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Fake Agent

Senior Negotiator

11957 Profile Views

About Me

That would be telling.

my expertise in the industry

16 years as an estate agent in Bristol, working in both sales and lettings. Took a sabbatical a few years back when I fell out of love with property, but now back with a vengeance and a renewed vigour.

Certainly don't think the industry is perfect, but the perception of estate agents in the media is unfair. Which is probably why so many agents are so defensive, insular and averse to any criticism whatsoever. One of my main gripes with my fellow colleagues.

I'm quite the expert on most property-related matters. That's what I tell myself, at least!

Fake's Recent Activity

The note was a joke. In poor taste, perhaps, but a tradition by all departing chancellors dating back for yonks. The way it's been used by the Tories ever since as a stick with which to beat Labour is ridiculous. It's easy to forget that the economy was actually back on something of an even footing when Labour left power, and some would argue it was entirely a choice for austerity and tightening of the belts to be implemented. That's not to say that Labour are perfect or economically competent, but this idea of Tories = fiscally responsible and Labour = reckless and likely to bankrupt the country is one of the bigger myths to have abounded in recent years. A bit like £350m a year more for the NHS or Brexit being a piece of cake. Anyway, where was I? Great letter, by the way, but I agree that it will probably make no difference given the government's reluctance to listen to experts in recent years.

From: Fake Agent 06 December 2018 16:52 PM

I see this has gone down well!

From: Fake Agent 04 December 2018 16:04 PM

Well volunteered, Mr Sinclair. When will we be seeing your video and your fine vocal talents on display? Bah humbug indeed. For what it's worth, I thought the video was pretty good and very well put together. Certainly an improvement on some of the naff TV adverts we see on the box.

From: Fake Agent 04 December 2018 15:13 PM

Interesting idea and another potential way of tackling rogue landlords. Good on Northampton Council for an innovative and socially cohesive measure.

From: Fake Agent 15 October 2015 16:17 PM

More self-interested people moaning about licensing. It's lucky I don't work in lettings, I don't think I could hold my tongue. Licensing, when carried out correctly, is proven to work. Why such opposition to it? If we want to flush out as many rogue landlords possible, it's a necessary measure. Anyone care to say why it isn't, without bleating on about "good" landlords being punished for the actions of a criminal minority?

From: Fake Agent 20 August 2015 11:55 AM

Shouldn't you be asking yourself why landlords/letting agents are an easy target, Ray? Most of the time, those of us in the property industry are scapegoated unfairly, but I frequently get annoyed by this defensive attitude that we can do no wrong and MPs are only railing against us to make a name for themselves. I think Karen Buck has genuinely good intentions, but as you say much of the legislation is already in place and just isn't being enacted for one reason or another.

From: Fake Agent 25 June 2015 11:59 AM

*omission even.

From: Fake Agent 24 June 2015 14:16 PM

Indeed, Ray. Very strange admission. As you say, it's arguably the most important part of a tenancy, for both landlords and tenants alike.

From: Fake Agent 24 June 2015 14:12 PM

"£2,467,876" - The world has gone officially mad! "We want to know how they are effected by sharply rising rents and how they judge the standard of their accommodation” I think, if they live in Kensington and Chelsea, they won't be too concerned about sharply rising rents and sub-standard accommodation.

From: Fake Agent 24 June 2015 11:08 AM

Private landlords have had it too easy for too long, including those that sit in the House of Commons. Ever wonder why so many benefits, sweeteners and tax breaks are given to private landlords? Well, there's your answer. The PRS is becoming overcrowded and toxic. It's all about the money, money, money for too many. Many landlords offer a very good service, but many don't. Private landlords can't seem to recognise this, always taking any criticism to heart and seeing it as a personal affront. While this attitude persists, it will be very difficult to flush out rogue landlords completely.

From: Fake Agent 24 June 2015 11:00 AM

"66% of students surveyed said they have experienced problems with the way their property is managed" Surely this is the more pertinent point? Seems like students are demanding more than squalid little hovels to live in these days, prioritising study over socialising. Bit different from my (very distant now) student days. I suppose they're paying so much to be there, they feel obliged to get as good a degree mark as possible.

From: Fake Agent 28 May 2015 10:37 AM

Agreed, this is quite astonishing. I too have reservations about crowdfunding, but it does appear to have a purpose - it's like the online version of an auction and seemingly much better at generating interest.

From: Fake Agent 26 May 2015 15:18 PM

@Richard White - all very true, as depressing as that is. It's impossible to eradicate rogue landlords completely, but measures can certainly be taken to restrict the amount that are operating. Tougher sentences, for one. Relieving rogue landlords of their properties depending on the severity of the offence (not sure about the legality of this). And educating tenants on how to spot and report rogue landlords. Fully agree that there are as many troublesome tenants as there are dodgy landlords. Tenants get a bit of an easy ride when it comes to the press. In many cases, of course, they are treated badly, but there are also cases where the tenant is very much the guilty party. Form filling and extra red tape almost certainly won't work, but I can't see what the alternative is. I guess increasing the housing supply would bring prices down, get more buyers on the market, relieve the pressure on the PRS and reduce the number of desperate, vulnerable tenants who are easy prey for unscrupulous landlords. I don't have much faith in the government sticking to their housebuilding pledge, though. No easy answers, sadly.

From: Fake Agent 14 May 2015 15:48 PM

So how do you propose clamping down on the rogue landlords, if not via extra regulation? I don't know if you saw the Panorama programme the other day. Isolated incidents and edited in a certain way to blow the issue out of proportion, yes, but still shocking. If you're saying more regulation will still mean good agents doing their jobs well and the sharks still sharking, how can we go about changing this?

From: Fake Agent 14 May 2015 12:00 PM

Yeah, I'm sure they'll be thrilled at the prospect of more rent rises on properties they can already ill-afford. And the proliferation of BTL landlords, as everyone tries to get a piece of the pie. I predict carnage for the PRS - it's already under intense pressure, it's only going to get worse. Because we're certainly not going to build the amount of houses we need to satisfy demand.

From: Fake Agent 08 May 2015 14:23 PM

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