Being a letting agent today means keeping up to date with the long list of rules and regulations governing how a...
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Members of Propertymark are left wondering today what if any future there is for the industry’s trade body. The shock resignation yesterday...
18 February 2021
From: Breaking News

Scams are rife in the quick house buying sector with many companies seeking to take advantage of sellers in desperate situations. That’s...
09 February 2021
From: Breaking News

Countrywide and Foxtons have thrown their weight behind an idea to identify every single UK residential property with a unique number. The...
13 January 2021
From: Breaking News

Start-up letting agents looking to enter the market are finding it increasingly difficult to set up in business as banks point...
19 December 2020
From: Features

The Property Ombudsman says there have been more complaints lodged about agents so far in 2020 than in 2019. This is despite...
15 December 2020
From: Breaking News

First off, hello and welcome to this new series – appearing in Estate Agent Today’s Breaking News section each month –...
10 December 2020
From: Breaking News

The industry regulator who comes into force when the Regulation of Property Agents’ recommendations are adopted may take over versions of...
04 December 2020
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman has joined calls for greater disclosure of referral fees by agents. The issue has become a hot topic in...
30 November 2020
From: Breaking News

The mandatory qualifications expected of agents have not been forgotten and will come into effect in two or three years. That’s the...
29 October 2020
From: Breaking News

A progress report on the Regulation of Property Agents recommendations will be made today by a key RoPA committee member, Mark...
28 October 2020
From: Breaking News

Customers must be told about third party referral fees when buying or selling a home says the National Trading Standards Estate...
02 October 2020
From: Breaking News

The cross-sector group looking at reforming the sales process has agreed a new pledge which it says introduces greater transparency for...
25 September 2020
From: Breaking News

It’s no surprise the mainstream news remains dominated by coronavirus - not so much the actual effect of it right now,...
05 September 2020
From: Features

It’s fair to say that UK estate agents don’t have the best of reputations, often featuring in the lists of the...
29 August 2020
From: Features

An agency that has now closed down has been expelled by The Property Ombudsman for failing to pay an award of...
26 August 2020
From: Breaking News

A PropTech firm that regularly claims London homes are mis-measured in property descriptions has taken a swipe at Purplebricks. Pupil, a spatial...
05 August 2020
From: Breaking News

Earlier this month, it was revealed that property industry bodies have joined a new Code of Practice Steering Group to enact...
25 July 2020
From: Features

The new code of conduct for estate agents has been dismissed as “a waste of time” - and the senior industry...
21 July 2020
From: Breaking News

They are the names we hear about often, pushing for this or seeking clarifications on that. They are the representatives of...
04 July 2020
From: Features

A new estate agency Code of Practice is to be written by a group set up by the Royal Institution of Chartered...
01 July 2020
From: Breaking News

The recommendations to regulate and train the estate agency industry put forward a year ago remain on the Housing Secretary’s desk...
30 June 2020
From: Breaking News

The new Property Ombudsman taking over from October is Rebecca Marsh. She is currently Chief Ombudsman at the Legal Ombudsman and was...
05 June 2020
From: Breaking News

Over the last few years, there have been a number of high-profile court cases in which renters took action against letting...
30 May 2020
From: Features

The industry should continue to prepare for large-scale reforms such as mandatory agency training, the licensing of agents and a new...
21 May 2020
From: Breaking News

There’s been a substantial 20 per cent rise in formal complaints about agents taken up by The Property Ombudsman. The figures refer...
11 May 2020
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman has announced the expulsion of eight agencies, all for contravening TPO codes of practice. Most of the expulsions were...
04 May 2020
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman is advising agents to use virtual viewings only as a filtering process with offers being agreed only ‘subject...
01 May 2020
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman’s office is still receiving 40 to 50 calls a day from the public, even though most transactions with...
23 April 2020
From: Breaking News

If it’s really the case that estate agents’ offices could be in the category of High Street premises first allowed to...
18 April 2020
From: Features

To many less fortunate on the follicle front, high profile industry supplier Ed Mead has enjoyed an infuriatingly good head of...
15 April 2020
From: Breaking News

