Archive

Consumer organisation Which? claims there are some 1,000 reports of rental fraud scams a month at this time of year. It says...

The Property Ombudsman received a record number of enquiries with 57,635 people seeking support with their property and housing related issues...

A new guide from Propertymark explains the rights which private rental tenants have - and sets out how they can challenge...

The government’s failure to act on the Regulation of Property Agents (RoPA) working party - chaired by Lord Richard Best and...

A lettings agency has been expelled from The Property Ombudsman scheme following itsfailure to pay £1,100 out of an adjudicated award...

The all-party House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee has urged the government to get on with establishing a regulator of...

The long-awaited Third Reading of the controversial Renters Reform Bill will not happen this week according to the Leader of the...

Propertymark's latest research report suggests some letting agents want radical changes to the Renters Reform Bill now going through Parliament.  The aim...

A London lettings agency has been expelled from The Property Ombudsman for not paying compensation to a landlord following a failure...

Propertymark has set out its pro-agency position on a range of issues contained in the Renters Reform Bill, currently trundling through...

The Head of the National Trading Standards Scams Team is one of two new non-executive directors at The Property Ombudsman. Louise Baxter...

A rogue lettings agency in London has been expelled from The Property Ombudsman scheme but is still thought to be trading. Hawks...

PropTech platform Goodlord has launched a one hour online course explaining the controversial Renters Reform Bill. The aim is to equip letting...

New figures released this morning from The Property Ombudsman show that the overwhelming number of disputes in the past year involved...

The Property Redress Scheme has released its latest list of expelled agents - mostly for rental misdemeanours and/or failure to pay...

Thousands of listing for rental properties on two popular websites explicitly say children or pets are not welcome. A BBC analysis of...

The Property Redress Scheme, one of two government-approved redress services, has produced a list of recently-expelled agencies. All agencies must be a...

Several lettings agents have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman scheme; they are amongst eight named as having been kicked out...

The Property Ombudsman has ruled that a letting agency’s ban on renting to a family with children was discriminatory against women...

It’s been revealed that agents have been kicked out of The Property Ombudsman in recent months for failing to pay compensatory...

UK banks are closing client accounts held by established letting agents and refusing to open accounts for new businesses. The Problem A growing...

The Observer newspaper has investigated the way letting agents apply so-called zero deposit schemes - and claims that in some cases...

The Property Ombudsman has reported a big rise in enquiries over last year and a huge rise since the pre-Covid year,...

Officials from the Welsh Government and the head of the National Trading Standards Estate and Letting Agent team are to address...

Five agencies have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman scheme - all for compliance failures. The first is Home Trader Properties, in...

The two main reasons that an agency decides to outsource are to reduce costs and to have the ability to focus...

Six agencies have been excluded from The Property Ombudsman for failing to pay compensation to wronged complainants. One was the Belvoir...

Senior figures in the agency industry have backed new guidance from the National Trading Standards Estate and Lettings Agent Team regarding...

A Parliamentary group currently investigating the possible implementation of rent controls is to be joined by a senior figure from Propertymark. The...

The two main reasons that an agency decides to outsource are: 1.) To reduce costs 2.) To have the ability to focus on...

An hour-long webinar this week aims to inform agents how to deter property fraud by greater emphasis on compliance, due diligence...

Two agencies have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman scheme for failing to pay compensation awards. Thamlet Estates, based in east London,...

A member of staff at a Connells-owned branch has been quoted as saying the agency had “no lawful basis” for passing...

A London-focussed lettings agency group has paid £2,000 as a result of breaching the Tenant Fees Act. The issue relates to the...

A checklist for agents to help ensure they steer clear of unwanted fines or claims has been provided by the Guild...

Six agencies have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman for failing to pay compensatory awards - five of them for offences...

A lettings agent has been jailed for three years for defrauding tenants and landlords out of more than £182,000.  Lee Clarke, 42,...

Lettings once again dominated the complaints received by The Property Ombudsman according to its latest annual report - out today but...

The Property Ombudsman and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors are seeking views of agents, landlords and tenants on a new...

The Association of Residential Letting Agents' wing of Propertymark says the recent expulsion of three agents from The Property Ombudsman demonstrates the...

Another lettings agency has been expelled from The Property Ombudsman scheme for failing to pay an outstanding compensation award - but...

A lettings agency that failed to pay a compensation award ordered by The Property Ombudsman has been expelled from the scheme...

A lettings agent in Slough, called Saville Park Ltd, has been excluded from The Property Ombudsman for failing to pay an outstanding award of £300.  TPO received a complaint from tenants...

The latest shock resignation from Propertymark leaves the lettings agency sector rudderless - although enthusiasm for the organisation has arguably never...

A new property identification system which has won the backing of ARLA Propertymark and substantial parts of the industry has said...

An overwhelming 98 per cent of agents who are members of The Property Ombudsman scheme pay compensation when an investigation is...

A newspaper claims a lettings agency is battling allegations of overcharging customers and using fake companies to carry out maintenance work. The Daily Record...

Agents have another 12 months to make referral fees more transparent according to an update from the National Trading Standards Estate and Letting...

North of England lettings agency Matthew & Evans Rentals has been kicked out of the Property Redress Scheme, one of the two...

