Last week, the property press feeds were all aflutter with news of a landmark ruling affecting how letting agents disclose their fees.
Property agent Your Move found itself falling foul of the Advertising Standards Agency for failing to disclose its fees. The ruling also echoed the findings of a recent Which? report that revealed many letting agents are neglecting to provide their fees to potential tenants upfront. Shockingly, the report also found that some agents were not providing details of their fees even when asked, or they gave incomplete information.
This behavior makes it difficult for consumers to weigh-up their options and compare overall costs across letting agents.
We at Reside have always believed in full disclosure of fees. Since our inception, we have provided complete terms & conditions at the first viewing of every property, with every potential tenant – whether this is requested or not.
For our landlords, we also provide a completely transparent service through our web-based system, Reside Remote . Reside Remote enables us to provide 24/7 access to statements, contractor invoices, maintenance logs and detailed tenancy information. There are absolutely no hidden charges. What’s more, unlike many of our competitors, we do not mark-up the fees from any of our contractors.
The complete picture from the ASA’s verdict has yet to be fully realised , particularly in terms of how online adverts will be affected. For example, the property portal Rightmove is now one of the UK’s most popular online destinations full-stop, recently reporting revenues up by 23% to £119.4m.
But rest assured, the team here at Reside will be keeping an eye on this one and will report back as things develop…
Toby Martin Toby holds a Level 3 ARLA Propertymark qualification and runs the 'engine room' at Reside, making sure that properties are perfectly-presented and that they are let quickly at a good rent. When not working, Toby is happiest when enjoying a day's cricket.