Sellers are being warned to make strict checks before responding to advertisements apparently from prospective buyers. The National Association of Property Buyers...
14 April 2020
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman has announced that it will postpone its annual conference, which was to have been on June 18, until...
20 March 2020
From: Breaking News

There is no doubt that the BBC News article in early February caused something of a stir within the Deposit Free...
12 March 2020
From: Sponsored Content

Training operator The Able Agent is to include a module on the Modern Method of Auction in its future programme. Charlotte Jeffry-Campbell,...
12 March 2020
From: Breaking News

The author of dramatic reform proposals for estate agents has given a clear message to ministers - Get On With It! Lord...
09 March 2020
From: Breaking News

Agents are consistently being told that they need to get on board with change. And one could quite easily make the...
02 March 2020
From: Breaking News

The National Association of Estate Agents has launched its Sales Protocol Toolkit, in a bid to reduce fall-throughs and dramatically improve...
28 February 2020
From: Breaking News

Agents now have only seven days to complete a referral fees survey, announced late on Friday by Trading Standards and The...
10 February 2020
From: Breaking News

The National Trading Standards Estate & Letting Agency Team and The Property Ombudsman have launched an urgent survey to assess awareness...
07 February 2020
From: Breaking News

It is possible that agents and their business partners in the conveyancing, mortgage and survey industries could be obliged to have...
29 January 2020
From: Breaking News

Some older estate agents may end up retiring when mandatory examinations and qualifications are introduced as there will be no ‘free...
28 January 2020
From: Breaking News

The annual conference of the National Association of Estate Agents takes place on February 27 - the date when the future...
21 January 2020
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman role is being advertised. The current Ombudsman, Katrine Sporle, is giving up the role in November after five years in...
13 January 2020
From: Breaking News

The Council of Property Search Organisations has named three industry figures as members of its newly-formed compliance committee, set to regulate...
16 December 2019
From: Breaking News

It’s a substantial Tory government for the next five years: what does this mean for estate agents, property and the market? We have...
13 December 2019
From: Breaking News

Mark Bentley, the immediate past president of the National Association of Estate Agents, has become the highest profile agent yet to...
11 November 2019
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman scheme is increasing its fees in January for the first time in six years - and it’s implementing...
11 November 2019
From: Breaking News

First details have emerged of the information vendors may have to provide up-front In future transactions if government house buying reforms...
21 October 2019
From: Breaking News

Three key industry organisations have endorsed a best practice guide for the controversial Modern Method of Auction. The iamsold guide is aimed at...
03 October 2019
From: Breaking News

A company operating the controversial Modern Method of Auction says it is trying to improve the sector’s image after a series...
30 August 2019
From: Breaking News

iamproperty, parent company of IAMsold, says it now works with 2,500 estate agency branches nationwide and has sold over 16,500 properties...
14 August 2019
From: Breaking News

Estate and letting agents are being urged to check that they are signed up with an approved redress scheme that covers...
25 July 2019
From: Breaking News

How many of you are in favour of estate agents being licenced? Would most agents rather not be overseen by a regulator...
25 July 2019
From: Features

Improved communication and increased transparency throughout the buying process can manage vendors’ expectations, improve satisfaction scores and create long-term clients. That’s the...
18 July 2019
From: Breaking News

A trade association of agents selling properties overseas has launched a new feature which it claims will give buyers greater security...
18 July 2019
From: Breaking News

Some of the most radical reforms ever proposed for estate and letting agents are expected to be signed off today by...
15 July 2019
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman will in future refer more estate agents to the National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agent Team if...
11 July 2019
From: Breaking News

A new industry regulator is likely to be in place within two years according to the chair of the government’s Regulation...
11 July 2019
From: Breaking News
05 July 2019
From: 60 Second Interview

An online auction service which only came into existence in September last year claims to have 150 partner estate agents already,...
21 June 2019
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman says its members must in future disclose referral fees in a bid to make previously-hidden costs open and...
24 May 2019
From: Breaking News

The founder of franchise giant Belvoir, Mike Goddard, has now stepped down as chair of the company, two years after quitting...
17 May 2019
From: Breaking News

