Property

Town & Country property services in Hove

For this month’s property section, SBT hears from Director of Town and Country in Hove, Stephen Chipp, who give us some insight into the company’s background, journey into the Sussex business community and some of the challenges they’ve overcome in their decades of operation.

Formed in 1991 by Andrew MacGregorBoyle, Town and Country has become a well-established letting and property management business, priding itself on excellent customer service in its 30 years of operation. Our company works with local, national and overseas clients, fully managing over 95% of their letting portfolio, as well as acting as a Managing Agent of converted buildings in the Brighton and Hove area, instructed by freeholders and Right to Manage companies. Property

Despite having three decades of experience under its belt, Town and Country’s road to success hasn’t been without challenge or struggle, especially over the past two years. Sadly the company’s Founder, Andrew passed away in September 2017 and current Directors – his wife, Susan and myself – have had to endure the cruel task of not only coming to terms with the death of our husband and friend, but also ensuring that the business did not suffer as a result.

This was made even more difficult when – shortly prior to his death – the bank used by the company informed us that they would be closing their business banking ‘arm’. While this wouldn’t usually be a problem, it’s fair to say that you can never plan for a death and despite knowing for two years that Andrew was ill, shares had not been transferred over to the remaining Directors – essential for opening new business banking! We as a firm have a huge amount of gratitude for our previous bank for holding an extraordinary meeting to allow us the use of their facilities until the issue was resolved, but also for our clients, who were incredibly sympathetic following Andrew’s death.

Town and Country was also in the midst of a rebranding exercise prior to Andrew’s passing, which he was very excited about, as the firm was originally a franchise operation from the Town and Country Building Society. We felt it was time to update our general branding

Stephen Chipp

and online presence, and knowing the importance this rebranding was to Andrew, it was fulfilling to know Andrew himself had approved it all.

Town and Country was always a business run by two couples – Andrew and his wife, Susan making up one half of the Management team. The team hold their heads high with the knowledge that Andrew would be incredibly proud of how his wife has coped since his death, and how the business has continued to grow whilst still retaining our core belief that excellent customer service is what separates us from our competition.

I became part of the Town and Country team some 15 years ago, initially working under my wife, Clare, who had joined the company as Lettings Manager. I learned my trade at Leaders, then working as their youngest ever employee at 20 years old. I was promoted while working for Leaders, before moving on to a Senior Negotiator role at Your Move in Brighton. It was at this time that I struck up a friendship with my wife’s boss, Andrew, while out on the golf course, and subsequently was offered the longterm opportunity to work for Town and Country, eventually working my way up to become a Director of the business. I am currently the Operations Director, overseeing all business at Town and Country. I now have two children with my wife, Clare, who works for the firm on a part-time basis.

Town and Country’s team is complemented by Jenny, who joined the company as a maternity leave cover as Clare and I enjoyed time off after having our first child. She is now Property Coordinator, holding an exceptional record of only having nine disputes over deposit return since the inception of the legislation back in 2007. This statistic is frankly remarkable, but again comes back to the fact that the company would rather liaise and negotiate with both tenant and landlord to ensure long-term tenancies and fair closure of tenancies.

Naomi is Town and Country’s Lettings Negotiator and, with a background in arts and photography, has a real eye for detail and marketing our clients’ properties. Naomi joined the firm just 18 months ago and has since been a real breath of fresh air for the business.

All Town and Country staff – including the Directors – partake in regular training to keep well-informed on (what appears to be!) the ever-changing legislation that the letting industry in particular is facing. Over the past few years alone, this exhausting list includes changes to deposit legislation, taxation, tenant fees, energy efficiency ratings, right to rent, money laundering, electrical safety, carbon monoxide and smoke alarm requirements, and soon to be electrical testing.

With all of this in mind, it is vital that landlords choose an agent that is fully aware of the requirements and liabilities, as gone are the days of not having detailed records of all compliance requirements. Town and Country were awarded the Best Letting Agent in Hove Gold award by the British Property Awards in December 2019 – a great way to end the challenging, upsetting and yet rewarding past two years. We now stand even taller as a confident specialist and friendly Managing Agent to help look after all of your property management needs. Rest assured, Town and Country will have you covered!

81 Church Road, Hove, BN3 2BB 01273 771977 www.brightonlettings.co.uk