Issue - meetings

To receive the report of the Strategic Director for Corporate Resources.

The Leader moved the recommendations, seconded by Councillor Wright, and invited the Strategic Director for Corporate Resources to introduce the report.  

The Strategic Director for Corporate Resources introduced the report making the following points:  

• this was the business plan for Exeter City Living (ECL) for 2026/27;  

• the company that managed the property did so passively and the Council undertook all the management decisions; and 

• this would be the first year that it was entirely reliant on rental income, meaning there was a big reduction in the amount of rent coming into Exeter City Council as costs of ECL were previously covered by development income. 

The Strategic Director for Corporate Resources answered Members’ questions in the following terms:  

• the management fee increase came after it was decided by Members to scale back ECL;  

• the cost of the audit outweighs the amount of money going through the company;  

• the management company holds the flats on behalf of the City Council but did not do anything else;  

• he was happy to get officers to provide an answer on value for money of having a management agent; 

• there were currently two void properties which would be filled in due course; and 

• in total the flats generated around £70,000.  

In summing up the Leader stated that six properties was not a large amount and it was only a small amount of money.  

Following a unanimous vote the recommendations were CARRIED.