The Ombudsman has decided not to hang around for civil servants to approve new Codes of Practice – and is issuing them anyway.
A clearly exasperated Christopher Hamer says in his new interim report that the updated codes had been prepared for ‘some time’. The delay in issuing them was because he was still awaiting formal approval of the revisions from the OFT.
He has now decided to issue them, whilst still awaiting approval.
They come into effect on August 1.
The updated Codes, together with guidance notes to help agents, reflect developments in legislation, including EPCs and consumers’ rights to cancel contracts. Other updates are in relation to touting and using sub-agencies.
It is not the first time that the Ombudsman has had to hang around for OFT approval: the lettings code, which would enable letting agents signed up to the Ombudsman to display the OFT logo in the same way that estate agents can, still has to be approved despite having been submitted many months ago.
The Ombudsman’s latest interim report also includes case studies, several of which display poor handling of complaints by agents.
Hamer says this is a regular cause of annoyance and that agents should be better about responding quickly and keeping complainants informed.
Figures in the report show a slight rise in inquiries from the public during the first quarter of this year, compared with the same period of 2010. Letting agents generated the most inquiries at 2,418, but sales inquiries slowed compared with 2010.
The scheme had 8,159 member firms as at the end of last month, operating 11,489 sales and 8,142 lettings offices.
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Comments
Hi pbrogent
We are very fortunate that the mentality of the local community around here on the whole is very indep supportive! I too was an ex CW manager had market dominance in the area where our new office opened 12 months ago. it is opposite my old CW office of 11 years ago. I decided to spearhead its opening rather than pay for a manager who we knew nothing about plus my past experience in the area. After just 4 months we were showning a higher level of sold property in our pipeline than any other agent, oddest thing, another agent opened the same day we did 12 months ago (we could not believe it, but they closed down 4 months ago! they sold none! it was a LSL brand name too!) PEOPLE buy PEOPLE and our three offices we can show with confidence that they offer a more relavent network than the 50 plus of the corporates, I always point out to potential vendors that within the corporates the offices work against each other in a league table of vanity and never share leads.......I never slag em off but just a few pointers
anyway Keeping in touch..........I simply never never ask for the business! Every lost lead who is looking for a property I keep them posted on their next move, I simple always try and sell them a house afterwards, the right words in the right way will eventually have them wonder is their agent trying to sell or just list......chances are their agent does not phone them about anything other than reduce! and certainly not about other new instructions, why would they, the agent knows they cant buy....but how nice to be offered a chance.......
For those not looking, I rarely phone to ask how they are doing....arrghh when they say brilliant why! My best touts are my sold signs, I often have a window of sold only...daring as it can be but effective in sending the right message when you can put 20 plus window cards in saying Sold in April (last months example)
Wow, how I am...am I? making myself sick!
...which just goes to show Ric that touting done properly does work and is just another tool in the estate agent's armoury.
Out of interest I am intreagued to know what the difference is between "keeping in touch with a lost instruction" and door knocking an OA instruction that you were never invited to in the first place. It seems like two sides of the same coin to me.
I'm sure we would all love to be in a position of market dominance - I worked for a corporate once where I had 50% of the local market and like you never touted, never door knocked - I now work for a small independant and we have to work very hard indeed to win business, we stick to the rules but will use every tool in the book including touting to build the business.
Hi Chris
No need to apologise although accepted without hesitation.......Must admit looking at my first sentence I can understand how you would first read that.
anyway...totally agree, I know of the door knockers as keeping in touch with my vendors and applicants mean they rarely escape un noticed as in my real life example below.
Not often do I get overly animated on this site I tend to just read a comment now and again but the TPO have a real chance to allow decent agents stamp out the cowboys no matter how big a company name they hide behind......That said I had a chat with a bloke mowing his lawn yesterday when I was leaving a house I had valued he has a CW(countrywide) board up and I offered jokingly to get rid off it for him so he could mow all the lawn....I could not resist in giving him my card saying the offer stands whenever he needs it taking down....I had a message to call him when I got back in the office...valuation booked in! LOL
@Ric
Misunderstanding accepted and reciprocal apology offered ;)
Yes, we also suffer from similar tactics to those which you have just described in our area and the agents involved could well be construed to make up the initials of a persons name (which is why I was rather piqued at what I thought was someone suggesting we used the same tactics).