The trade body representing so-called quick sale companies is marking five years in business with two feathers in its cap. Firstly the...
16 May 2019
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman (TPO) has released its annual report for 2018, showing a 16% rise in the number of complaints made...
08 May 2019
From: Breaking News

The jury appears to be out on whether the new enforcement body for estate and lettings agents will be resourced sufficiently...
18 April 2019
From: Breaking News

When they first came onto the scene, online-only estate and lettings agents were predicted to swiftly spell the end for traditional...
30 March 2019
From: Features

The founder of the Hunters franchise agency group, Kevin Hollinrake - now a Conservative MP - is the latest parliamentarian to...
22 March 2019
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman has issued new guidance over what it calls “a growing issue” - that is, disputes over dual fees. TPO...
11 March 2019
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman’s annual conference is to hear from the chair of the government’s ‘Property Agents Working Group’ - just days...
07 February 2019
From: Breaking News

Kit Malthouse has been making headlines this week, but – in keeping with his tenure as Housing Minister so far -...
02 February 2019
From: Features

The Property Ombudsman is to give agents new guidance on dual fees, following a surge in complaints from the public. In 2017, TPO received...
29 January 2019
From: Breaking News

Alongside hundreds of agents and suppliers, I recently attended the Guild of Property Professionals’ annual conference. As ever, it was a great...
26 January 2019
From: Features

It’s been revealed that the National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team is to deliver new guidelines to agents for referral fees...
23 January 2019
From: Breaking News

The man who is leading the government’s efforts to reform the house buying process will be one of the speaker at...
08 January 2019
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman scheme has taken action against another six rogue agents in recent days, bringing the total number expelled this...
17 December 2018
From: Breaking News

Hard not to mention two major breaking news stories of recent days; one directly affecting the property market and one which...
15 December 2018
From: Features

Peter Knight, co-founder and public face of Agents Giving, is stepping down as the charity’s chairman. He is to be succeeded by...
10 December 2018
From: Breaking News

An estate agency trading under two different names has been expelled by The Property Ombudsman after refusing to refund a £2,000...
21 September 2018
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman has urged the government to bring the new homes build sector under consumer redress. New builds are not currently...
10 September 2018
From: Breaking News

As the property market gears up for a busy autumn period, agents and property firms have been equally busy bolstering their...
10 September 2018
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman scheme (TPO) has announced a series of changes to both its board and internal processes. The organisation has also...
06 September 2018
From: Breaking News

In our previous 2 blogs we have covered the definitions of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations (CPRs) and what the practical...
29 August 2018
From: Sponsored Content

In our previous blog, we looked at the definitions outlined by the CPRs. In our next blog we’ll look at the...
21 August 2018
From: Sponsored Content

The UK division of US-based estate agency Keller Williams says agents need access to internal training if service levels across the...
16 August 2018
From: Breaking News

There’s been another call for the government to reform stamp duty - and this time the request is that the duty...
15 August 2018
From: Breaking News

The Property Redress Scheme says it’s recruited another 1,750 members following the shake-out last week when one of its rival redress...
13 August 2018
From: Breaking News

The redress scheme which formally quit the housing sector admits some estate agencies may have missed its deadline - and are thus...
07 August 2018
From: Breaking News

The government has revised its guidance to agents over redress schemes - amending it to take account of the fact that...
06 August 2018
From: Breaking News

The couple at the centre of a court case about agents’ fees say the issue could have been resolved earlier had...
27 July 2018
From: Breaking News

The National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team has this morning issued a warning to agents that they must be signed up to...
19 July 2018
From: Breaking News

National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team and two of the three industry redress organisations have launched a survey to measure the...
19 June 2018
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman has issued its annual report for 2017 and there’s good news for the estate agency side of the...
17 May 2018
From: Breaking News

The battle to become the single ombudsman service after the government rationalises the redress system across housing has taken an unexpected...
24 April 2018
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman, Katrine Sporle, is to hold a briefing on the government’s redress reform on Wednesday - five days before...
09 April 2018
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman has launched an online training module which it describes as the first of its kind. The interactive module -...
29 March 2018
From: Breaking News

