How to handle this estate agent situation?

[BearTricks]

Quick update.

The current tenant moved out a few days ago, the estate agent went round on the day to check everything out and let slip that they'd had someone lined up all along. Apparently it sounded as if they were 'doing someone a favour', so maybe a friend or relative.

Whoever called it, well done. I'm still not sure why they couldn't just say that there was already someone lined up though.

 

[AJB Temple]

They did say: from your first post: "eventually they just said that there's a list of 11 people waiting to see it". Since you had no connection with the property whatsoever, from the agent's perspective it was not your business.

Surely it would be normal for an agent to "have someone lined up". Tenant gives notice as per contract. Agent tells people on his waiting list and / or advertises. landlord wants no gap between tenants. Agent wants to earn fees and achieves no gap - as is his job. Entire chain is happy. You are just not part of that chain.

 

[woodpig]

Landlord direct - and don't hang about I bet the Estate Agent has a friend looking for a house.
If need be, but only if absolutely necessary, increase your offer a little direct to the landlord if the Estate Agent does have a friend in need

HTH

Brian

Yes, given the quick fire "excuses" given by the EA it sounds like they had a mate lined up for it as you already mentioned it was cheaper than yours. Common enough practice I would have thought.

 

[AJB Temple]

Despite my posts above I have no time at all for most estate agents. I once wanted to buy a water mill, including the mill pond, for conversion. I was very friendly with the owner and (I eventually discovered) he wanted to sell it to me. I made an offer, which was a good offer (in fact the highest). The agent did not put this offer forward and the property was sold to a developer friend of the agent. The seller (who was getting on) asked me a fe weeks later why I hadn't bought it....He was annoyed and I was annoyed. The estate agent got sacked after the vendor and I jointly complained, but it was too late to change the deal. Crooked.

 

[Wuffles]

Despite my posts above I have no time at all for most estate agents. I once wanted to buy a water mill, including the mill pond, for conversion. I was very friendly with the owner and (I eventually discovered) he wanted to sell it to me. I made an offer, which was a good offer (in fact the highest). The agent did not put this offer forward and the property was sold to a developer friend of the agent. The seller (who was getting on) asked me a fe weeks later why I hadn't bought it....He was annoyed and I was annoyed. The estate agent got sacked after the vendor and I jointly complained, but it was too late to change the deal. Crooked.

B̶e̶c̶a̶u̶s̶e̶ ̶e̶s̶t̶a̶t̶e̶ ̶a̶g̶e̶n̶t̶s̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶i̶r̶ ̶u̶n̶r̶e̶g̶u̶l̶a̶t̶i̶o̶n̶ ̶a̶r̶e̶ ̶k̶n̶o̶w̶n̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶b̶e̶ ̶p̶i̶l̶l̶a̶r̶s̶ ̶o̶f̶ ̶s̶o̶c̶i̶e̶t̶y̶ ̶a̶n̶d̶ ̶t̶r̶u̶s̶t̶w̶o̶r̶t̶h̶y̶ ̶t̶o̶ ̶t̶h̶e̶ ̶e̶x̶t̶r̶e̶m̶e̶.̶

I have, in my life, successfully dragged an estate agent (a very big chain too) through a complaint with The Property Ombudsman for delays in the sale of a property which they denied were anything to do with them. I've also "done" the most useless conveyancing Solicitor I have ever used for a similar problem on another purchase/sale through the legal Ombudsman. I enjoyed every minute of the disputes, slippery b*stards.

 

[Jacob]

......... I'm sure the stress of living here has effected my health, at least and I think we really need to get out of this slum soon.

Also, please feel free to call me out if I'm being a nob. My judgement is probably clouded somewhat.

No you are not being a nob - housing is a jungle nowadays.
Keep badgering the police if you have neighbour problems. They are currently very aware of calls which they neglected and neighbour probs is a bigger issue than you'd think.
Badger the council about litter, other probs and ask about council housing?
Badger Environmental Health dept about mould, damp, stress and health etc
Contact CAB for advice, and find out your rights.
Shelterare good on advice and rights too.
Believe it or not tenants still have some rights and landlords have some obligations
Which are good on advice - you might need to sign up for a £1 trial.

