Interview with Javier Ortiz, lawyer and registered administrator

What does it mean to be a member of the college of administrators and what advantages does it have for the community?
Not all administrators can be licenced. For this, it is necessary to have a professional qualification that not all of them have.

Being a Fellow of the Association of Property Administrators means being part of a Public Law Institution with its own legal standing and full capacity to fulfil its aims, which is governed by its own Statutes and Internal Regulations, and is protected by Law.
Therefore, a Community of Property Owners managed by a registered Property Administrator has the security not only of being in the hands of good professionals but also the guarantee of being covered by the rules of a Public Law entity which brings with it the existence, among other things, of a civil liability insurance that covers all the contingencies that may be brought about by one of its members.

Therefore, what are the disadvantages for the community of trusting a non-member administrator?
Mainly, not being subject to the discipline and rules of a public law body, which may mean that the community is not duly protected against inappropriate or improper professional practices that may cause damage and harm to the community.

How can property administrators help the community coexistence?
An administrator must have good communication skills, a certain level of emotional intelligence, conflict management, negotiation, mediation and problem solving skills, because sooner or later they will end up appearing in the community and you will need all these skills to offer a realistic and calm solution.

Does this also apply to community committees?
Of absolutely yes, it does. Leading and managing a community meeting is often not easy either, and for everything to go smoothly during the meeting, in addition to the above, you need to know how to handle person-to-person relationships. If you don’t like people, if you only want convenience and not to be bothered with debtors or conflicts, or if you want to be in a community to sell more services, my opinion is that you should not become a property manager

How important is transparency for you?
It is unavoidable. The code of ethics of the Association is very clear on these issues. But in any case it is the fundamental pillar of your work. An administrator’s most important asset is his or her reputation.

What lines of work do you set yourself at Meridional?
To always give a professional and real answer that solves the problem that the community has at that moment, and of course adjusted to the legislation in order not to harm the owners. One of Meridional’s characteristics is to always have an active dialogue with all the owners and communities, and I want to contribute to keep it that way.