Flats - collective communication

mschris

Hey all,

Hope this is the right forum for this - I live in an big new block of flats, we face issues that need solving etc.

What’s the recommended way / what do people usually do so that all the residents can communicate with each other. Not raise the same issues, come up with ideas this type of thing.

I know a friend’s flat they use a Facebook group, I’m thinking maybe Trello....

But what does everyone recommend? How would you go about this? Should I just put up a poster or something? I don’t particularly want to manage this alone..

Hermia

We use a Facebook group where I live. It's so useful and is used everyday. You need to ask around to see what is best for your neighbours. We chose Facebook because everyone had it already. I think there would have been less enthusiasm if people had had to sign up for yet another site or app so bear that in mind.

NeilCr

We have a web designer who lives here and he has set up an online forum for the estate. My friend has done the same for his road

But, to be honest, the residents have to be interested to get involved. We have a lot of tenants and neither they, or the landlords, are that bothered.

I'd start with a notice as you have suggested to get a sense of how others feel.

Do you have an outside freeholder or do you own the freehold yourselves?

Hermia

NeilCr wrote: »

But, to be honest, the residents have to be interested to get involved. We have a lot of tenants and neither they, or the landlords, are that bothered.

One way to get more interest is to make it a more general purpose style group rather than just setting it up to deal with the issues the OP mentions. Our group is used for the serious stuff, but also used to track down parcels that have done astray or even for social stuff. That means the tenants are happy to get involved not just the owner-occupiers.

NeilCr

Hermia wrote: »

One way to get more interest is to make it a more general purpose style group rather than just setting it up to deal with the issues the OP mentions. Our group is used for the serious stuff, but also used to track down parcels that have done astray or even for social stuff. That means the tenants are happy to get involved not just the owner-occupiers.

Yep. That's really a good way of doing it. That's how my friend's group runs.

Doesn't seem to work with us. Maybe because it's a mix of freeholders/leaseholders/houses/flats. Would have gone really well in my previous place which was a block of flats

mschris

Great feedback guys the general purpose group makes a lot of sense, I think that would be nice, chatting about random stuff even social stuff as well as sorting issues.

Would using Facebook as mentioned be the best platform you think?
I could easily setup a forum but as mentioned, would people sign up, would it create a barrier?

NeilCr

mschris wrote: »

Great feedback guys the general purpose group makes a lot of sense, I think that would be nice, chatting about random stuff even social stuff as well as sorting issues.

Would using Facebook as mentioned be the best platform you think?
I could easily setup a forum but as mentioned, would people sign up, would it create a barrier?

My friend has no trouble getting people to sign up but he is very, very proactive. As Hermia says I'd ask around to see how neighbours feel. Quite a few folks on my estate won't touch Facebook with a barge pole.

Might depend a bit on the age mix.

googler

Noticeboard/pinboard next to/on the inside of the communal front door?

Personally, I would run a mile from a Facebook group of neighbours. Whoever sets it up will become the unpaid IT consultant of the building ....

bowlhead99

We have a facebook group and it works quite well. Best to make it a closed group (meaning you would need someone to 'run it' in terms of approving new requests to join), unless you're going to make it a complete free for all where anyone around the world could join the discussion without even living in your flats.

Actually we have two facebook groups, one for owners and one more of a social group for residents (people who are owner occupiers would generally join both).

The groups have slightly different issues, e.g. the owners (whether they live there or are just landlords) would interested in what the freeholder / management company are doing about [issue abc], or whether someone can recommend a plumber or decorator or electrician. The tenants would not care about that but still be interested in the fact that Deliveroo has started to deliver from McDonalds now or that the hairdressers over the road has a great deal on, or the police neighbourhood watch has reported [xyz] or there's a new parking sheriff in the development or there's a misdelivered package for Mr A Smith in block 2 or the bins are overflowing can't we all take a bit more pride in our surroundings etc Or that someone has an old wardrobe or set of pans free to a good home.

Facebook works for us and the development is big enough to have posts on it pretty much daily. With a smaller block of flats there would not be as much to say or to see and it could fall into disuse as nobody could be bothered with it; instead, the residents association might just have a cheap website that allows comments, or an email distribution list.

Kids don't use facebook these days its all instagram or snapchat and they think that facebook's for old people. But plently of people of property-owning / renting age do use FB; it's probably the social media place with the highest 'reach' in terms of people not needing to register a new account to join. Some enterprising soul could always print out the important stuff and stick it on a noticeboard.

Or if you are tech savvy you could rent some web space and literally start your own forum using standard software; but if you don't want to manage it alone you may need to find fellow geeks to help and administer password resets and all that BS. Facebook does all the admin themselves so you can focus on content.

Red-Squirrel_2

What problems require communication between every single resident to get sorted?

I would never have wanted to join any sort of group like that when I lived in flats, I just wanted to live there with whatever privacy was possible!

If anybody ever wanted to pass a message to another resident or to everybody, they pinned a notice up in the entrance hall, what's wrong with that!

Hermia

googler wrote: »

Noticeboard/pinboard next to/on the inside of the communal front door?

Personally, I would run a mile from a Facebook group of neighbours. Whoever sets it up will become the unpaid IT consultant of the building ....

That hasn't happened with ours at all. I am not sure any of us have ever taken any notice of which neighbour actually set up the group.