ABSTRACT
The origins of housing management as a profession can be traced back to the 1860s, to a young woman called Octavia Hill. She believed that if tenants were helped with their problems they would then pay the rent and take care of the property, while landlords could provide decent accommodation and still be sure of a 5% return on their capital investment. Her revolutionary approach to the relationship between landlord and tenant involved getting to know tenants and giving advice on housekeeping, hygiene, household budgeting, morals and sobriety. In return the landlord would keep the property in good repair. The emerging housing associations and charities adopted her successful approach. They initially used ‘lady volunteers’ and
then later paid trained middle-class women to manage tenants, collect rents and arrange repairs and maintenance.
