Arthur founding partner, David Cummin, discusses his background, property advice, and Arthur with Inside Property Investing in a new podcast.
In a new podcast by Inside Property Investing, David Cummin speaks to Mike Stenhouse about a variety of topics. Mike begins by asking David about his background in software development and entrepreneurship. David speaks to Mike about how he began writing software for the health & fitness sector, however, after meeting his future wife, Beverley, he began to write software to reduce the administration involved in the invoice process. This was to be David’s first experience in using software to solve problems relating to the property sector.
Mike goes on to ask David about his own property portfolio and how he chooses to invest. David explains that he chooses to go for a low risk approach – preferring a reasonable return on a property’s asset value than a high yield. He gives Mike some examples of some personal successes and failures in his own time as a property investor. David contrasts his own investment approach with that of Marc & Rochelle (the other founders), who choose to be much more active in their property investment, seeking high yields in converted properties rather than steady asset value returns.
David goes on to talk about Arthur with Mike, explaining how it began from a dinner party discussion with Marc about their common issues regarding tenant problems. Both were unable to enjoy their dinner party due to tenant issues and realised this was an issue all property managers faced. Both began to plan Arthur at the party itself, being so passionate about the product, and Arthur was conceived by them both that very fateful night!
David continues to explain how the concept of Arthur was developed – the main emphasis being on the management of issues via producing a trackable workflow that enabled the interaction of all user groups: tenants, landlords, property owners, and letting agents. This ‘beautifully managed workflow’ allows reduced stress for all parties by reducing the need for chasing and constant phonecalls/emails. Admittedly, this took a few years to get right, but David and the Arthur team can safely say that they are all now extremely happy with the current product.
Setting up an Arthur account is a simple process, as David highlights, and he recommends that the optimum time for property managers to sign up is around the 8-9 unit period. This allows their portfolio to become integrated with Arthur from the start and grow accordingly.
Mike highlights that the customer service of Arthur is something that seemed to be at an exceptionally high level. He seemed to be astounded by the fact that one of the founders, Marc, is available to give demonstrations to every newcomer.
David goes on to explain his hopes for the future of Arthur; the product is now highly satisfactory and can begin to be scaled for the market (something which Arthur purposely delayed in order to perfect the product before growth was sought). Nonetheless, David reminds Mike that Arthur will not compromise the quality of the product for growth. Quality comes first.
The pair finish the interview with some wise advice from David, who gives Mike three pieces of advices. Firstly, always to do what you are good at and delegate the rest. Secondly, to research facts properly before you make a decision. Lastly, to always follow your gut.
To listen to the podcast yourself, feel free to follow this link to hear it in detail:
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