Basically kick up a fuss and don't give in!

 

[Wuffles]

......... I'm sure the stress of living here has effected my health, at least and I think we really need to get out of this slum soon.

Also, please feel free to call me out if I'm being a nob. My judgement is probably clouded somewhat.

No you are not being a nob - housing is a jungle nowadays.
Keep badgering the police if you have neighbour problems. They are currently very aware of calls which they neglected and neighbour probs is a bigger issue than you'd think.
Badger the council about litter, other probs and ask about council housing?
Badger Environmental Health dept about mould, damp, stress and health etc
Contact CAB for advice, and find out your rights.
Shelterare good on advice and rights too.
Believe it or not tenants still have some rights and landlords have some obligations
Which are good on advice - you might need to sign up for a £1 trial.

Basically kick up a fuss and don't give in!

Who do I speak to about badgers Jacob?

Obviously I am joking, I know I'd speak to Brian May.

 

[Rorschach]

Despite my posts above I have no time at all for most estate agents. I once wanted to buy a water mill, including the mill pond, for conversion. I was very friendly with the owner and (I eventually discovered) he wanted to sell it to me. I made an offer, which was a good offer (in fact the highest). The agent did not put this offer forward and the property was sold to a developer friend of the agent. The seller (who was getting on) asked me a fe weeks later why I hadn't bought it....He was annoyed and I was annoyed. The estate agent got sacked after the vendor and I jointly complained, but it was too late to change the deal. Crooked.

The lesson to be learnt here is that if you are really serious about a property, go straight to the owner and tell them. Don't rely on the estate agent.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

We sold, and we had notice by phone and in writing of every offer made including all the ones the agent knew we wouldn't accept, because as the agent (a friend, by the the bye) told us - they have to inform us of every offer by law.
They cannot legally pick and choose which offers they pass on.

 

[Rorschach]

Since when did legality stop people from doing things in their own interest? lol

 

[Phil Pascoe]

It never did ... but it's easy to prove in a court.

 

[BearTricks]

Forgot to add that we did attempt to go direct to the landlord by asking the tenant for his details. Apparently the estate agents flat out refused to give his details to the tenant, their reason being that they were managing the property for him and they would mediate any issues. I don't know if that's a common practice or not.

 

[mind_the_goat]

I'd have thought the agents would ask the landlord if it was okay to pass on details.
It does sound like the agent is being overly protective, but I'm afraid that's really between the Landlord and the Agent. Even you perceive it be disadvantaging you I don;t think there is much you can do, and the landlord may not care as long he gets his rent
I guess as a last resort you could try a land registry search.

 

[woodpig]

Forgot to add that we did attempt to go direct to the landlord by asking the tenant for his details. Apparently the estate agents flat out refused to give his details to the tenant, their reason being that they were managing the property for him and they would mediate any issues. I don't know if that's a common practice or not.

I think that is pretty common. Many landlords don't want anything to do with management of the property and are happy to let the agent deal with it. My wife used to work for a letting agency so we know all about preferred suppliers and tradesmen etc.

 

[custard]

I'm afraid I don't have any advice, but you do have my sincerest sympathies.

I'm from the baby boomer generation and we were so unbelievably lucky to have access to cheap property in the years when we were first time buyers and moving up the ladder. Of course it didn't feel like it at the time, but looking back inflation and high interest rates were our best friends, the first year or two of property ownership might have been a struggle, but pretty soon rising wages meant we could pay down the mortgage and often be debt free in a decent family house in our 40's.

It strikes me that younger generations today have none of the good fortune that we took for granted, no free higher education, no generous company pensions, and eye wateringly expensive property are all body blows that my generation never faced. It makes me angry when I talk to some of my contemporaries who seem to be oblivious to the loaded generational dice.

Anyhow, I hope it works it out okay for you.

 

[BearTricks]

Thanks Custard.

I always go back and forth between the vague knowledge that I was born in a particularly unlucky window, and not wanting to contribute to the (often deserved) reputation for whining and entitlement that my generation has. We've been trying to get viewings for a few other places, but we keep running in to the 'no pets' issue. We have a non-shedding breed of dog who practically housetrained himself and has never even thought of chewing anything aside from his bones.