Fortunately, it is exceptionally rare that we lose a customer to the strong armed pushy end of estate agency touting - However; losing an instruction to the 'tied into a 26 week long contract with the promise of a quick sale and a high price neither of which ever materialise' tactic = more than I would like.
Jimmy
Would you encourage an agent to break the law and NOT submit another offer? They have no choice. Vendors do.
Sequence.... in our locality are the worst culprits on DOOR KNOCKING, thankfully the majority of their efforts are a complete waste of time, their staff hate doing this as one of their Managers told me........I do it on a "Virtual Basis" to keep the Area Manager happy, very funny indeed.
@Chris
Firstly and forgive me I thought most would recognise CW was meant for CountryWide.....now you perhaps are Mr Country Wide and if you are I have countless destressed vendors who have been subjected to your tactics and I would happily go face to face prime time TV over the CW (countrywide tactics).
I would have said Watch out Chris Wood if I meant you, I have absoloutely no idea who you are or where you work and to be honest would not point a finger at an individual as I believe is more the pressure of the corp targets that drives them to the lows they use in touting, ive never heard of a decent indep door knocking.
Anyway to answer your question all be it my opinion - 20 years in the job at 36 years old, 3 offices, not a bank loan in sight and a very, very cash and assett rich company, good agent (I think) and honest, not at my wits end and certainly not going under......market share of available and sold property in each area I have an office and not only just but market leader by a country mile in each, each office up against small indeps and at least 2 larger corps. I rarely tout and never chase a valuation, typically I get the job on past success and good old customer relations......
I do however maintain door knocking is cheap and desparate, competition is healthy without question, I thank the lord for my competitors without them I might not look so good, but door knocking arrgghhh that was/is just a pet hate in a moment I had to share..perhaps I should not have done,
however Chris you read my post and decided CW was you, was that because of the door knocking, dont tell the other agent tout or truly because you thought CW was you?
KEEP TOUTING it is the thing to do when you need the business without question I agree, I do now and again but it seems perhaps my post has been misunderstood or door knocking is now the prefered touting method and telling a vendor to take a viewing and sack your agent afterwards is good? (not sure any agent here who thinks that putting a vendor at risk of a day in court would like to say their name, company name and to whom they have done this against would they?)
Touting is healthy and keeps everyone on their toes, you are either an agent who sells or lists for trophy instructions. Nothing wrong with Touting if it is carried out in a professional manner, if another agent touts your property it is a wake up call to you the agent, to get your clients home SOLD.
Dear Ric
Is this a complaint against my company or, just agents in general as you don't make it very clear? If the former, this isn't the sort of activity or practice that I recognise or condone in my business so please get in touch to discuss it directly. If the latter, be good fellow, and think about how you use peoples initials before you post.
From your post you sound like either a good honest agent that has been very badly done by sharp practices and has reached his wits end or, an agent who isn't much cop and is looking for something/one to blame for his business going down the tubes. I'm sorry but, I genuinely can't work out which. As your post mentions a 'tit for tat' occurrence, which suggests that you had done unto you what you had done unto others (not that that makes a breach of the rules right of course), it does sound like you a biter that got bitten.
'Touting', or 'looking to professionally and legitimately generate more business in a free market' depending on your viewpoint, has some clear rules within the NAEA and TPOS. Section 3. on this link covers it nicely http://www.tpos.co.uk/downloads/IES02_code%20of%20practice_sales.pdf
Nothing wrong with touting, letters, the odd phone call I agree! guess what I do it now and again...BUT
Underhand sign a one off viewing contract and dont tell your agent? Hello.....
