Renting Terms are Legal, Landlords and Tenants remain Unprotected

Severn Bore by Jim Nicholls

It’s truly incredible to observe a wave of stupidity sweep by like the Severn Bore. It’s even more incredible when that wave bounces back and forth from bank to bank, and you see the same story, again and again. The simple fact of life is that Foxtons operate at the rough raw edge of renting legality. If you click on the blog’s “Scam” tag you will find their M.O. described in one of our series of articles on rental scams – but they are not operating illegally. I was originally warned about Foxtons by my solicitor some 10 years ago, and since then I have seen enough of their trading methods to know to avoid them, and the other companies employing similar techniques (most of the large letting agents in London use similar techniques). Over the years there have been so many reports, the most famous of which was probably the BBC Whistleblower exposé, and a summary might be the eloquent summary

They are the anti-Christ, and probably the most unscrupulous estate agent in London

Now that statement might be a trifle exclusive – I could name another Letting Agent using an identical business model, but for Landlords and Tenants alike it’s simply a matter of Caveat Emptor (buyer beware) when dealing with a negotiator who simply isn’t going to be able to pay their own rent this month if they can’t persuade the tenant/landlord to use their firm. Appalling as the business practices are, the reports now circulating in the press are simply untrue – even the respectable broadsheets are now publishing misinformation

Thousands of buy-to-let landlords could be in line to claim millions back from estate agents as a result of a landmark High Court ruling yesterday against Foxtons.

The ruling was not against Foxtons’ Terms and Conditions. The Judge’s ruling that the contract was unfair was based upon the fact that the T&C were hidden and contrary to the general literature. In other words they were the equivalent of invisible small print, or white text against a white background. That does mean that Landlords who are in a contract with a Letting Agent who have operated in a similar manner to Foxtons stand a very good chance of being able to ignore those terms, but they too will have to take their agent to court if the agent doesn’t voluntarily wave the charges. Agents can continue to make the charges, providing their literature is consistent and clear.

In fact the recent court case only addressed a single one of many unsavoury practices rife in the property business. It does nothing to protect tenants who are renting through a Letting Agent, and 3 years on from the Whilstleblower program the calls for letting agents to be regulated remain unanswered.