40 Not Out! Valerie celebrates four decades in lettings

Letting industry doyen Valerie Bannister has celebrated 40 years in the industry with a party thrown by her employer, Your Move. 

Valerie started out in the industry at the Fareham branch of Maurice Beale & Partners in July 1984 and from there embarked on a long and impressive career in lettings.

Valerie’s experience carried her through the 1988 Housing Act, which saw the UK emerge from an era of strict rent control that had suppressed the sector for decades, as well as the 1996 Housing Act, and the subsequent growth of the private rental sector.

Reflecting on her early years in the sector, Valerie says: “Those years were as thrilling as they were intellectually challenging and exciting, because there was so much change and so much to be done.”

This experience fuelled Valerie’s interest in lettings compliance and when asked what the biggest change has been in the 40 years she answers: “It has to be the introduction of technology. There are platforms that have revolutionised the speed and ease of so many tasks; from managing repossessions, and Block management to advertising properties - I remember glueing photos onto window cards to show off a property!

“In saying that, I always advise that over-reliance on too much technology risks suppressing human judgement, which is so critical in assessing and mitigating risk.”

Of Valerie’s many achievements, some of the most prominent include being awarded a Sunday Times Award for her contribution to the industry, a Women in Industry award, being President elect 2013 and then President of ARLA (now Propertymark) 2014. She’s also served two four-year terms on the board of Propertymark.

Paul Hardy, managing director of LSL estate agency franchising says: “Valerie’s passion, energy and warmth is abundant. You don’t come across people with Valerie’s level of expertise too often, a hands-on practitioner, with an endless supply of experiential evidence to bring cases to life. We’re honoured to have had one of the most hard-working and experienced letting agents in the country in our business for 40 years – congratulations Valerie!”