Full, clean driving licence (essential)
Purpose of the Role:
The Asset Manager is an important role in Bright Horizons UK, with responsibility for the property and asset management of circa 120 - 150 nursery settings. The role will ensure that each nursery can operate from the building/grounds securely (lease term, planning ) and flexibility which is appropriate to each individual nursery, be it a community or client nursery, leasehold or freehold. The Asset Manager will work with operations and other supporting functions to formulate and document a property strategy.
This role comes with accountability for reviewing lease terms, checking service charges, insurances, business rates, mitigating costs across the nursery portfolio including keeping rents as low as possible and recording information promptly on the property management software.
The Asset Manager’s workload is varied from dealing with day to day enquires from the nurseries, operations team and other support functions, negotiations with landlords to having the ability to recognise and add strategic value to the business through the asset management and professional work (rent reviews/lease renewals ) of the nursery settings. The role will get involved in the acquisition of new sites for either replacement nurseries or new locations and also the disposal of settings, via surrender, subletting/assignment, sale and reviewing opportunities and putting together the reports to support the business cases and working with the various internal and external team/consultants. The role works closely with a number of different departments within Bright Horizons including legal, finance, operations, facilities and marketing and a key part of the role is to work collaboratively, seek alignment and ensure processes are followed and accountability taken for agreed clear actions.
Responsible For:
* Review and approving rent, service charges and insurance payments, keeping CRM up to date, day to day property management
* Management of 3rd party and vacant properties and coordinating with finance and facilities team
* Formulating Asset Strategy for each nursery to be agreed and review every 12 months
* Lease Renewals and Rent Reviews
* Managing dilapidations – developing strategy, working with consultants and negotiating settlements
* Managing business rates strategy, working with consultants to ensure appeals are lodged to reduce assessments
* Putting together business cases/presentations for replacement and new acquisition nurseries, assembling the reports undertaking the financial models, making recommendations and summarising risk and sensitivity.
* Co-ordinating the due diligence prior to the acquisition, planning, highways, costs consultant, working with the developer/architect to develop the design and working with the project manager on the specification
* Agreeing Heads of Term for the purchase or lease for the purchase contract, agreement for lease and lease clearing identifying the structure of the deal, the conditionality to ensure that the risk of the deal is mitigated for Bright Horizons.
* Assisting in the due diligence of the acquisition of other nursery businesses regarding property related matters
* Managing external consultants on areas where it is deemed necessary and work cannot be undertaken in house
* Build relationships with property agents for information on rent reviews and other property issues
Essential Experience:
* Property/Asset/Estate management experience across a commercial property portfolio
* Property acquisitions and development, demonstrating strategy, the importance of due diligence and conditionality
* Used to formulation of strategies for negotiations and projects with timelines and strategies and articulating
* Strong PC skills - Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint
* Use of Property Management systems (BH use a CRM system)
* A pragmatic, solution focused approach using risk evaluation, outcome scenarios to determine options and solutions to problems
* Knowledgeable of L&T law, familiar with reviewing leases and where appropriate to work with legal to seek advice on the implication of clauses within leases and obligations placed on the landlord and tenant.
* Preparing detailed Heads of Terms, applicable to the transaction and instructing legal
* Good understanding of planning, party wall issues (desirable)
Q ualifications Needed:
* Relevant first degree, post graduate degree and professional qualification in Property/Estate Management
* Relevant qualification, then demonstrable experience in Commercial Property Management
* Chartered Member of Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (MRICS) (or working towards)
Bright Horizons are committed to creating inclusive environments where everyone has a sense of belonging and has the opportunity to contribute and thrive in meaningful and impactful ways. We are an inclusive employer and welcome people from all backgrounds to apply. We will consider reasonable adjustments required by applicants. If you share our passion, values, and have most of the skills listed, we encourage you to apply – as you may be just what we are looking for! Please note, due to our sector all roles are subject to an Enhanced DBS. Some of our roles require specific qualifications by law, this will be highlighted as essential within the advert.
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