Kelvin Vargheese, Director, Hitches & Glitches

With property supply currently outstripping demand, landlords know it’s a renter’s market and many of them are facing stiff competition when it comes to securing existing or attracting new tenants. Simply discounting rates will only lead to a race to the bottom, when the more sustainable strategy would be to encourage a flight to quality and convenience.

“That means offering a seamless online and on-demand maintenance option, particularly for tech-savvy tenants. In a world where consumers are becoming more accustomed to instant gratification, illustrated by companies such as Amazon and Uber, property managers need to be more responsive to their tenants,

“By engaging with a professional property maintenance solutions company, it is possible for landlords to actually reduce their costs, improve the quality of property maintenance while lowering the waiting time for tenants,” said Kelvin Vargheese, Director, Hitches & Glitches.

According to a Dubai residential report for Q3 2020, by leading international real estate company Chestertons’, year-on-year rental rates dropped 5.8% on average and property consultants Valustrat, estimate that after 57,000 units were delivered in 2019, this year 35,000 units are due to be delivered and a further 67,000 in 2021.

“So, as you can see, it is highly unlikely that this issue is going to go away, unless there is a significant uplift in demand,” added Vargheese.

Because of the benefits for both landlord and tenant, efficient outsourced property maintenance services through an end-to-end solutions provider are gaining traction and becoming a growing trend.

“It’s a win-win situation…happy tenants combined with quality-led, cost-efficient maintenance,” added Vargheese.

Hitches & Glitches, which has offices in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah, is no stranger to developing cutting-edge technology and earlier this year, created a smart technology platform with MAG lifestyle property development, that enabled owners and tenants living in all MAG developments, to request home maintenance services.

“That allowed customers to browse a wide range of home maintenance packages, or indeed customise their own package specific to their individual needs,” said Vargheese.

App-users can also book and make payments via the smart platform through Google and Apple Pay for any parts or service carried out in their home, offering a quick and hassle-free way to pay online.

“One of the other major benefits of our app is that once tenants and owners have booked online, they can track our technicians in real-time, Uber-style, through a link to Google Maps, so they will know their location and their exact arrival time,” said Vargheese.

The app is available on Android and IoS.