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Global FAQs

These are a list of all frequently asked questions from property guardians. However, if you cannot find the answer you require please contact us and we will be happy to assist.
Call us on: 020 3818 9100 and our Guardian Services Team will be happy to help you.


A. A working professional who occupies a vacant property under a non-exclusive licence agreement to prevent squatting, antisocial behaviour and metal theft.
A. A person who is over 21 years old, in full time employment and able to provide two character references (one from your employer, or client if self-employed and one from your existing landlord), 3 months' bank statements, and proof of address and photo ID, are eligible to apply to become a property guardian.
A. If you have the supporting documentation, please register on My Globe and request a viewing of a property. We will then contact you to arrange a suitability screening at a property to ensure you understand what it is to be a property guardian and you accept the terms of the licence agreement for the property. If all criteria are met then you will become a property guardian of the shared living space of the building.
A. Your duties are to protect and preserve the property you are occupying. You will do this by residing at the property on a full-time basis, reporting any threats and/or risks to the property from vandals, trespassers and squatters and reporting any issues (e.g. leaks, broken windows) which may adversely affect the structural integrity and infrastructure of our client's property. We do not expect you to act as a security guard and nor does the role confer upon you any additional powers of arrest above that of any other citizen, but your ultimate position in the property is to keep it secure from all threats.
A. Licence fees vary depending on location, condition of the property and size of rooms, (by way of example, a 600sq ft space in an E1 postcode in London could cost around £90.00 per week, whereas a small room in an N1 postcode in London could cost around £60.00 per week). On average, licence fees are around 40-50% below the level payable for a traditional rental agreement.

A. You will be required to pay a key payment deposit (price depends on the value of the property living space).

On some occasions you will be expected to pay utility bills and / or council tax. If your living space is in a non-domestic property, then you will be expected to use the utilities within a fair usage policy. Should the costs go above the fair usage policy, then you will be expected to pay a contribution towards the costs.

The specific arrangements of the living space costs will be made known to you prior to you signing a licence agreement for the living space.

A. We protect our clients' properties for varying lengths of time; however, on average it is for a period of 6-8 months. We will always endeavour to offer our guardians alternative living space once a property is due to be handed back. We can only guarantee 28 days' stay in any property due to the nature of the licence agreement you sign.
A. No, but you are welcome to bring your own furniture into the property. Global Guardians can provide you with basic furniture, at a small cost, to enable you to begin protecting the property immediately.
A. Usually yes, but each property is different. Written permission is required.
A. Yes. All properties have hot and cold water in the kitchens and bathrooms. Electricity is provided throughout the building. Heating is provided either through a boiler system or oil filled radiators. In the event of an electricity or hot / cold water failure, by contacting us directly via My Globe we will be able to assist to ensure that this inconvenience is dealt with appropriately. We take property guardian requests seriously and we are audited on our response rate to you.
A. No. Due to the temporary nature of their use by guardians, the properties do not have Wi-Fi. Requests will be considered for guardians to install a landline/broadband at their own cost.
A. Yes, provided each of you enter into a Licence Agreement with Global Guardians. The price is based upon the one living space and does not depend upon there being two people sharing that living space. We do not charge extra for couples.
A. You will be provided with a full set of rules and regulations which cover health and safety issues and consideration for fellow guardians that you will be expected to adhere to. These form part of your Licence Agreement and are also on display in the shared living space.
A. You will need to give 28 days' notice. This can be done through My Globe by clicking a button or alternatively through email to your dedicated Guardian Officer.
A. On certain properties you will be expected to register to pay for Council Tax and / or Utility Bills. This will be made known to you by our Guardian Customer Relations team.

If you have been asked to register for Council Tax and / or Utility Bills, you will need to do so within 48 hours of collecting keys for the property.

These are a list of all frequently asked questions from property owners. However, if you cannot find the answer you require please contact us and we will be happy to assist.
Call us on: 020 3818 9101 and our New Business Team will be happy to help you.


