Property Advisory
The management of assets has come to be recognised as a practice which can not only extend the functional life of property but also its value. By managing an asset’s lifecycle and budgeting for timely maintenance and renewals, managers can reduce the resources assets consume to maintain their utility and extend an asset’s productive life and thus its income potential; or in the case of Government, its community service obligations.
In 2014 the ISO launched the International Standards ISO 5500:2014 – ISO 5502:2014 to guide entities in developing asset management practices. The ISO states the objectives of asset management include:
. . . to improve the realization of value for their organization from their asset base
Liquid can provide the private sector and our Government clients expertise in:
- Plan Framework
- Demand and Projections
- Life Cycle Costing
- Highest and Best Use Analysis
- Capital Budgeting Forecasts
- Valuation Forecasts
- GAP Analysis
- Financial Modelling
- Audits
- Risk Management
- Constructing and cleaning asset registers
- Review and Monitoring (Improvement)
Fundamental to valuation outcomes and asset management advice is the requirement to establish asset condition assessments. To create assessments which are meaningful, Liquid adopts industry recognised rating systems that allocate condition rankings to assets and their components.
Further we utilise an in-house quality management system of benchmarking which ensures that even when multiple assessors are working on a single project, condition assessments are statistically consistent, ensuring clients can make management decisions about their portfolios with a high degree of confidence.
At Liquid we understand the concept of condition is complex t and is not only a factor of an asset’s aesthetic appearance but also its functional capacity/performance and outstanding or impending maintenance liabilities. It takes a professional that knows the impact of condition on value to accurately assess both the economic remaining life and the physical remaining life of an asset and we are those professionals.
As part of the asset management strategy, clients seek to maximise the service utility of their asset base. To deliver a sensible and articulated perspective of existing capabilities, Liquid undertakes a data and information collection process to determine a baseline profile of the client’s service delivery and the assets which are involved in providing these services. We then benchmark the portfolio against similar organisations, highlighting achievements, gaps and under performance.
Liquid is well placed to advise on strategic directions based upon the outcomes of the study.
Liquid Pacific was the first property practice in Asia Pacific to create an audit and forensic department. Following in the mold of the finance and environment sectors, Liquid is able to provide several audit functions in relation to both internal and external requirements as follows;
Compliance Audit
Reporting on whether an entity has met with Accounting Standards and applicable regulatory provisions in determining the inclusion, value and disposal of assets both tangible and intangible.
Valuation Audit
Sample audit of valuation procedures and asset values to determine extent of risk exposure to variations in existing carrying amounts or to extrapolate portfolio value across asset classes.
Asset Management Audit
Either assisting in the internal audit process or acting as 2nd or 3rd party auditors, Liquid Pacific provides reviews against bench marked outcomes with reference to ISO and other applicable standards where appropriate.
Risk and Safety Audits
An increasing requirement for Government and the private sector to operate facilities in accordance with legislative requirements such as the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) and relevant building codes requires authorities to manage risk by safeguarding occupation of built structures through the implementation of building audits.
Liquid Pacific’s forensic property services include advice on:
- Title and ownership
- Sale prices
- Probity issues
- Asset loss and insurance fraud
- Arms length transactions
- Cost and depreciation allocation issues
- Civil disputes and criminal activities
- Misrepresentations and kickback schemes
Liquid has a substantive background in conducting feasibility studies for development purposes.
Major contributions to the development process include:
Highest and best use analysis with reference to planning and legislative requirements allows for developers to identify the development option which will produce the best sustainable income. Market analysis outlining demand and supply for the product and the identification of the potential purchaser group.
Along with these we also focus on:
- Acquisition value
- Sale value
- Selling strategies
Liquid’s capital budgets analysis identify the future financial liabilities associated with a client’s asset portfolio. These liabilities represent future maintenance, renewal and replacement costs that are required to maintain an asset at its optimal service capacity.
Integral to developing financial sustainability forecasts, capital budgets assist the client identify the what and when and provides an opportunity to develop measures to address any significant variances over the forecast period. Traditionally, 10-year budgets have been adopted; however, some entities now seek to extend the forecast to 15 years and 20 years.
Once the forecasts have been developed, Liquid is able to combine the outcomes of utility studies to develop a priority ranking which aligns future expenditure with an entities strategic goals and objectives. This enables the client to focus its resources on those asset most valued by the community or the businesses undertakings.