I actually looked up this thread because the house came back on the market about 30 minutes ago. The girlfriend just happened to be browsing Rightmove when it did and rang up right away. We got the same person on the phone as last time, who skirted round the same excuses, some of which I now know to be outright lies after digging round last time. I think we've annoyed her enough that we're probably on that estate agent's dung list for a while now.

 

[Wuffles]

...we're probably on that estate agent's dung list for a while now.

There are much worse places to be, chin up.

 

[Fatboy]

Forgot to add that we did attempt to go direct to the landlord by asking the tenant for his details. Apparently the estate agents flat out refused to give his details to the tenant, their reason being that they were managing the property for him and they would mediate any issues. I don't know if that's a common practice or not.

I think that is pretty common. Many landlords don't want anything to do with management of the property and are happy to let the agent deal with it. My wife used to work for a letting agency so we know all about preferred suppliers and tradesmen etc.

Its actually not common at all, landlords are becoming more engaged with the process. But what is common is most peoples ignorance of the law and/or reluctance to engage with it. A simple written request for the landlords name and address under Section 1, Landlord & Tenant Act 1985, from the tenant to an agent must be responded to within 21 days or the agent has broken the law; and its a criminal offence not civil. Most agents know that and will comply.

 

[Fatboy]

Thanks Custard.

I always go back and forth between the vague knowledge that I was born in a particularly unlucky window, and not wanting to contribute to the (often deserved) reputation for whining and entitlement that my generation has. We've been trying to get viewings for a few other places, but we keep running in to the 'no pets' issue. We have a non-shedding breed of dog who practically housetrained himself and has never even thought of chewing anything aside from his bones.

I actually looked up this thread because the house came back on the market about 30 minutes ago. The girlfriend just happened to be browsing Rightmove when it did and rang up right away. We got the same person on the phone as last time, who skirted round the same excuses, some of which I now know to be outright lies after digging round last time. I think we've annoyed her enough that we're probably on that estate agent's dung list for a while now.

I've read this thread and been amazed at some of the advice and opinions given. I'm aware that some people think letting agents are the devils disciples but rarely is that the case in reality; like any industry there are some bad'uns but most are decent hard working folk like most of the users on here are.

There could be any number of reasons why a landlord doesn't want to involve themselves directly with tenants, or it could be that the landlord has simply said they don't want pets and the agent is filtering out people who don't fit that criteria. Some people get so worked up about agents 'hating animals' that they get abusive - I'm not saying thats the case here - so lots of agents now tend to avoid the confrontation by giving other reasons. I once had two women screaming in my face that they hope me and my family all die in a car crash because one of my clients wouldn't allow them to move into a small 4th floor, 2 bedroom newly furnished flat. They had 3 alsations and a lurcher! The Police had to eject them in the end and arrested one for assaulting me - I've still got the scar on my arm!

I'm afraid to say that having a pet other than a gold fish or a caged hamster is a big disadvantage to tenants.

Its a landlord's market at the moment so agents have to try to pick the best tenant out of the selection they have and thats based on all sorts of criteria; employment, stability, previous history, credit worthiness, pets, smokers etc etc. Its not unlike some of you taking responsibility for selecting the right material for a job; if you get it wrong it lands back on your doorstep. Same for agents.

If they are not even letting you register for property alerts then there is probably something that you have already told them that is causing a problem. Personally, if someone approached me and said they were currently unemployed but had a redundancy package to support them, I would be asking to see proof of that and be looking to see if they really had enough to support themselves for at least 12 months, not just the rent. An agent isn't just looking to see what you can pay upfront; they have to look into the future and try to work out what might happen in 6 or 12 months time when the initial agreement comes up for renewal.

All that aside, there is a human aspect to all this; sometimes we just rub each other up the wrong way.

And if I had a pound for everytime I've been accused of letting a house to a 'friend' instead of someone else who wanted it I'd be over the moon to have had so many friends! It would be a very foolish person to do that nowadays and not having declared it upfront to the landlord first; the penalties are very costly.

 

[woodpig]

Its actually not common at all.

It's common enough to have plenty of letting agents about. :roll: