8 November 2006

Christians in Property Carol Service
Wednesday 13 December, St George's, London W1

The annual Christians in Property (CIP) Carol Service will take place on Wednesday 13 December at 12:45pm for 1pm at St George’s Church, Hanover Square London W1. This 18th century church in the heart of London’s West End was once the preferred place of worship for George Frederick Handel.

A popular and festive event in what is in increasingly busy CIP calendar, people working in all sectors of the property industry attend the Carol Service. Mulled wine and mince pies will be served. All are welcome.

CIP was founded in 1953 and today has hundreds of members drawn from the smallest to the largest and most prestigious property companies around the UK and abroad. CIP’s aims are to unite and support Christians working in property, encouraging them to deepen their faith, act competently in their business lives and apply Christian principles in all their working and personal relationships.

‘Property Week’
A 3-page feature on CIP appeared in the 6 October issue (Circulation 27,619)

‘AGENTS OF THE ALMIGHTY’
Mark Jansen talks to young members of Christians in Property about its new mentoring scheme.

Even the most hardened atheist will admit that it takes guts to stand up and say that you’re a Christian, especially in the tough world of property. Yet a network called Christians in Property s quietly thriving in London’s West End.

read the full article here »

13 September 2006

CIP Patron, David Pickford FRICS, and friends celebrate his 80th


This week saw the 80th birthday of one of the UK property sector’s most respected and successful professionals – David Pickford FRICS, Patron of Christians in Property.  The occasion was marked by a party attended by 85 his friends and colleagues.  Speeches were given by his close friends Rev Lyndon Bowring, Chair of CARE and Christian evangelist Luis Palau who spoke of their long friendships with David, their many shared experiences and how much he is held in high esteem by so many.



David spent nearly 50 years working in the property sector. He left school in 1943 at the age of 16 and started work at Hillier Parker. He says: “At that time in 1943 the war was in full force and there were horrific bombings in London and in my job I visited many damaged buildings.”  At 23 David went on to join a company that restored old buildings and then in 1958 he, together with Fred Cleary and the Company Secretary, set up Haslemere Estates plc and went on to restore large numbers of historic buildings. He continues: “Our team of forty dedicated and united people with high moral and Christian standards achieved a great reputation.”

In 1965 David founded the Property and Finance Luncheon Club which is still thriving today. A strong Christian, he has also been involved in Christians in Property for nearly 50 years and continues today as Patron of the charity which now has over 350 members UK wide.

A great mentor
Colin Molyneux, Honorary Secretary of Christians in Property (CIP) said: “It was great to all join together to help David celebrate his 80th. The contribution David has made to the sector over the years, both professionally and personally, has been enormous. He is remembered, of course, for his senior role as chairman of a substantial public company, but also for his persistent mentoring of younger friends and colleagues, myself included. Ever since first coming to London as a young man, David has been a constant source of encouragement and support to me and many hundreds of others. None of us can remember anyone who comes anywhere near David in this.

“It is timely, as we remember David’s excellence in supporting those coming through the ranks, that we are launching the CIP Mentoring Scheme this month, with his blessing.”  The fifteen Mentors, reflecting a varied skill set across the sector, are all highly experienced Christian property professionals. They are making themselves available to junior people in the industry to advise on any professional and/or ethical challenges they may face.

Commenting on the launch of the CIP Mentoring Scheme, David Pickford said: ”It’s good to see those I’ve mentored over the years now becoming mentors themselves – that’s what it’s all about – putting something back.”

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24 July 2006

Christians in Property September Lunch - ‘A Hand-Up: not a Hand-Out’
The next in a continuing series that has spanned over 50 years Stuart McGreevy, Chairman of the Transformational Business Network (TBN) is delivering a talk entitled ‘A Hand-Up: not a Hand-Out’ on Tuesday 19 September at 1pm, Grosvenor, 70 Grosvenor Street, London W1K 3JP.

TBN – a registered charity – brings together business people to support micro, small, and medium enterprises in the most needy parts of the world. They contribute time and skills, mentoring and finance to emerging businesses which provide jobs, generate wealth and spawn genuine and lasting social transformation.