Have you noticed a new turf war going on on the fringes of the agency world? It’s not a high-profile battle like...
17 March 2018
From: Features

Representatives from estate and lettings agencies as well as professional organisations have formed The Home Buying And Selling Group with a...
26 February 2018
From: Breaking News

One of the three government-approved redress schemes for estate and letting agents says it’s quitting the sector this year - but...
06 February 2018
From: Breaking News

Pressure continues to mount on Purplebricks to reveal its sales data after a weekend during which claims about its effectiveness continued...
05 February 2018
From: Breaking News

The Daily Mail and other papers are reporting that a buyer is suing an estate agent who allegedly failed to tell...
28 December 2017
From: Breaking News

The government says it is going to look at “bold options” to improve consumer redress across all aspects of housing -...
30 November 2017
From: Breaking News

A large part of the DCLG’s Call for Evidence on the home buying and selling process focuses on the role of...
18 November 2017
From: Features

David Westgate, group chief executive at Andrews Property Group, has been presented with a long service award in recognition of his...
23 October 2017
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman has taken the unusual step of warning all estate and letting agents to act with caution over fraudulent...
15 September 2017
From: Breaking News

Chris Wood - the Cornish estate agent who unsuccessfully attempted to get on the ballot paper as a candidate for NAEA...
13 September 2017
From: Breaking News

easyProperty has unveiled details of its relaunch, declaring itself to be the UK’s second largest hybrid estate agency - second only...
07 September 2017
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman Scheme (TPO) has partnered with Yomdel to provide a 24/7 live chat service. Consumers can now seek 'independent dispute...
04 September 2017
From: Breaking News

When a tenant failed to pay any rent after the first month his tenancy last year, the landlord did not expect...
26 August 2017
From: Features

The Property Ombudsman has expelled a London lettings and estate agency for a year and is warning that the firm may...
23 August 2017
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman has told Estate Agent Today that it is happy with the controversial deferred payment scheme operated on behalf of...
03 August 2017
From: Breaking News

After a roller-coaster day on the Stock Exchange yesterday, Purplebricks has sought to defend itself against further possible share price losses...
03 August 2017
From: Breaking News

Three agencies have been expelled from membership of The Property Ombudsman for two or more years, after failing to pay awards...
28 July 2017
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman has issued a year-long formal warning to consumers about an estate agency which failed to provide information concerning...
24 July 2017
From: Breaking News

That the private rental sector has become the government’s whipping boy for housing problems - landlords in particular, letting agents almost...
14 July 2017
From: Features

The Property Ombudsman’s annual report reveals a significant increase in the number of formal complaints resolved by the scheme and a...
22 June 2017
From: Breaking News

The industry’s three government-approved redress schemes have this week issued an updated version of their Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The MOU is...
07 June 2017
From: Breaking News

Baroness Diana Warwick (below right) has been appointed chair of The Property Ombudsman scheme’s independent council. A life peer for the past 18...
23 May 2017
From: Breaking News

There were only 14 complaints to The Property Ombudsman about so-called 'quick sale' firms - the professional buying companies that purchase...
10 March 2017
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman has reiterated its new guidance in relation to agents accepting pre-contract deposits in certain circumstances. Estate Agent Today reported...
14 February 2017
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman’s office has defended a change to its code of practice which, according to a national newspaper, means agents...
06 February 2017
From: Breaking News

New software has been devised which can allow users to identify individual properties that have been ‘portal juggled’ - de-listed and...
19 December 2016
From: Breaking News

The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors is the latest body within the industry to warn its members against portal juggling. Following statements...
15 November 2016
From: Breaking News

When a tenant paid his initial one month’s rent in addition to a tenancy deposit in exchange for the keys to...
05 November 2016
From: Features

eMoov founder and chief executive Russell Quirk has launched another online petition, this time calling for mandatory licensing of estate agents. The...
10 October 2016
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman scheme’s annual report, just released, reveals that there has been a dramatic 32 per cent surge in the...
04 October 2016
From: Breaking News

