Minimum Standards for Estate Agents?

Technically, you can apply for a job, then be out valuing houses the following day with little to no experience. Now we are not saying that this actually happens but if it is possible then it is an issue none the less. But it seems that things are about to change.  Estate agents will in future have to hold a professional qualification and also be a lot more transparent about the referral fees they receive. So what fees are we talking about exactly? Well, The National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team (NTSEAT) will be tasked with proactively monitoring the disclosure of referral fees, and the Government will also look more closely at the possibility of banning referral fees. These new measures were announced on the 8th of April 2018. We here at Home House Buyers welcome these changes it will be raising the bar for those wanting to get into the estate agency field.

There has been much pressure on the government to pass a law to stop/prevent fall-throughs. Some folk are hoping for the same model as what they have across the border in Scotland. What’s different with the property sales in Scotland is that the vendor is responsible for providing a survey before the property goes on the market. This is different from the current method in England where it’s the buyer’s responsibility to get the survey. You can still get your own survey before you make an offer, if you want a second opinion. Once you have read through the report it is then down to you to put forward an offer through your solicitor and if accepted, you are normally expected to pay a holding deposit there and then. You are then bound at this point and if you withdraw then your deposit will be at risk. So, could this be the way forward for the rest of the UK? Scott from Home house Buyers isn’t sure this is the right method, especially at such an uncertain time like now. “So there is to be no introduction of mandatory binding offers, and no legal clampdown on gazumping or gazundering, but agents will be encouraged to use voluntary reservation agreements (An agreement between a buyer and seller of land involving a written statement of intent (subject to contract and whether or not a fee is paid) to buy and sell a property) instead.”

Our third and final point of the topic is the decision to ban leaseholds on new build houses. Also, anyone buying a flat – or a house – on a lease of longer than 21 years will also not have to pay any ground rent. This decision comes after developers were building new build houses as leaseholds and then doubling the ground rent every ten years. This was making them less than desirable. In other instances,  homeowners found their freehold had been sold to investment companies, and they were being told they wanted to purchase it then they would have to pay tens of thousands of pounds read more here. The laws may take a few years to fully come into place but the media addition around this has hopefully educated people on the topic.