Specialist finance company ZDFin has over 50 years of experience in property and financial management. They offer superior financial products that address a wide range of challenges, and which can be tailor-made to suit one’s Scheme.
ADVERTORIAL
ZDFin provides smart solutions for residential juristic entities, be they Sectional Title Bodies Corporate, Homeowners’ Associations, or Share Block companies (“Community Schemes”). These are all on competitive terms and at favourable interest rates, while also offering professional Executive Managing Agent (EMA) services via ZDMgt.
Volunteers, scheme trustees and directors, often tasked with the fiduciary duty to ensure that schemes are optimally run and maintained don’t always possess the skills or have the time, to dedicate to what is often complex work requiring specialist knowledge and technical expertise – and this is where ZDFin steps in to assist.
As a solutions-driven entity, these specialists provide straight forward loans, which include assistance with the planning and financing of large maintenance projects, whether long or short-term.
Range of services offered
Loans
Various products have been designed to assist Schemes with their specific needs. These include a straight loan to a Scheme, on competitive terms, which the Scheme will repay to ZDFin over an agreed period. A Project Finance loan is a fixed-term Loan to the Scheme to fund in full or part (typically) large maintenance and redecoration or capital projects. ZDFin is able to tailor-make a workable solution matching the Scheme’s cash flow constraints.
Loan finance is available with minimal fuss, on favourable terms, and with guaranteed turnaround times. The benefits of these products and services are:
– Immediate restoration of required work(s).
– Effective budgeting and financial management.
– Elimination of cash flow pressure, and enablement of budgeting and forecasting.
– Favourable interest rate.
– No personal sureties.
There’s no long-term contracts nor penalties for early settlement.
Levy finance, specialist collections
When one takes arrear levies and associated legal costs needed to collect outstanding levies into account, cash flow budgeting can be a challenge. Over time, levy non-payment has become a wide-spread problem for bodies corporate and other community schemes. The knock-on effect of this all too often means spiralling cash flow pressures and plummeting values in affected schemes, which is to the detriment of all owners.
Levy Finance and Specialist Collection services allows for a predictable and guaranteed levy income stream at preferential rates while all associated collection and legal work is overseen and managed directly by ZDFin’s in-house legal team. Fees are negotiated with ZDFin’s panel of attorneys and financed per product mechanics.
Benefits of a Levy Finance Service:
– Initial cash injection of the levy arrears to the Scheme.
– Advancement of Schemes levies on a monthly basis, which guarantees both the amount and timing of levies paid to the scheme.
– Legal Fees associated with levy collections are funded on the Scheme’s behalf to ensure uninterrupted legal action without financially burdening the Scheme.
– Enables accurate forecasting and budgeting.
– Eliminates cash flow pressure.
– Provides protection to the Scheme as well as protecting the paying owner.
– Strong legal oversight and management with monthly reporting to the Scheme.
– No long-term contracts and easy termination.
– No need to change your Managing Agent (MA) provided they are members of NAMA and are in possession of a valid Fidelity Fund Certificate.
– Maximum transparency and engagement with trustees
Executive Management Agent (EMA)
The ZD Group has R5 million professional insurance cover, and as such, the appointment of an EMA makes them well-suited to safeguard one’s investment.
The EMA assumes the roles that would otherwise be the responsibility of a board of Trustees, thereby becoming the trustees and assuming the full responsibility and function. Such functions include budgeting and all related financial affairs, maintenance, levy collections and associated procedures, rule enforcement, housekeeping issues and any other tasks on behalf of other owners in a scheme; these all being critical to ensure optimisation of value for which trustees are ultimately liable.
Benefits of appointing an EMA include complete objectivity in relation to crucial decision-making. It’s also a convenient way for owners to avoid any difficult scenarios pertaining to their fellow owners that may involve legal proceedings, renovation requests, or conduct rule transgressions etc. Another plus is that a full-time focus by suitably qualified and experienced professionals is ensured,
as opposed to part-time volunteer management. The EMA is afforded no indemnification in terms of the STSMA and is fully liable for all decisions, or omissions.
Unfinanced levy collection
With their longstanding expertise in Property Management and legal matters, ZDFin has learnt that not all Schemes work well for Levy Finance, and as such provide an effective unfinanced Levy Collection service to these Schemes. Here their in-house legal team manages the collection of all levy debt owing to the scheme.
They inter alia, attend to the pre-legal collection; oversee and instruct an external panel of attorneys; report to the Managing Agent and Trustees on a monthly basis; attend regular meetings with the Trustee and the Managing Agent to go through legal updates; and check legal fees to ensure the Scheme is not being overcharged for services rendered by external attorneys.
The difference between unfinanced Levy Collection and Levy Finance Products is that ZDFin offers the legal management and collection services to the Scheme without the financial assistance.
This product is best suited to Schemes which either have sufficient cash reserves and do not require financial assistance to operate or fund the legal action but need professional assistance with the collection of levy arrears; or where the Scheme has financial issues but ZDFin does not consider the Scheme a viable candidate for Levy finance.
Insurance services
As an authorised Financial Services Provider (FSP 50767), ZDFin provides specialist intermediary services and advice to Body Corporates, Homeowners’ Associations and Property-Owning Companies. They offer highly competitive premiums from the leading insurers in the market and fast, effective, and convenient claims management.
Services include Community Scheme insurance advice, insurance for buildings, claims handling services, as well as policy administration services.
All in all, when navigating tricky terrain, it’s best to turn to the experts who can advise on all the options to consider. ZDFin’s top-class team has a wealth of experience in both property and financial management, and when combined with their dynamic, forward-thinking approach, ZDFin consistently delivers optimal outcomes.
- For more information, call +27 (0) 10 020 3228, e-mail info@zdfin.co.za, or see https://zdfin.co.za/
