Amidst all the publicity surrounding Theresa May’s speech at the Conservative Party Conference it was heartening to hear good news for the industry. The Communities Secretary, Sajid Javid MP used his speech at the conference to announce plans to introduce mandatory regulation for letting agents in England.
These measures follow 20 years of ARLA Propertymark campaigning for mandatory regulation and will, according to ARLA Propertymark, be the single greatest step forward in a generation for consumer protection within the private rented sector. Regulation offers to do more to clean up the image of the industry than the hundreds of smaller laws and pieces of legislation passed over the last two decades.
Here at The Country House Company we are active members of ARLA Propertymark and very supportive of the campaign for mandatory regulation. We consider it essential for the protection of landlords, tenants and those professional letting agents who take pride in providing a regulated service.
David Cox, Chief Executive, ARLA Propertymark commented that “We have seen regulation take different forms in different parts of the UK. It is essential that regulation reflects the commitment to higher standards embodied by the thousands of letting agents who have chosen voluntary regulation through membership of a professional body and in doing so have demonstrated the value of higher standards.”
A positive to focus on from the Conservative Party Conference!
Marishelle Butler