Industry News

Michael Schaefer Amid the noise of automation and AI, the true north of property management endures: skilled professionals navigating human complexity with insight and care. In an ever changing and uncertain environment where calls for ‘automate’, AI’, ‘quicker’, ‘faster’ and the like reverberate through company boardrooms, departmental and industry gatherings,...

Benefits Of Appointing an EMA    Junaid Mally (ZDFin)   Is it beneficial to a Scheme to be run by volunteers, after hours and without compensation: A dive into the benefits of appointing an Executive Managing Agent in a Sectional Title Scheme In a previous article published by our office...

Matthew Dean (ZDFin)   While you may have heard about a “Managing Agent” in the property industry and in particular regarding Sectional Title Schemes; more recently you may also have heard of the term “Executive Managing Agent”. One may see the two concepts as being similar or even the same;...

Let's Get Phsycial (6th June 2024 - Johannesburg)   These videos were recorded at the last LET'S GET PHYSICAL event which took place in Johannesburg on the 6th of June 2024. In these videos we hear our Michael Schaefer, the founder of ZDFin, share some of his thoughts about the...

Specialist finance company ZDFin has over 50 years of experience in property and financial management. They offer superior financial products that address a wide range of challenges, and which can be tailor-made to suit one’s Scheme.  To read more about this story, click on the story below: https://everythingproperty.co.za/finance-company-zdfin-adds-value-to-community-schemes/?fbclid=IwAR2hJTyvSPVXu0SkPEMBQpAGmkcf1lgBjITHXO33k0OP2xhgem0XhGJGbpk...

Managing a community scheme is no easy task requiring extensive knowledge of legislation governing community schemes, financial understanding, mediation and organisational skills, and the ability to handle various responsibilities and personalities simultaneously. In this article, we will explore a few examples of how the appointment of an Executive Managing Agent...

In August we celebrate women and all that they do in our industry, in our lives, in our society and our families. ZDFin can confirm with, absolute certainty, that the sectional title industry is dominated by intelligent, hardworking and well-rounded women who are the key ingredient to the success of...

By now, most in the industry would have heard that yet another managing agent has been recently forcibly closed due to alleged fraudulent activities and mismanagement, leaving their clients, they being schemes, high and dry. Tragically, it also seems that those against whom this alleged fraud was perpetrated were incorrectly...

South African business has been through a torrid time over the past two years and almost every one now has a covid story or two woven into their company narrative. “We’re incredibly thankful to have come through this period, stronger than when we started,” says Michael Schaefer, CEO of ZDFin....

“There was little inspiration to be had from last week’s State of the Nation Address (SONA 2022), especially insofar as it relates to the residential property sector,” says Michael Schaefer CEO of specialist finance company ZDFin. “Perhaps the one positive take-out is the growing acknowledgement of the central role of...

Media Release January 2022 UTILITIES MANAGEMENT MAKES GOOD BUSINESS SENSE Deteriorating and unstable supply of electricity from ESKOM and the unreliable delivery of services by collapsing municipalities country-wide, has exacerbated the move by consumers towards alternative, more sustainable, smart energy solutions.  Increasingly the implementation and management of suitable utility tools...

South African individuals, businesses and government entities can obtain cover against risks such as civil commotion, public disorder, strikes, riots and terrorism, making South Africa one of the few countries in the world that has an insurer that covers these risks at very affordable premiums. The writer has always been...

Media Release 15 August 2021 THE RAINS ARE COMING...BUT ARE YOU PREPARED? According to the Collins dictionary the saying 'it's better to be safe than sorry', advises someone ‘to take action in order to avoid possible unpleasant consequences later, even if it seems unnecessary’.  “As old-fashioned and over-used as this saying is, it still holds true today,” says ZDFin CEO...

Media Realease July 2021 Is an Executive Managing Agent the right choice for your scheme?  Do we or don’t we ...is a question many sectional title schemes ask themselves when it comes to appointing an Executive Managing Agent (EMA). Michael Schaefer CEO of ZDFin, believes the question you should rather...

As the hazy days of Summer begin to disappear, homeowners around the country, particularly those in community schemes, such as bodies corporate and home owners’ associations and the like, are being reminded of the all-important matter of ‘seasonal maintenance’.  Not a popular subject of discussion, but vitally important in order...

Sectional title bodies corporate and homeowners associations are often in the middle of a snarl of maintenance issues. These throw up a host of nasty challenges that try even the most even tempered trustees, residents and residential property owners. This is often a space that is a vortex of problems...

Book your spot of this informative discussion by hitting this link (https://www.tvdmconsultants.com/webinar-registration) and filling out your details....

The January-March 2021 issue of The Community Schemes Ombud Service’s (CSOS) digital industry publication SharedLiving, carried an article titled ‘Levy Financing Companies – Saviour or Scourge?’ While the author of the article is unknown, but identifies themselves as writing from a ‘consumers perspective’, there are glaring inaccuracies, false assertions and...

The economic crunch in South Africa means many schemes, bodies corporate, share-block companies and homeowners’ associations, are under intense financial pressure. Belt-tightening, especially after Covid-19, prompted specialist finance company ZDFIN to refine its levy product to help struggling schemes manage arrears. The team at ZDFin has an in-depth practical and...

Nothing quite rivals the horror of a building on fire. We look on with morbid fascination as the flames rage. Sirens wail as fire engines scream to extinguish the blaze and firefighters battle to rescue people trapped inside the building. This drama played out in a 16-storey building in downtown...

Pearl Scheltema from Fitzanne’s Property interviews Michael Schaefer, founder and CEO of ZDFin, a specialist finance company providing smart solutions for Sectional Title Schemes. Many Sectional Title Schemes are still challenged in raising adequate reserves to fund large maintenance and capital projects, which may or may not form part of their...

Recently, Michael Schaefer of ZDFin was invited by Private Property to discuss community schemes. In the episode, Michael chats about getting it right the first time....

THE 7 OCTOBER 2020 WILL MARK THE FOUR-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF THE GAZETTING, PUBLISHING AND SO EFFECTIVE DATE OF BOTH THE COMMUNITY SCHEMES OMBUD SERVICE ACT (ACT 9 OF 2011) AND THE SECTIONAL TITLE.  Schemes Management Act, no. 8 of 2011; maintenance oversight per (now) legislative direction linked to financial management...