Major recruitment at Principle Estate Management after London offices move to new premises

Rachael Hornby (left) and Brett Williams (right)

Principle Estate Management has continued to grow its presence in London with the start of a major recruitment campaign after moving to larger offices. Rachael Hornby has joined Principle as associate director to lead the London office and look after some of the company’s prime central London developments.

Ms Hornby has joined from D&G Block Management, where she spent more than seven years looking after very similar types of properties to those managed by Principle’s London office. Before that, she worked for Croydon Churches Housing Association for more than six years.

Brett Williams, founder and joint managing director of Principle, said: “Rachael was a stand-out candidate when we interviewed for this key role, her experience and technical expertise shining out during the recruitment process.

“She clearly has the competency to manage the large and complex mansion developments that form part of the portfolio, plus the experience of leading site teams of porters to get the best out of them.

“With experience of managing a similar quality of developments in the same areas, Rachael is also comfortable providing the service levels expected by our clients and customers.”

Ms Hornby’s appointment at Principle comes as experienced administration assistants Ranj Sunsoa and Jackie Harrold have also joined the London office to support the company’s property managers.

The new recruits bring staff numbers up to nine at Principle’s London office, which moved from former Soho premises to its larger venue at 50 Eastcastle Street in Fitzrovia this spring.

The London office manages properties on behalf of a mix of resident management companies, including right to manage companies and freeholder clients.

Properties managed by Principle include the Strata building, the 44-storey building at Elephant and Castle, in the London Borough of Southwark, with more than 1,000 residents living in 408 apartments. Other Principle London properties are mainly around Regents Park, Hyde Park, Mayfair, Marylebone, Kensington, Fitzrovia and Covent Garden.

Joe Jobson, joint managing director at Principle, said: “We have multiple live enquiries for potential new instructions in central London and it is great to add someone with Rachael’s skills and knowledge to complement our existing team.

“We have invested a lot in the new office fit-out, systems and people to ensure we can continue to provide excellent service levels as we continue to grow.

“The instruction of Strata shows the direction we want to go in and the properties we want to look at.

“As a business we have a strong vision and business plan as to where we want to be in five years’ time and the appointment of Rachael in our London office can only help our offering to clients and customers.”

Ms Hornby, who lives near Wimbledon, explained that she owns investment properties herself, including leasehold flats, so she understands what it is like to be a leaseholder. She is a member of the Institute of Residential Property Management and an associate of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

Ms Hornby said: “I was thrilled to be offered the role with Principle to lead the London office.

“I have heard lots about their modern approach to property management which impressed me. I know they use Qube and work it hard compared to a lot of agents who use it only for basic finance and maintenance.

“I also liked the Freshdesk system which Principle implemented earlier this year to help manage and speed up responses to customer enquiries. It’s refreshing to see a managing agent putting in proper customer service software like this.

“I am really looking forward to leading on the continued growth and success of the London office as well as meeting my new clients and working with them to ensure their properties are properly managed, driving Principle’s vision to positively impact the everyday lives of our communities.”

Ms Hornby will work closely alongside Principle’s senior property manager Geovanni Pinto, who joined the company some 14 years ago when it was called Myhill Newman, which Principle purchased 15 months ago.

The London office will continue to have its own finance team to ensure a close relationship between property managers and finance.