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Angus Shield
Angus Shield
Proprietor of both
4741  Profile Views

About Me

24 years in industry as Partner in former large independent multi-office firm (14 years) and 9 years with own businesses.

my expertise in the industry

As a Managing Agent not limited to Lessees, Landlords & Tenants deaths, divorces, redundancies, relationship counceling, debt management, bloody-mindedness, unreasonableness, rent chasing, repair chasing, ; need I say more?

Angus's Recent Activity

Angus Shield

From: Angus Shield 09 July 2020 08:00 AM

Angus Shield

From: Angus Shield 03 July 2020 09:11 AM

Angus Shield

From: Angus Shield 02 January 2020 09:09 AM

Angus Shield

From: Angus Shield 30 December 2019 09:23 AM

Angus Shield
I own both a Letting Agent and separately a Block Management business and within the latter we are always pushing-back against Lessees who feel it’s their right to offer their property to Airbnb and simply wait for the Management Company to eventually curtail their activity. Obviously the terms of the lease and insurance jeopardy are argued whilst other residents express their concerns about security codes/remotes being freely available however this all pales into insignificance when an angry cleaner is constantly inconvenienced with extra hallway cleaning and sorting badly disposed of recycling so the bins will be collected. I also question the lawful compliance, such as Gas Safety, CO detectors, etc, before we start with the referencing & selection of the ‘guests’. Whilst we know they will likely be tourists or businessmen, there are still the fellow residents/lessees concerns to address. With my Letting Agent hat on it peeves me that all our costly regular tenancy management compliance and routines are cheapened by the Airbnb process for a greater yield to the landlord, and with my Block hat on I am simply frustrated by the cheek of it! The talk over licencing Letting/Managing agents is of concern but I think Airbnb venues should hold a Local Authority permit to be offered on Airbnb to demonstrate that all the necessary permissions and H&S obligations have been met; who else apart from Trading Standards/Planning could police this and maybe even that greater landlords have to give actual consent and not depend upon vague ambiguous lease clauses.

From: Angus Shield 07 November 2019 08:25 AM

Angus Shield

From: Angus Shield 11 July 2019 08:13 AM

Angus Shield
Paul, your remark "I strongly suspect that a majority of LA use deposits and rents as part of their free operating capital" should strike great fear/anger in all of the responsible agents; client money is client money! We are fastidious in placing Deposits into DPS, rents due into LL bank accounts, fees into business and VAT in VAT. There are occasions we do not draw our fees to enable a large LL expenditure to be settled in full and protect the relationship with the supplier for other clients' benefit. We are no longer hold let-only deposits obo LL's as we do not wish to be involved in poor management throughout the tenancy and the inevitable deposit argument. I worry that there is also the 'reverse' potential that a few LL's might not pay Agents monthly fee invoices also; it is a two way street of trust/business relationship and small claims can be as lengthy as Deposit resolution. Remember if the Agent sets up the tenancy, they are liable for all the surrounding compliance at hand-over (and now soon for little or no fee), so I fee the Agent should be collecting the rent, after all they are the tenants point of contact (fully managed), and as such should have the resources to arrange any expenditure including their own charge. If they had to constantly defer to the LL then the LL might as well manage the tenancy and remain compliant. I am also surprised how many self-managing landlords are not registered with the ICO when GDPR effects them equally. For the honest agent the PRS is becoming a financially challenging environment to even unlock the door and turn the office lights on within. We independents do not make vast profits due to the cost of compliance, etc. Your view is interesting and a fair balance of opinion.

From: Angus Shield 28 March 2019 08:52 AM

Angus Shield
The email link just rejected my written view with: : host mxb.speednames.com[185.26.230.90] said: 550 We don't handle mail for parliament.co.uk (in reply to RCPT TO command). This was my Written view: Dear Sir My credential is that I again own an independent Letting Agent (in its 5th year) and previously an Equity Partner in a multi-office independent Letting Agent; a total of nearly 20 years now. Our area of trading is the SP1 -5 (Salisbury & South Wiltshire which is very ‘MOD’) and SE London. Many of our Landlords are ex-services, diplomatic and Civil Service with many independent traders also. Our Tenant base is largely scientific (Porton Down), medical and educational. 1. To remove the ability for Letting Agents to receive a reasonable fee for the services they provide would be foolish. • As Agents we perform a semi para-legal service in creating a legally binding contract under the Housing Act; it is a conveyance. Nobody would expect an estate agent or solicitor to undertake the same for no charge. • We ensure that the accommodation complies with Prevailing Regulations (gas, electricity, EPC, minimum standard, HMO, etc). Nobody would expect a surveyor to undertake the same for no charge. • We also undertake VAT returns, Overseas Landlords tax administration and now swamped with GDPR. Nobody would expect a book-keeper or auditing accountant to undertake this for no charge. • This takes considerable resources and requires funding from our own rewards for effort. With staff, rents & insurances already consuming much of the Landlords fees received. 2. To apply a moderating, prescriptive legislation would be wise. • I am personally aggrieved that some agents do profit unreasonably from Tenant Fees and that some larger agents are so reliant on Tenant Fees that is would strategically effect their business operational/model. I am also aggrieved that some Franchisees/Principles/Proprietors can also ‘disappear’ with client funds. Many who have commented within the forums (such as Estate Agent Today), call for compulsory licencing or levels of acceptable and appropriate fees (such as a maximum percentage of turnover?). Licencing should be linked to Client Money Protection (similar to car MOT = Motor Insurance). 3. In conversations with both Landlords and Tenants our parochial view is: • Tenants expect to pay reasonable fees for the service they receive – its business. They do not expect to compromise their own paid time/holiday to sort out their move beyond the physical event. They expect correct and accurate documents to represent and protect their contractual position and offer recourse. • We are increasingly being asked, by applicants, ‘will our rent go up or can we still pay a fee’? • Our average tenant fee is £500 incl VAT (per tenancy and not per person) and a once only, up front charge; nothing to renew or end their contract. • Our Landlords are concerned about the shift in ‘lost’ fee income onto them; it would be directly proportion to tenancy creations. • I would expect a rent increase of between 12-15% for local agents to recover their fees through landlords commission payments received from rents. • If the Deposit Schemes were to be consulted; assess what are the ‘usual’ deposit deductions they allow to claimed by agents/landlords. Consider these within permissible fees as any tenant would have the right to challenge these through the arbitration process. This would be the actual evidence of what agents/landlords often have to charge a tenant at the end of a tenancy such as cleaning, small dilapidations, rent short-fall, etc. This is self-evidential and available from a previously enforced scheme. As a small business we DO NOT budget on Tenant Fee income as it can only be an approximation of future tenant activity; however we use these funds to develop the business through training & subscriptions and updating technology, working environment, etc. We hold Pi & PL Liability insurances, Property Ombudsman membership, Client Money Protection and Custodial Deposit Protection (The DPS). As agents we are no different to any other business receiving an income for their services offered. Please do not take this away from us as we are not centrally funded (from our tax money generated through our business/employment activities), whereas many of the ‘objectors’ are.

From: Angus Shield 24 May 2018 11:24 AM

Angus Shield

From: Angus Shield 02 November 2017 08:43 AM

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