About Us - A message from the chairman.

The Concept – To Rent in Retirement

Girlings was launched in the early 1990s as the result of its CEO, Peter Girling , realising that there was a huge gap in the property market. Even though there was then a deep recession, the demand for retirement property was growing with purchasers being unable to buy new property without releasing equity from their homes. There was the additional problem of the increasing number of unoccupied retirement properties where owners had died or moved to nursing homes, where families were having difficulty in both selling and servicing the outgoings. With a surplus of  empty accommodation yet a thriving demand for occupation, the concept of renting in retirement was born.  If the retired could rent then the second hand market would pick up and ultimately so would the market for new properties.

The Company

Girlings Retirement Options Ltd has been in the business of renting retirement properties since 1990. Dealing exclusively with the age 55+ markets, Girlings is the acknowledged leader in the provision of the retirement rental market.

Today, Girlings has a comprehensive database of over 10,000 properties in the UK in more than 700 retirement housing developments and we are letting and managing in the region of 2000 properties throughout England , Wales and Scotland and also near Malaga in Southern Spain . The properties are predominantly one bedroom apartments but there are also some two bedroom properties, studios, and a small number of bungalows and cottages, all within purpose built retirement developments.

Our Mission - Security in retirement

Through its partnership with Norwich Union Girlings is able to let the majority of units on Assured Tenancies which provide security of tenure and peace of mind to the tenant who can enjoy their home secure in the knowledge that they can stay in residence for as long as they wish. Girlings has pioneered the way forward in letting in the private retirement sector and has many hundreds of satisfied tenants and landlords who can commend us and our professional service.

Accreditation

At Girlings we strive to give a personal service to our Landlords and Tenants, and aim to minimise the stress of finding a suitable home for people of more mature years. The Company is a member of the Association of Retirement Housing Managers (ARHM) www.arhm.org, the National Approved Letting Scheme (NALS) and also the Association of Residential Lettings Agents (ARLA) www.arla.co.uk and a number of staff are also members or fellows of ARLA in their own right having undertaken the appropriate training.

Girlings is accredited with the Investor in People standard, and understands the value of well trained staff in order to provide an excellent service to clients.

Girlings Staff Winter 2007

Peter Girling

Chairman