Agents should embrace change for everyone's benefit, ...

Agents should be regulated to achieve the training and education they need to improve the property market as a whole, says Propertymark’s Head of Commercial, Jason Lee.

“It’s something that has been lingering in the background since the Best Report but we are the only cog in that buying and selling process that is not regulated.

“Brokers are, conveyancers are but the fulcrum of the whole deal is the agent. Regulation will ensure we are delivering the same standard of service across the board. It will set a certain standard that will give consumers confidence.

“Let’s be honest, it’s a trust issue. Anybody can come along and set up an estate agency tomorrow. The following day they could value someone’s house. After that they could be instructed to sell the property. Regulation is a way of making sure that everybody knows what they’re doing and can offer a good quality service throughout.”

Fantastic Tech

Jason also believes that changes to Material Information will also benefit the industry as a whole.

“I think it’s a good thing to give more detailed information upfront because it will help consumers make an informed decision.

“I’ve got a long history of working in auctions and auction packs have been available for many years – this is fairly standard stuff for us.

“What we need to do is embrace change, learn about some of the good things that are out there and make use of some of the fantastic Tech that is available.

“Buying and selling houses is a little bit broken at the moment – it takes so long and we have so many fall-throughs. Material information can help us with that and the sooner we embrace it, the better it’s going to be for everybody.”

Jason was in conversation with Angels Media’s Lee Dahill on the Property Podcast Today.

To listen to the podcast interview in full, just click here

Angels Media is also publisher of the Today sites.