Stuart will discuss the relevance of this work in micro finance to his past as a merchant banker. All are welcome.

10 May 2006

A residential portfolio of compassion
Christians in Property May Guest Lunch explores a working, 'profitable' solution to homelessness

Christians in Property's May Guest Lunch on 23 May welcomes speaker Pete Cunningham who will talk about his working and profitable solution to homelessness that is now housing 100s of former homeless people.

Working in property, the homelessness problem feels closer to home to many of us. Successive governments and NGOs have devised, planned and legislated in attempts to tackle the issue but in vain. A staggering 270,000 families still do not have homes, and there are many thousands who sleep on the streets. Truly workable solutions have proved elusive. Until now.

A real financially sound solution that is working at a local level is set to go ‘national’ and all through the vision of one man – Pete Cunningham, 63-year-old Pastor of Shoreline Assemblies of God Church in Southport, Lancashire. His is a very unusual story. Having taken in waifs and strays for years into his home, garage and church floor, he decided to buy a house to accommodate them. He liquidated his £6,000 pension fund for the deposit and has since not only built up a significant residential portfolio but his tenants that could hardly be classified as your average creditworthy citizen. So how did he do it?

The first house was bought with the pension cash and a mortgage and the next from a church member’s deposit and mortgage and so it continued. His now limited company owns 128 units, many are flats – where the council pays most of the rent. With some paid admin staff and a number of astute volunteers, Pastor Pete now also has nearly 30 shareholding investors from across the UK. Returns are decent at around 4% net and investors can withdraw funds at any time with notice.

Born in Stoke Newington, North London, by 16 Pete was enjoying working for a stockbrokers. He became a Christian at 21 and by 26 was in the ministry. Pete’s ‘Green Pastures’ housing scheme (www.gpnw.co.uk) as it is known, is causing a stir nation-wide. One local authority has recently offered Pete the opportunity to purchase 100 homes and it is likely that many more local authorities will follow suit.

Colin Molyneux, Hon. Secretary of Christians in Property said: "We are looking forward to hearing from Pete first hand on this project - successfully combining compassion and pragmatism in a real solution to homelessness."

Pete Cunningham is speaking at the Christians in Property May Guest Lunch in Central London on Tuesday 23 May, 1pm (£10 a head bookable in advance). Visit www.christiansinproperty.org for full details.

Christians in Property exists to provide support and guidance to its members who are drawn from all sectors of the property industry across the UK.

April 2006

CIP 'Honest Broker' Campaign
Most people working in our sector uphold good values, integrity and honesty, especially Christians, we hope!

Sadly though, when estate agents behaving badly even dishonestly are splashed across the media, the ‘honest brokers’ get tarred with the same brush. Our Honest Broker campaign will aim to support all CIP estate agent members (and any others who wish to sign up) and help to redeem and strengthen the reputation of that part of the industry.

Components of the scheme will include:

» A 'Charter' or Code of Conduct that 'honest' estate agents can sign up to and display in their premises.

» An optional window sticker

» An Honest Broker logo for agents to add to their letterheads and promotional material, as they wish.

These materials would be made available to download from this website, clearly ‘badged’ as a Christians in Property initiative.

Who can apply: Christians and any others who are willing to adhere to the Charter

(For our response to the Whistleblower programme on BBC1 on 21 March 2006, see below)

If you would like to get involved in the development of the detail of the Honest Broker campaign, including developing ‘policing policy’ – please email michael.hodges@hillfarmsecurities.co.uk

This project will dovetail neatly with our Property Mentors scheme, where more experienced property professionals volunteer advice and guidance to the younger members of the industry.

23 March 2006

‘Whistleblower’
Christians in Property’s response to BBC1’s ‘Whistleblower’ programme on 21 March 06

Letter to the Editor emailed to national papers

23 March 2006

Dear x

It was with genuine sadness and disappointment that I watched the BBC’s Anna Adams expose the seamier side of the world of estate agency and mortgage broking on BBC1’s "Whistleblower" programme on Monday 21st March. What happened at Foxtons in St. John’s Wood has clearly happened elsewhere, too, judging by viewers’ comments subsequently posted on the BBC’s website.

