Agency Regulation and the Jones Report
Regulation of residential estate agency and residential lettings and management has been a topic of discussion for many years, with professional bodies and some consumer associations asking for formal regulation of the market. To date this has not happened, although various pieces of consumer legislation have required estate agents to belong to a redress scheme (CEAR Act 2007), and some professional bodies such as NAEA and ARLA require their members, including those in residential letting and management, to belong to a redress scheme.
NAEA and ARLA have welcomed the recent Jones report. This is one of many recent reports on the residential housing market in general. It follows the other reports in suggesting that there should be greater regulation of residential estate agents and residential letting and management agents. However, it goes further and suggests that landlords, property search companies, caravan and trailer park oweners and leasehold retirement home owners should also be regulated.
Although it does not call for licensing of agents, it does suggest that there should be some barrier to entry into the agency market, so that it will not be possible for anyone to simply decide they will be an estate agent or letting and management agent and then set up shop without any qualifications or experience. The ability to set up very cheaply has been helped by the growth of the internet and the growth of ‘virtual’ agencies
The Jones report suggests that at least the principle professional in an estate agency or residential letting and management agency branch must have an accredited, advanced qualification. This call corresponds to the calls of all professional bodies that workers within agency should be better qualified. The NAEA and ARLA have their technical awards which act as an entry qualification, but also have their diploma qualifications which are at an advanced level. All these qualifications are accredited by the government Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA - now Ofquals)
NAEA and ARLA are themselves bringing in a form of licensing for their members based on qualifications and in the future it seems likely that there may well be some statutory requirement to have qualified people working in agencies. MOL, as the NAEA’s and ARLA’s preferred supplier of technical awards and only supplier of diploma qualifications by supported distance learning, can help with your training needs.
Please call us on 0161 203 2103 to discuss how we can help