Door knocking unless done with a national approved Estate Agency ID card should be banned and even then questioned!
Knock Knock said Jack the ripper in a pin stripe suit, errm lovely a cup of tea that will give me just the strength I need to rob you!
Door knocking estate agents, use the bloody phone book or think if they did not call you in the first place there was a reason!
I just hate the notion of a respectable business person would actually knock on the door without any invitation, proof of ID and by that I mean true ID card not just Hi my name is Jack from CW heres my business card, (you can get 250 of them for nothing everytime you open you emails from that annoying spam email)
Would you advise your elderly parents to let anyone in who says they are an estate agent because they must be!
okay blood pressure on this one could rise, we are not selling knock off DVD's.
There are pros and cons to most activities including touting. A card that says "Your agent is Rubbish" is bad. But so is signing up niaive vendors to 16 week sole agency agreements. You can't have it both ways. And you know it's normally the corporates. They're not interested in Hamer The Hapless anyway.
whats wrong with touting?
Depends on what sort. A 'call me urgently' card through the door is a direct breach of ASA. The worst firm for this a major corporate player.
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Around here there is very little respect for sole agency contracts which should be looked at.
I understand the worst ticking off a company has ever got is a 'please dont do it again' letter. The ASA should grow a pair.
Whats wrong with touting? Whats wrong with door-knocking? If its done in a polite, professional manner and in accordance with respecting other agents contracts. Its usually the lazy agents who complain about this. Last year I knocked on another agents sole instruction , had been on market for months, the vendor invited me in, gave me a cup of tea, told me how frustrated he was that he hadnt sold cos he had a place in italy ready for him and wanted to end his life there, I told him honestly that his house was overpriced and we could market the house more effectively, he agreed, gave notice to his agent, instructed me on a sole, reduced the price 50k, we did open day and hey presto he moved within 8 weeks. Now tell me whats wrong with touting?
Hopefully some very strong rules on touting...
Watch out CW hopefully the TPO will also open an ear to agents who have a very valid complaint about their competitors who door knock, harrass, arrange one off viewing contracts whilst people are still under "sole agency" and a number of other methods which should be outlawed.
The odd letter or phone call fair enough, but today we are doing a viewing on a house which was arranged by a CW agent behind our backs, the owner who has some language barriers issues was told, just dont tell your agent, if the viewers like it, sack them and then we will formalise the deal!
Fortunately we found out due to having the same applicant and suggesting they viewed this house to be told they were already viewing tomorrow...problem is it appears the TPO are not that interested in this as it sounds tit for tat..........yet at court this would have been a clear CW have breached all rules and my vendor would have been faced with a bill 3 x times the norm as a result....arrggggghhh!
Lets hope the touting admendment is a good one!
Haha. Reel 'em in, jimmy.
Jimmy.
The agent didn't gazump you, the owners did. All agents have a legal obligation to pass on offers up to the point of exchange. It is a system that needs change and causes heartache and lost money for all involved. However, ultimately, it is the owner of a property who decides whether to accept a higher or not.
From a sellers point of view, if an agent didn't tell you about an offer that was worth (for arguments sake) several thousand pounds more to you from another buyer, you might well; quite rightly, sue the agent for damages, breach of contract, and seek to prosecute him under the 1979 estate agents Act amongst other avenues of redress including The Property Ombudsman Scheme code of practice.
Believe it or not, most agents hate it when a buyer gets gazumped for a whole range of reasons (often because we know we will get the blame and verbal abuse that goes with it).
Dear Mr Ombudsman, I didn't get the house I wanted. I has a survey done, and although there was nothing significant highlighted, I made a perfectly reasonable revised offer on the the day of exchange. Imagine my surprise when the Agent sold it to another buyer for almost the asking price. I was GAZUMPED! Aren't you supposed to be protecting me from these rogue agents?
Where has it been released? Not on his website, the 2006 version is still there.
The use of Sub-agencies is absolutely none of his business. Who does this bloke think he is?