Agents are being urged to take advantage of a Propertymark audit service. 

The trade body says that for all property agents, dealing with HMRC and Trading Standards can be incredibly stressful, and compliance requirements in general can feel like a headache. 

Propertymark says its compliance team is visiting members every day, identifying areas that are vulnerable to enforcement action and helping members to make the changes they need before they get fined or prosecuted.   

A statement says “friendly and knowledgeable Compliance Support experts are available to visit your branch in person or set up an online audit on an agreed date to work with your team for around three hours, focusing on areas including (but not limited to) anti money laundering, client money protection, data and consumer protection.  

“Propertymark’s compliance support services are available to members and deliver a confidential report of easy-to-follow actions assisting agents with areas such as office, website, sales, lettings, anti-money laundering and Client Money Protection compliance.”

This service will also be available as part of Propertymark’s upcoming Company Advantage packages which will be exclusively available to members. The body says the for the first time it is deploying its collective buying power to negotiate high-quality, commonly used services at a better rate than those that are commercially available.

David Oliver, Head of Compliance at Propertymark, says: “The prospect of a visit in any capacity from a compliance team can sound daunting; however, we’re here to break the mould and provide agents with the reassurance and security or a non-judgemental service. With ongoing regulatory changes, and consistent hurdles to tackle as an agent, the team are here to help take some of the pressure away.”