By Steve Roulstone
In a recent release from the NFOPP in the form of an e-mail newsletter, the writer tried to infer that in this difficult market, prices will automatically come under pressure as Agents and Agencies try to compete with an ever increasing number of Letting Agents looking to take a share of what they describe as a ‘diluted market’ As usual when I read these articles (and no doubt just as people see when they read mine) several points jumped to mind, which could both explain the perceived problem and also the manner in which the writer fenced around the reasons why the matter was worthy of a newsletter from the NFOPP when in reality it was an advert for inventory services!
Industry wide representation.
The main bodies covered under the NFOPP banner are National Association of Estate Agents and the Association of Residential Letting Agents. Therefore, the NFOPP cannot be seen to post a comment which actually states that the majority of new Agents are not from the Lettings Industry, as anybody in Franchising in this market will confirm, rather Estate Agents turning to our market as a way of earning income because of the lack of sales and as I have confirmed before, because the percentage of Private rental Property in the UK is now close to 20% they can no longer ignore what so many Estate Agents have treated as its poorer relation for so many years.
More should not equal less.
But no matter who the competition is, the very fact that we are seeing close to three times the normal increase in property coming to the rental market, would not in my book be described as a diluted market! It is my belief and the evidence I see from our National organisation, is that those offices that have a good profile and are readily visible on the High Street, are receiving good prospects and growing business because of this increase in available property. The problems occur because so many new Landlords are a captive audience with the Agent who has failed to secure a sale and stay with the same organisation, or because the Agency who is struggling to compete does not have high street presence.
Smaller can still be good.
That does not mean that smaller Agents are poorer Agents, far from it, but I do and would have reason to question any such agent who also pays for services that as a Professional Agent they should be able to undertake themselves, because as the evidence confirms, our potential customers are being very discerning about where they spend their hard earned money! This is why I believe, it is important to have as big a profile as possible and I would suggest that carrying out every aspect of Managing a property through the staff employed by the Agency itself, is important not only to the Agent, but more importantly, to the potential Landlord and cutting prices is not the way to deal with the needs of your Customer.
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