Overcoming challenges together

To many, Mont’Kiara is the place they aspire to live in. And although more projects are coming up in the vicinity of this posh enclave, many too have been there for over a decade. Mont’Kiara Aman is one of them.

Completed in 2006 and developed by Sunrise Bhd (now known as UEM Sunrise Bhd), Mont’Kiara Aman is a 5.8-acre freehold condominium project with 345 units housed over two 32-storey towers.

Its design is a fusion of contemporary and Nusantara tropical architecture. From the entrance itself, visitors can already admire a 7-storey water-cascading feature depicting a waterfall in its natural surroundings.

Mont’Kiara Aman management corporation (MC) chairman Jerome Martinent, who has been residing there since 2008, is clearly loving life in Mont’Kiara Aman despite the many challenges faced by the MC in managing the 12-year-old project.

According to SCM Property Services Sdn Bhd general manager Paul Richard, the property management service provider under UEM Sunrise has been managing the condominium since its completion.

Like most strata residential projects, a common challenge for property managers lies in service charge collection, says Mont’Kiara Aman residential manager Hamidah Ghazali. Nevertheless, defaulters represent an extreme minority as Mont’Kiara Aman enjoys a healthy collection rate of over 92%, she says.

For the MC, managing an ageing condominium is not easy, as it incurs cost especially in maintenance works such as repainting the building or repairing a burst pipe. “To us, these are the critical issues,” says Martinent.

According to Richard, to adhere to the budget while keeping quality maintenance, SCM Property Services has its own procurement team to keep operations centralised so that the cost will not deviate much.

“We are also making it easier for people to pay their service charges through our portal, so that property owners can do it at any time even if they don’t reside in the property. It is the task of a property manager to help solve such issues,” he adds.

Since the auto debit payment system was introduced, Martinent says the maintenance fee collection rate has spiked, as property owners appreciated the convenience.

Mont’Kiara Aman is often lauded for being well-maintained while boasting an affordable service charge of RM0.27 psf. Martinent points out that the fee has only been increased once since the property’s completion more than 10 years ago.

“This says a lot and while we, the owners, played our role to achieve this, SCM Property Services has been our invaluable partner over the years,” he says.

To the French national, a good property manager is one that could work with the MC closely and understand their needs.

“The challenge lies in maintaining the relationship with residents because they expect the management to help them resolve all problems for them.

“So the management team would have to understand their problems and offer viable solutions as well as manage their expectations,” he offers.

After all, as Martinent puts it, a well-maintained property will certainly make a positive difference in one’s quality of life.

This story first appeared in EdgeProp.my pullout on May 11, 2018. Download EdgeProp.my pullout here for free.