Property Data: Why Housing Providers Can’t Afford to Get It Wrong

By Karl Linder · 22 July 2025

Karl Linder, Assistant Director, gives us an overview of the Regulator of Social Housing’s latest Focus Report on stock data following a year of Consumer Standard Reviews.

Too many landlords still don’t have a full grip on the condition of their homes. Between April 2024 and June 2025, nearly three-quarters of the lowest regulatory gradings (C3 and C4) were linked to a poor understanding of stock data. It is no longer just a technical issue but a reputational and operational risk for landlords. With new consumer standards and revised Decent Homes guidance on the way, expectations are only going to rise. It’s not just about compliance, it’s about safety, trust, investment, and the long-term sustainability of the sector.

We understand the first-hand challenges: outdated systems, patchy survey coverage, and data that doesn’t give Boards or Executives the confidence to understand the key decisions they need to make. Mostly importantly, poor or incomplete property data puts residents at risk and makes it harder to invest with confidence.

From Survey to Strategy

The RSH highlighted that physical stock condition surveys remain essential, but they’re not enough on their own. What matters is what you do with the results.

ARK work with landlords to:

• Set up rolling survey programmes (typically 20% of homes each year) based on a statistically robust survey programme.
• Design data collection survey templates that can ensure data collected provides insight and confidence.
• Undertaking stock condition programme delivering data in a format which can be imported into systems, or using handhelds provided by housing providers.
• Prioritise inspections based on repairs data and known risks, for example archetypes where there is a considerable higher risk of damp and mould and other HHSRS issues.
• Review clean up and consolidate asset data across their systems, using logical assumptions to validate and triangulate data.
• Forecast future investment needs based on what the data is advising, ensuring all regulatory requirements and residents’ aspirations are met. Develop long term investment business planning and shorter-term detailed investment programmes.

Helping Boards and Execs See the Full Picture

Boards and councillors are being asked tougher questions – “Do you know how many homes fail the Decent Homes Standard?” or “how confident are you in your asset data?”

We can help leadership teams answer those questions with confidence. This includes:

• Developing clear reporting lines and responsibilities to provide confidence on asset data.
• Templates and dashboards to monitor condition, investment, and survey programmes.
• Reviewing third-party management arrangements to avoid gaps in compliance.
• Ensuring that the requirements of leaseholders are understood and collected through sinking/reserve funds.
• Undertaking data validation and survey data reviews of existing data.
• Ensuring Boards and Executives have investment options and understand the requirements of Awaab’s Law, new Decent Homes requirements and Net Zero Carbon reduction investment requirements.

ARK’s Strategic Asset Performance Model

ARK’s Strategic Asset Performance (ASAP) model brings together comprehensive data to give housing providers a clear picture of how their properties are performing. The platform evaluates each home from multiple perspectives: examining the physical building, resident demographics, financial returns, and local market conditions.

By integrating stock condition data from your existing systems with local market intelligence and feedback from both residents and staff, ASAP reveals which properties are thriving and which may need strategic intervention. This enables you to make informed decisions about whether to maintain, invest in, or dispose of specific assets.

ASAP stands out for its user-friendly design and adaptability, perfectly suited to handle detailed scrutiny from the RSH, Boards, and Executives. This cloud-based platform works seamlessly from anywhere and features intuitive traffic-light ratings that make complex data accessible to everyone!

The ARK team works closely with clients to prepare data and configure the system for optimal performance. Users can evaluate multiple scenarios, create detailed property maps, and conduct side-by-side comparisons with ease. With a growing community of users, the platform offers valuable benchmarking data that helps inform smarter decisions and elevate property management practices.

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We can help with your asset management strategy 

Whether you’re building from the ground up or enhancing existing processes, we’re here to help you take control of your property data. From conducting comprehensive stock condition surveys to developing robust investment strategies, our team supports you in creating clear, actionable plans that drive results.

Contact us today