My sadness emanates from the knowledge that the vast majority of people involved in the property business are honest and principled. Many are highly qualified and are regulated by professional bodies. The liars and cheats exposed in "The Secret Agent" programme have not only let themselves down but by implication, have potentially damaged the standing of many others in the property industry as well. One wonders how those home purchasers and sellers who watched the programme will ever feel able to trust an estate agent fully again.

Christians in Property is a member organisation that for the last 50 years has sought to uphold godly principles in the sector. As Chair I am forced to reflect that the manifestations of evil exposed in ‘Whistleblower’ are, of course, human traits that, sadly, abound both in regulated and unregulated businesses the world over. Clearly, liars and cheats operate in every sector.

Lack of public trust is a major issue facing the UK’s property industry, now more than ever after Monday’s programme, as our industry is built on relationships. This year Christians in Property is launching an "Honest Broker" initiative to support the many Christians in the sector. Through the initiative our members - in relationship with God, our ultimate regulator - will have a unique opportunity to witness to their faith now that our industry is under intense scrutiny and every client is a potential "Whistleblower!"

Sincerely yours,


Michael Hodges MRICS, Chair
Christians in Property

2 March  2006

For marriages as strong as
bricks and mortar
Thinking of rushing out one lunch hour soon to get married? Why not pause for thought and come to The Christians in Property ‘Spring Guest Lunch’ taking place at 12:45pm on Wednesday 15 March at DTZ, One Curzon Street, London W1A 5PZ. This is the venue for the latest in a series of challenging and stimulating talks organised for people working in the property sector, whether Christians or not.

On this occasion Rev. Christopher Ash, Director of The Cornhill Training Course (www.proctrust.org.uk) and author of ‘Marriage: Sex in the service of God’, will be tackling the subject of marriage.  Men and women, married and single are welcome.

With one in four children in the UK now being born outside wedlock, and rising divorce rates, many may ask what the point of marriage is in today’s Britain. Is marriage simply an old-fashioned and outdated tradition, are we simply too busy rushing to close the next business deal, and spinning plates to make our marriages work any more? And are we, in the process, missing God’s plan for successful and fruitful lives, his ‘master plan’ for humanity?

Using biblical examples, Christopher Ash will unpack why God instituted marriage, outlining its purposes and parameters and will highlight many couples’ misplaced expectations that lead to inevitable disillusionment. Understanding marriage from God’s perspective makes a difference.

Colin Molyneux is Honorary Secretary of CIP: “For anyone who’s married or thinking of taking the plunge, this lunch is a must. Christians believe that the Bible is the ultimate guidebook for negotiating life’s challenges, and marriage is no exception.”

Christians in Property was founded in 1953 and today has hundreds of members drawn from the smallest to the largest and most prestigious property firms around the UK and abroad. CIP’s aims are to unite and support Christians working in property, encouraging them to act competently in their business lives and apply Christian principles in all their working and personal relationships.

For Spring Guest Lunch booking details and more information on CIP visit www.christiansinproperty.org

August 2005

Racial and Religious Hatred Bill
In October 2005 the Racial and Religious Hatred Bill comes before the House of Lords. If the Lords approve the Bill, it will become law and freedom to preach the full Gospel of Jesus Christ may be significantly curbed for years to come.

Despite Government reassurances, the wording on the face of the Bill may mean that preaching directly from the Bible could become a criminal offence punishable with a jail sentence of up to 7 years. Exhaustive information and expert analysis of the Bill has already been completed. The legal, political and Christian scrutiny of, and conclusions about, the Bill can be found through www.ReligiousHatredLaw.info and at www.lawcf.org/lawreform.php (under Incitement to Religious hatred).

Christians are urged to contact MPs and members of the House of Lords in a united expression of condemnation for this flawed, poorly drafted and difficult to implement piece of proposed legislation.

Protests
A number of leading Christian groups are planning two massive joint prayer rallies on October 8th & 11th in London to voice concern in relation to the imminent legislation that seems destined to restrict religious freedom in the UK

8th October - CONFIRMED - 12noon Reformers Tree near Speakers Corner - for families.
11th October - CONFIRMED - 1pm outside Parliament - for those who can be there during the week whilst the Lords read the bill