The National Trading Standards Estate Agency Team has followed up the recent announcement by The Property Ombudsman to counteract portal juggling by...
29 September 2016
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman scheme (TPO) has announced that it will be issuing updated versions of all its Codes of Practice on...
27 September 2016
From: Breaking News

With ever increasing obligations, estate agents know that compliance matters now more than ever. However, being able to obtain access to the...
12 August 2016
From: Features

As I sit here writing this on the Glorious 12th, I realise I’m going on about my favourite grouse – agents...
12 August 2016
From: Features

The Advertising Standards Authority has stepped in to resolve a complaint about a small London estate agency’s online references to its...
03 August 2016
From: Breaking News

A disillusioned vendor has been running a campaign against standard term agency contracts for almost two years. Paul Tranter has been specifically...
03 June 2016
From: Breaking News

In a surprise move, The Property Ombudsman is to allow all 420 registered firms in the British Association of Removers to...
03 February 2016
From: Breaking News

Right, so it’s one more week till Christmas and two more weeks until we head face first into 2016. Both these...
18 December 2015
From: Features

What is the biggest change you’ve seen in the agency industry during your time at TPO? For me, the biggest change has...
18 December 2015
From: 60 Second Interview

Last week, on the latest series of The Apprentice, Lord Sugar threw his teams into the London property market. As expected, Twitter...
11 December 2015
From: Features

It was an end of an era in the property world this week. Christopher Hamer stepped down as the Property Ombudsman...
04 December 2015
From: Features

A former employee of consumer body Which? has been appointed to the council of The Property Ombudsman, one of the industry’s three...
01 December 2015
From: Breaking News

Two more agents have been expelled by TPO because they failed to pay awards when ordered to pay compensation, and because...
11 November 2015
From: Breaking News

Gerry Fitzjohn, currently vice chairman of the board of The Property Ombudsman, has been appointed as chairman. He takes over from Bill...
10 November 2015
From: Breaking News

The National Association of Estate Agents admits that “take up has been low” in its bid to persuade each member agent to...
26 October 2015
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman, the largest and longest-established of three official redress schemes for agents, has recorded a significant rise in membership...
21 October 2015
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman and the Competition and Markets Authority have prepared a supplementary guidance note to help agents ensure compliance with the Competition Act. The...
14 October 2015
From: Breaking News

The largest of the three government-approved redress schemes, The Property Ombudsman, has updated its codes of practice to include new legislation...
02 October 2015
From: Breaking News

Katrine Sporle is to be the new ombudsman at The Property Ombudsman, one of the three government-approved redress services for the...
21 September 2015
From: Breaking News

A consumer champion says a new privatised system of Alternative Dispute Resolution, being introduced in October, threatens to create ‘complaints chaos’...
10 August 2015
From: Breaking News

The internet and rapidly evolving digital landscape has revolutionised the way people buy and sell properties. With some reports suggesting 95 per...
03 July 2015
From: Features

Jonathan Hopper, the managing director of Garrington Property Finders - the search agency originally founded by Phil Spencer - has joined...
30 June 2015
From: Breaking News

Another week, another online estate agency launches - but the latest, called YOPA, claims not to charge any upfront fee to...
22 June 2015
From: Breaking News

The Property Ombudsman (TPO) scheme has announced that its first ever conference will take place in October. ‘Raise Your Standards’ is being...
05 June 2015
From: Breaking News

The managing director of Hatched online agency is accusing Purplebricks, eMoov, Tepilo and House Network of advertising their rates exclusive of...
19 May 2015
From: Breaking News

The Conservatives’ election victory came as a surprise, so much so that television pundits spent all night after the vote rubbishing...
15 May 2015
From: Features

The Brian Cox estate agency, at the centre of a weekend newspaper allegation about £2,000 deposits from buyers, has strongly defended...
12 May 2015
From: Breaking News

An estate agency says it is returning money to buyers after a newspaper revealed it was demanding would-be purchasers paid the...
11 May 2015
From: Breaking News

Two rival redress schemes applying to sales and lettings agents are claiming increased business. A press release from the Property Redress Scheme...