A former president of ARLA Propertymark says the Renters Rights Bill is an opportunity for letting agents, not a threat.
Sally Lawson says it’s time for agents to flip the popular perception of the Bill as a problem, and instead see it as a platform to win business from landlords who will be unable to keep up with the scale of change.
“We know that an astounding 82% of landlords aren’t using letting agencies for fully managed services. In other words, there are 19,000 letting agents in the UK battling to win over just 18% of landlords who are using fully managed services. And when we consider there being 4.4 million properties available, 1.1 million landlords, and 19,000 agents in the UK, that’s a crying shame” she says.
“The services that are being offered to landlords – particularly those in the 82% group – are simply irrelevant. They don’t consider all of the areas they might need support with, which is why we need to embrace change. We need to carefully think about all of the different types of landlords there are and what stage in the journey they’re in – and we need to have solutions – or services – for them at every stage.
“I personally believe that agencies should be offering at least 16 different services ranging from tenant referencing and rent collection, to property maintenance and compliance support, and everything in-between.
Lawson, who is also managing director of Agent Rainmaker, adds:
“We all thought everything was over when the Tenant Fee Ban came in over a decade ago. That we’d lose 20 to 30% of our profit margins. That it was the end of the industry as we knew it. That it was going to cripple our businesses. It was all doom and gloom, just as it sometimes feels now, but we survived it. And many agents emerged even stronger.
“We need to think of legislation as our friend – something I’ve been banging the drum about for over 10 years. Because increased legislation means landlords will need letting agents more now than ever.”
“Just like the Tenant Fee Ban, we need to see the Renters’ Rights Bill as an opportunity, not an obstacle. And we need to embrace change to navigate the challenges, in order to come out stronger” she concludes.