A. Global Guardians is the most cost effective and hassle-free way to protect your empty building as a property owner. You could save up to 100% compared to traditional static 24-hour security guards and up to 100% compared to boarding up, which simply alerts the public to the fact that the building is unoccupied. By having our property guardians living in your building and hence making it occupied, your insurance premiums will be considerably less than for a vacant property. On top of this, your property is legally protected against squatters and will not depreciate in value by being left to stand derelict for a long period of time.
A. Virtually any type of building is suitable, provided it is watertight and has a supply of electricity and cold water. We can fit temporary bathroom and kitchen facilities which can be removed prior to the building being handed back to you.
A. No, the primary use of the building remains the same. The fact that it is temporarily not being used as such is not relevant. The role of the property guardians is to protect the property and in order for them to achieve this goal they need living space in the property. The living space is considered as ancillary use so the primary use of the building never changes.
A. Yes, as Global Guardians provide a service to protect vacant property. However, we do have a solution to greatly reduce empty building rates if you use our Guardian Solution.
A. The short answer is no because property guardians are not tenants. Property guardians are licensees who agree to secure the building they are living in on behalf of Global Guardians and the property owner. A tenancy can be defined as having possession of land or a property for a period of time agreed by a landlord. However, a property guardian's licence is a weekly rolling agreement to secure the building and includes a 4-week notice period for the property owner to acquire vacant possession of the building. We operate a licence agreement model in theory and practice and do not confer exclusive possession to any property guardian protecting our vacant properties.
A. We have a full management structure in place whereby we regularly check the entire property at site through our building inspectors. We enter every single room and area inside the property, including the areas where the property guardians are situated in order to ensure the property is being well maintained and the property guardians are complying with our rules and regulations. The inspections we carry out are not made known to the property guardians and we do not seek their permission to enter the living space because they do not have exclusive possession. As part of our commitment to the owner of the property we provide a full management report on a monthly basis which is uploaded to our online web portal My Globe.
A. Your property can be returned to you with 32 days' notice, in a secure, clean and tidy condition. This is the minimum notice that can be given to terminate a licence agreement. Full vacant possession will be provided to you upon request.
A. Global Guardians ensures that council tax is paid as levied.
A. Yes, our guardians enter into a non-exclusive weekly licence agreement which allows access to you and Global Guardians at all times. However, we do require 24 hours' notice for third party access. A full key set is provided to you at the start of the agreement with us.
A. Global Guardians has an in-house maintenance team who provide the initial work to ensure the building is habitable for the property guardian solution. With regard to ongoing work, this can be initiated by our in house team continuously or if the property owner has their own team, we are happy to agree to this. We do not allow property guardians to do any maintenance work in the building under any circumstances.
A. Depending on the size and build of the property, after an initial inspection, we are able to identify how many guardians we can place in your building to ensure it is as safe and secure as possible. We currently have spaces which have just one guardian in, such as a residential flat, in comparison to larger non-residential buildings we manage where larger numbers of property guardians are essential to keep the property safe and secure. It follows logically that a building of 150,000 ft.2 requires more than a handful of property guardians to keep it secure as opposed to a three-bedroom semi-detached house.
A. Property guardians will not be on site 24/7, however, under the Licence Agreement they will agree to be in the property at certain times during the week. A good way to look at this is thinking of a general residential home, where the property is not in use at all times; the occupiers go to work and return home later in the day. The property guardians are living in the available space and are legally protecting the vacant property.
A. If there are any circumstances where the property guardians will not leave the property upon notice, legal action can be taken. Under the weekly Licence Agreement to which the guardians have agreed terms, they have signed to secure the building on a temporary, non-exclusive basis and must abide by the terms of the documentation. Our License Agreement has been tried and tested in numerous courts across England and we have a 100% success rate for regaining vacant possession.
A. All our property guardians are professional, full time employed individuals who are checked by our in-house Vetting Department. All documentation (passport, bank statements, references from current landlord and employers) must be vetted and approved prior to moving into one of our available spaces. This is administered efficiently to ensure that the properties which we manage are being secured by the right people. Evidence of this is stored upon our secure servers.
A. Global Guardians has an in-house maintenance team who ensure that the property is safe and habitable to live in. If there are any health and safety risks, our teams will ensure these areas of the building are locked off to ensure there is no damage. We will assign a head guardian to your vacant property to ensure that all the rules and regulations which we implement for the empty building, such as no parties and no gatherings, are abided by. Any issues will be reported to the head guardian and then back to our management team. If any rules or regulations are broken, Global Guardians has the right to remove any licencee from the building and all damage will be dealt with accordingly at our cost.
A. Yes. Global Guardians has an in-house Health and Safety and Fire Risk Assessment team who ensure the property adheres to all health and safety regulations and is habitable for property guardians. As a company, we are responsible for our property guardians' welfare and the vacant property which we are managing. Our quality department audits all health and safety documentation and practice on a monthly basis to ensure compliance with current regulations.
A. In most cases an insurer will be happy to insure a property under guardian management. This is because the risks associated with vacant property such as squatting and antisocial behaviour are greatly reduced by the implementation of guardianship. It may be that your insurer does not fully understand guardianship and are therefore hesitant to insure the property. In these cases, GGM are happy to meet with the insurer on the site and explain the set up of the property, our compliance structures and our management plan for the building. This has proven a successful method for getting insurers to agree policies in 100% of cases.