Melys Griffiths

Name

Melys Griffiths

Department

Residential Development

Working within the Nottingham Development team brings the opportunity to work in valuation, consultancy or agency roles; or even all three. Recently, I have been involved with giving market and valuation advice in respect of the redevelopment of a former colliery to the east of Nottingham.

As a sideline to the work, we have been asked by the client to take part in a risk workshop. The workshop is attended by 14 people, ranging from a Highways Engineer, to senior figureheads from English Partnerships' National Coalfields Programme. It starts well but soon descends into chaos, when we're debating what the probability of the value of sustainable homes going up in ten years' time is. That being difficult enough, deciding what might the potential impact on a scheme with a Gross Development Value of £200m be is even more so!

The workshop comes to an end and it's now that the real work starts as the other 13 people around the table see it as an opportunity to grill me on the current 'Credit Crunch' and its potential impact on the scheme. Coming from quite an academic, 'black and white' background, where everything adds up and facts and figures are the answer, it is testing for me to be asked to look into my crystal ball. Nobody can really know what the true impact of the current economic climate will be on the property market and how long that impact will last, but in order to advise my clients, I must give them a reasoned response; the pressure is on!

After a tough meeting, where the scale of the financial deficit within the scheme is finally realised, I get myself ready for the real surveyor's work… The RICS Matrics Cybergolf Tournament! I'm paired up with one of the best players but we fail to get through to the national final. I make some valuable contacts as well as friends and my Nottingham social network continues to expand…