On the left of this page you will find details of
links to Estate agents and Property Management Companies from the UK and
beyond...
Despite the growth of the Internet, the bulk of people
in the United Kingdom prefer to view and purchase property via a local
estate agent. Many estate agents now have websites but this is still no
substitute for being able to call in to an office and collect the
details. Estate agents remain the best source of information for
purchasing property, often employing local people who have lived and
worked in a location for many years they have first class local
knowledge relating to property for sale. This local knowledge is vitally
important if you are new to an area and need good reliable information
relating to your needs.
An estate agents duties are varied, they act for the
vendor from whom they will receive a fee if they sell the property but
also have certain responsibilities to the purchaser. They are bound by
certain rules and regulations. They must comply with the Estate Agents
Act 1979 and the Property Misdescriptions Act 1991 when they act for
persons who are buying or selling property. The Office of Fair Trading
have it within their power to ban persons from acting as estate agents
if it considers them to be unfit to carry on estate agency work. In the
main, they provide an important link between buyer and seller and help
smooth through the sales process.
In recent times the government has done much work to
bring transparency to the buying and selling of house and now certain
properties that are marketed must offer a home information pack From
14 December 2007 HIPs will apply to all homes marketed for sale,
following a phased introduction to these different sections of the
market. Any one marketing a property on behalf of another is responsible
to make sure that these packs are provided.
From 1 August 2007 estate agents have been required
to join an approved redress scheme for the purposes of Home information
pack complaints.
