Ascend Strengthens Multifamily Capabilities With Recruitment Of New Associate Director Of Property

• Daniel Mendez to oversee facilities and estate management of 10,000-home portfolio
• New arrival strengthens firm’s in-house end to end management expertise and cements further expansion into multifamily BTR
• Integrated capabilities to offer investors full-portfolio management across the living sectors

Ascend, the UK’s largest third-party operator of single-family build-to-rent (SFR) homes, has recruited Daniel Mendez as its new Associate Director of Property.

Daniel will be overseeing the facilities and estate management across Ascend’s portfolio of more than 10,000 single-family (SFR), multifamily (MFR) and buy-to-let homes, bringing particular strength from his experience in building services as well as facilities and block management.

Daniel brings with him a wealth of knowledge and expertise in operating tall buildings, further strengthening Ascend’s commitment to compliance and safety. It is of vital importance that all operators in the tall buildings sector have the experience and laser focus required to ensure all aspects of the Building Safety Act are covered and fully understood. As part of Daniel’s appointment, he will be leading Ascend’s consultancy and operational activities across the entire Building Safety Act spectrum.

His arrival not only boosts Ascend’s market-leading SFR operations but will play a key role in the firm’s further expansion in multifamily build to rent and facilities and estate management. Ascend continues its investment in top industry talent to build on their market-leading position across the living sectors. Daniel’s appointment will enhance Ascend’s ability to offer investors cost-savings and further efficiencies only possible due to its scale and in-house expertise, offering ’full portfolio’ end-to-end management of all residential rental asset classes.

As part of his new role, Daniel will also be overseeing and expanding Ascend’s in-house property services company across the UK. Ascend’s wholly owned property services company specialises in reactive and planned maintenance, compliance, end of tenancy works, capital projects and decarbonisation programmes.

Facilities and estate management is a key aspect of Ascend’s capabilities, driving efficiencies and compliance across investor portfolios, all whilst delivering a superior customer experience. The firm has made significant investment in proprietary technology and systems under its ‘Ascend Intelligence’ tech platform, delivering swifter and more effective maintenance and facilities management via its in-house IT development team and integrated partnerships. Following a year of development by in-house industry experts, Daniel and the team will be releasing a building compliance app, initially for internal use on client’s portfolios, in Q4 this year which will be unique in the market, providing a watertight, forward-thinking platform for all aspects of property compliance.

Daniel’s arrival is the latest of a number of senior appointments at Ascend, including Paul Borrmann joining as Managing Director in November 2023, Lee Hill as Commercial Director in January, Maxwell Guthrie as Head of Experience & Product in April and Ashleigh Hamilton as Head of BTR Leasing in May.

He joins from Dandara Living, where he was National Head of Facilities and Estates, managing a national multifamily, co-living and student portfolio, and has extensive facilities and estate management experience across some of the UK’s highest-profile buildings. These include the Shard estate, King’s Cross estate and Dandara’s Chapel Wharf development, the largest urban BTR project outside of London.

Ascend holds mandates for over 7,000 single-family BTR homes nationwide, around two thirds of the entire UK asset class, with its multifamily and buy-to-let portfolio instructions bringing its total units under management to more than 10,000. Ascend oversees platforms for many of the sector’s leading investors, with clients including The PRS REIT plc, Sigma Capital Group, TPG Real Estate Partners, Gatehouse Investment Management and the Kuwait Investment Authority. Investment in proprietary technology and management processes has established Ascend as the foremost operator in single-family BTR, with the firm looking to apply these tools to further multifamily assets and block management as it expands its reach.

Paul Borrmann, Managing Director of Ascend, said: 

Effective facilities and estate management is central to the performance of any property portfolio, and Daniel’s arrival will further strengthen our capabilities in this area, enhancing both investor returns and resident experience. He brings considerable experience with multifamily assets, expertise that will underpin our further expansion into the multifamily BTR sector, allowing us to deliver a ‘full portfolio’ service to investors, driving greater efficiencies and improved returns across the living sectors. Having worked with Daniel at Dandara Living, I know first-hand the value he brings to Ascend, and to our current and future investors.