Property Asset Management (PAM) is the strategic process by which an organisation plans and manages the performance of its property assets on a medium to long term basis. Although it is primarily a strategic activity it is also about ensuring that property assets are managed efficiently and effectively on a day to day basis.
The term Property Asset Management has been selected in central civil government to cover activities associated with the whole property life-cycle. There are many professional bodies which represent the various facets of property asset management – procurement, construction, estates and land management, valuation, workplace and facilities management, engineering services, and many other activities. They are all part of Property Asset Management.
Property assets represent significant investment costs (capital expenditure) as well as running costs. In order to maximise the efficiency and effectiveness of central civil government property assets it is important that Departmental business plans consider how the built environment (and the support services needed to maintain and operate them) can support their delivery aims.
- Key facts about mandated Civil Estate (2011)[1]
- Size – 9,669,126m2
- Number of property holdings – 5,957
- Space efficiency – 13.2 m²/FTE
- The total running costs – £3billion
- The average cost of office space – £349/m2 (16% less expensive than the private sector average)
- Cost per full-time equivalent employee (FTE) – £4,608 (on a par with the private sector)
- London offices account for 25% of total space and around 41% of total annual costs. At an average cost of £636/m2, it is less expensive than comparable private sector office space in London (in terms of type and location). However, in terms of cost per FTE – £9,301 the Central London estate is 25% worse than the private sector
SOFTE Estate Diagram
[1]Source: State of the Estate report 2011 – focuses on the Civil Estate (The Civil Estate is defined as workspace, offices and other property (land and buildings) used to deliver departments’ activities which are owned, leased or occupied by a government body, including ministerial and non-ministerial departments, executive agencies, executive non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) and special health authorities in England)