easyProperty says it’s backing a Labour MP’s bid to cap letting agents‘ fees on tenants “in order to provide a more transparent and fair service to tenants throughout the UK.”
On Wednesday Labour MP Helen Hayes presented a petition to the House of Commons calling for the ban; it had a rather modest 1,480 signatures.
Now easyProperty chief executive Rob Ellice says his agency has conducted a survey of 1,000 tenants revealing that 51.4 believed letting fees were extortionate and a further 39 per cent believed they were merely ‘expensive’.
“So with 90 per cent of private renters unhappy with the fees they are charged it’s time we introduced measures to cap letting agents’ fees to either £100 for administration or 0.1 per cent of the deposit required. Some agents charge up to £420 in administration fees in addition to referencing and check-out charges. If there is a change of tenant, some agents will charge £300 to modify an AST contract, which is hugely disproportionate to the administrative burdened required” claims Ellice.
“For this reason, the only fees our tenants will pay are £49.99 for referencing, if the landlord chooses to do this through us, or £24.99 for a new AST agreement if there is a change of tenant. We believe this pricing is much more reasonable.”
easyProperty charges a £49.99 referencing fee - it uses an external agent to do the work.
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If easy.property chose to run their business underfunded, as they did their car hire, it will no doubt suffer the same fate!
Perhaps easyProperty should focus a little more on their own operations then attacking others. Latest filed accounts recorded income of just £144k on operating costs of £5.735m (sorry what now?). Why aren't any media outlets reporting/discussing this? Are the investors (especially those duped in to the crowd funding round offering tny equity at exobitant rates) aware of the appalling performance to date?
It is all well and good to 'disrupt' an industry but there are few who have proven the financial viability of the online model yet- especially when it comes to Lettings where fees are so much smaller yet so much more legislation and regulation falls upon the agent.
I see nothing on their site about Tenant fees (maybe they dont charge any- but surely they would shout this from the roof tops). What is more I see no Redress Scheme on their site- a legal requirement for all!
Also, no affiliations with the likes of NALS, ARLA, RICS etc, no sign of SAFEAgent, no mention if CMP nothing. Is this really the way we want our industry going- effectively championing cheap offerings with cheap service leaving Tenants at risk and Landlords accountable?
These are the points that need to be discussed and highlighted. I fully support the role of online agents wthin the market place, however, tearing each other down is nonsense. What is essential however is professionalism and regulatory compliance across all sectors. How many Tenants and Landlords are at risk using low cost options that are seemingly in breach of multiple regulations currently in place?
Absolutely shocking!
For the legitimate online offerings out there, companies like this should be of huge concern as they could cause irreparable damage to the perception and viability of the sector. The more research undertaken (and easy research done in minutes) raises even more questions abut the viable leadership of this enterprise.
Great response Kristjan
At the end of the day of your company is fair the tenants will keep cumming and you can fill your managed homes with good people. If you rip them off your days will be numbered. We manage hundreds of homes in the UK and nobody ever complained about our fees, not landlords or tenants. Just be fair and you will still have a great property business. Only the greedy need to worry.
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