Second City AM journalist joins furore over letting agents

A second journalist at the London-based financial newspaper City AM has launched an attack on letting agencies - while the furore over an article in the paper last week continues to provoke a backlash from outraged agents.

The spat began with an article from one of the paper’s features writers, Katherine Denham, which set out its stall from its introductory two sentences:

“If you've ever had to deal with a letting agent, you may be so traumatised from the experience that you’ve resolved never to move house ever again. You tiptoe around the property, praying that the ceiling doesn’t cave in – just so you won’t have to dial that dreaded number.”

That provoked a backlash from many agents, including Kristjan Byfield, the popular and high-profile co-founder of base property specialists in east London, who penned an open letter via Letting Agent Today, hitting back on behalf of the industry. You can see that here.

However, other letting agents obviously got in touch with City AM to complain about the original article by Denham - and this let to a tweet sent by City AM Comment and Features Editor Rachel Cunliffe who wrote:

“Maybe if all the outraged letting agents calling CityAM to complain about my colleague Katherine Denham’s article could put that energy into actually doing their jobs, there wouldn’t be a problem? (Yes, it’s a Friday and I’m stirring.)”

However, there may be something of a reconciliation on the cards because over the weekend Byfield tweeted that he had been given an opportunity to respond once again, this time on the pages of City AM itself.

He told his followers: 

“In an update to my open letter in Letting Agent Today to Katherine Denham I have been generously offered a 200 word response by City AM - it would be really nice if I could have a few more words to work with but I’ll see what I can do. #ChallengeAccepted”

Watch this space - this story may run and run...