
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The provision of more affordable living accommodation
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Local businesses will benefit from a building occupied by guardians than if it was sitting empty
Latest News:
June 2023
An estimated £20 billion-worth of residential property could be empty in London, official analysis from the mayor’s office has revealed. “We are urging ministers to make it easier to allow the temporary take-over of empty homes.” says London's Mayor. The PGPA comments: local authorities and the government should recognise the value that deploying property guardians brings to securing empty properties and providing much needed affordable accommodation at the same time.
April 2023
More than 34,000 homes across London are ‘long-term vacant’, according to the latest available data: the PGPA comments: the actual figure for empty properties is far higher than that, probably over 100,000. With rentals now at record highs, we urge local authorities housing and planning departments to cooperate in enabling meanwhile use, so thousands more property guardians can find affordable accommodation in the capital.
Previous news:
BBC Online: Property guardians move with the times to save cash
Read the article by the BBC which features a property and a guardian from one of our members, VPS Guardians
BBC Newsnight features Live-in Guardians property and guardians - an amazing space in Soho, for under £1,000 a month, including bills. View the episode here, (on iPlayer), story starts at 17.36 into the programme
BBC Report: Growing share of under-30s pay unaffordable rent
66% of income going on rent: two tenants from London, had their rent put up from half their wages to two-thirds of them. It comes as younger people's finances are being squeezed, amid rapidly rising living and rental costs, and a fall in real incomes.
The i newspaper reports on how guardians can save thousands of pounds a year : ‘I pay £650 to rent in London with no energy bills’: Rise of property guardians in cost of living crisis
Property Owners: PGPA Makes the Estates Gazette Front Cover! See it here, and secure your property at zero cost via guardians
Prospective Guardian Providers - why become a PGPA member?
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be recognised for meeting the PGPA's benchmark safety and standards regulations
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differentiate yourself from rogue providers and inexperienced property managers
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attract more guardians selecting the best-in-class providers
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be part of the industry's voice - shape the future success, grow the sector into a 100,000-strong guardian community
Our Mission
To promote best practice, safety and standards across the Property Guardian sector, to ensure that all legal and safety standards and regulations are adhered to or exceeded by its members.
We believe that property guardianship not only helps to secure temporarily vacant properties, but should be a safe and viable low-cost accommodation, where all stakeholders can benefit from the best practices business model the PGPA expects of its members.
Membership Benefits
The PGPA members provide for over 60% of all UK's guardians accommodation.
For guardians and property owners:
choosing a provider that is a member of the PGPA affords you security and peace of mind that you are with a reputable company. Should any member fall short of the high standards we set, you can seek redress via the PGPA.
For Property Guardian providers and management companies:
we welcome new members, so long as you meet the criteria, and agree to apply and operate to the standards we set. Members must be able to prove that they do so.