Three agents have been expelled by The Property Ombudsman for failing to pay compensation awards.  In the case of Foremost Lettings Ltd...

Registration is open for The Property Ombudsman’s annual conference, being held as a webinar later this month. The event can be watched...

There’s been a substantial 20 per cent rise in formal complaints about agents taken up by The Property Ombudsman.  The figures refer...

The Property Ombudsman has announced the expulsion of eight agencies, all for contravening TPO codes of practice. Most of the expulsions were...

There is no doubt that the BBC News article in early February caused something of a stir within the Deposit Free...

The Property Ombudsman is warning agents not to discriminate against tenants through a No DSS or any similar policy. Following the legal...

The clampdown on referral fees, until now concentrated on the sales sector, will extend to letting agents too. James Munro, head of...

The Property Ombudsman has expelled five agencies, mostly for failures to honour awards: four of them are lettings operations and one...

Confusion among renters over the complex Tenant Fees Act could trigger a surge in complaints about agents to redress schemes -...

A BBC investigation suggests some agents may be mis-selling deposit alternative schemes. Tenants are then hit by what the probe says are...

A prominent member of the House of Lords has given a surprising insight into how the fiscal and regulatory clampdown on...

The Times claims there have been well over 200 complaints lodged with redress schemes, alleging that lettings agents tried to charge...

A Southampton lettings agency owner has been jailed after defrauding landlords and tenants out of £230,000. Andrew Whitehead has been jailed for...

Three lettings agencies have been expelled from TPO - in each case the agency failed to honour a payment as instructed...

Just over a fifth of lettings agents questioned in a major industry survey are concerned that may not be complying with...

The Property Ombudsman has expelled three lettings agencies from its scheme because of unpaid awards to landlord clients. The first is Kingsman...

Two London agencies have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman scheme for failing to honour two compensation awards. The first is Chase...

The Property Ombudsman has announced a slew of expulsions after six agents failed to comply with redress rules. They failed to abide...

The chairman of Hunters estate agency, who is also a Conservative MP, has hit out at the government over its handling...

Letting agencies can reduce the number of complaints about the industry and improve their own customer service and relationships by improving...

Seven agencies have been expelled from membership of The Property Ombudsman after failing to pay compensation awards made by TPO. All are...

The Property Redress Scheme, one of the two government-backed redress operators for the lettings and sales service, has outlined its work...

The Property Ombudsman has issued a reminder to all agents to ensure they have the correct redress membership to cover the...

The Property Ombudsman (TPO) has released its annual report for 2018, showing that for the first time the value of awards...

Independent inventory reporting is the perfect complement to the government’s proposed housing reforms. That’s the view of the UK’s largest provider of...

One of the existing two government-authorised redress schemes governing estate and letting agents has called on landlords to voluntarily join, ahead...

The Property Ombudsman says agents can display weekly rents for homes they market - but they should be displayed alongside monthly...

Mystery surrounds the whereabouts of a letting agent who appears not to be in any redress scheme, is being investigated by...

Two lettings agencies have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman scheme for failing to pay awards. One is OJ Residentials Limited trading...

Two more lettings agencies have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman as a result of unpaid awards following disputes involving landlords...

An agency has been expelled from The Property Ombudsman after receiving over 100 separate complaints, and failing to pay over £419,000...

In our previous 2 blogs we have covered the definitions of the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations (CPRs) and what...

In our previous blog, we looked at the definitions outlined by the CPRs. In our next blog we’ll look at the...

Propertymark has launched a new Client Money Protection system, Money Shield, with a support statement from much of the lettings sector...

Two lettings agencies have been expelled from The Property Ombudsman scheme. The first is Bower & Bower (B&B), a sales and lettings...

It’s been revealed that a church is amongst those owed thousands of pounds by a letting agent who has gone to...

A regional newspaper claims that a lettings agency has collapsed, its boss has gone to ground, and thousands of pounds are...

A leading PropTech entrepreneur has renewed his call for letting agents to use more technology to clean up their act when...

The Property Ombudsman has issued its annual report for 2017 and it makes grim reading for the rental sector - there’s...

The government has confirmed that all property agents in England will need to be part of an approved Client Money Protection...

The scramble for members amongst rival redress systems continues apace. Earlier this week The Property Ombudsman announced it was to waive joining...

The Property Ombudsman is the latest property industry player to throw its support behind the introduction of mandatory qualifications and a...

The Property Ombudsman has released details of two letting agencies expelled over financial issues, and the extension of an expulsion period...

The veteran estate agent Michael Stoop has become a non-executive director of Sorbet, a PropTech company which has created a software...

The Property Ombudsman scheme has today announced three expulsions of agencies as a result of non-payment of rent or awards. Firstly, a...

The Property Ombudsman scheme has launched the third and latest phase of its national campaign with the Chartered Trading Standards Institute...

A London letting agency with connections to Westminster council is now being investigated by the same council’s trading standards department. CityWest Homes...

The Property Ombudsman scheme (TPO) has extended its expulsion of a letting agency by an additional four years. Premier Property Management, based...

The Property Ombudsman has expelled a London lettings and estate agency after it failed to honour a compensation payment to a...

A PropTech firm claims more effective use of technology and automation by letting agents could reduce the number of complaints made...

The software company behind a new product claim it helps agents comply with The Property Ombudsman’s code of practice on referencing...