Agencies & People
News covering the businesses, activities, people and personalities in estate agency and letting agency and wider residential property industry.
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Savills says its UK estate agency branches enjoyed strong finish to 2017 despite “uncertainty”
Savills says its UK residential arm helped grow its group revenue during 2017 “ahead of our previous expectations” as it prepares to publish its full-year results in March. The company’s statement to the stock exchange early this morning reveals that it experienced a stronger than expected finish to the year helped both by its resilient UK residential business but also its presence in several expanding commercial property markets overseas. These include Hong Kong, China, Australia, Japan, Ireland, Spain and the Netherlands, the company says. These countries performed better than Savills had expected and helped offset a wobble in the US office market which has been impacted by reduced government spending, and the recent cost of setting up Savills’ Capital Markets operation in New York. It is now part of its wider global property investment advice and brokerage team. Savills says it helped commercial clients buy and sell property assets worth €5.5 billion last year and launched several property funds. 2018 worries But the company’s now largely global business may be not so rosy next year. Savills says that “in the current year, against the backdrop of heightened uncertainty over global economic prospects, geopolitical risks and rising interest rates, we expect…
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Council fines letting agent for giving tenant advice about rubbish
A letting agent in Sunderland has been fined nearly £800 for advising a tenant to dump rubbish sacks, several armchairs and a faulty fridge at the back of the property. The fine is part of the local council’s ongoing attempts to stamp out fly tipping in the city, which has seen it issue 450 formal warnings, three statutory notices, 86 fixed penalties and charged people to clear rubbish 43 times. After the tenant moved into the property on Hendon Burn Avenue and found the rubbish in her back yard, she called the agent to ask that it be removed, but nothing was done. During a subsequent a subsequent Fire Service inspection found that it was blocking the fire escape. The tenant then called the letting agent again, who told her to dump the items at the back of the property for collection by bin men during their weekly collection service. But Sunderland Council’s Environmental Enforcement Officers then spotted the rubbish and interviewed the agent, who admitted giving the advice despite not having visited the property. She, rather than the tenant, was served with a fixed penalty notice of £350 plus a £426 fine to remove the waste. “This was a…
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Student Roost set to fly
A UK purpose built student accommodation (PBSA) provider has been launched under a new consumer brand - Student Roost.
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POD Management launches
POD Management, a property management company, has recently launched.
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Michael Bruce steps aside to let former Countrywide exec run Purplebricks UK operation
Former Countrywide divisional manager Lee Wainright has been made CEO of Purplebricks’ UK operation as the pressures of running a global empire bear down on the company’s founder and previous CEO Michael Bruce (pictured, right). Lee has been the company’s operational chief since March last year and before that enjoyed a long career at Countrywide, which he joined as a school leaver and during a 26-year stint there rose to be a Divisional Managing Director, a post he held for 12 years. During his short tenure at Purplebricks Lee (pictured, left) has overseen the growth of its operational and customer service teams, a key plank in its attempt to persuade vendors and landlords that it is a ‘proper estate agent’ as the current ‘wedding’ TV advert proclaims. This has included Lee’s direct involvement in training up some 300 Local Property Experts, the launch of its new ‘concierge’ style customer support service based in Derbyshire, and the launch of both a Post Sales Support and Conveyancing Sales team. As well as promoting Lee to CEO, Purplebricks has recruited a former British Gas call centre professional, Sophie Fox (pictured, below), to run the Purplebricks telephone lines. “We are very fortunate to have…
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Winkworth about to pass 100-branch milestone
Winkworth says its branch network is about to go past the 100-mark when it opens three new offices during the opening months of this year. This is on top of seven new branches opened last year including colds starts in Cheltenham (pictured, right), Sunningdale and Surbiton in London, three existing agencies converting to the Winkworth brand in Kingsbury (in London) and Dartmouth and Torbay in Devon plus an extra branch for an existing franchisee in Milford-on-Sea in Hampshire. The company also says it has seen an unusually busy period of new enquiries coming in about franchising opportunities – up by 26% year-on-year during 2017. Winkworth’s current expansive activity is down to, in part, the re-hiring of former franchisee Michael Stoop in July who, after 25 years spent away from the firm working for several franchising giants including Martin & Co, is now working for Winkworth as a consultant. “Following the success of last year, we’re putting more emphasis on our expansion over the course of 2018 to ensure we have a strong network of offices supported by some of the most skilled people in the industry,” says Winkworth CEO Dominic Agace (pictured, left). “We’re always on the lookout for experienced…
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Fine & Country launches in Romania
Fine & Country opened a new office in Bucharest, Romania on 28th November.
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High point for Symonds & Sampson auction
Symonds & Sampson held a stunning property auction at the Axminster Guildhall on 30th November with a 100 per cent success rate.
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Former Countrywide exec joins Welsh proptech startup
Former Countrywide senior executive Vince Corley has joined Cardiff-based identity verification start-up Credas as a non-exec director on top of his existing role at Nick Dunning Associates, where he heads up its sales and financial services teams. Credas, which is headed up by former GoCompare executive Rhys David and launched in May last year, is a smartphone app which enables estate and letting agents to use facial and document recognition software to speed up and simplify identity verification, and also reduce the cost of complying with Anti Money Laundering (AML) and Right to Rent rules. “Customers are often put off by the verification hoops they have to go through to rent or buy a new home. Credas solves all of these problems in a simple app-based solution,” says Vince (pictured, left). “The cutting edge facial recognition technology Credas uses is amazing and the integration of this product into agents’ systems will alleviate the administrative burden and time wasted for both agents and customers alike. “It is a game changer in the market and I’m proud to help take the business to the next stage.” Vince joined Countrywide in 2004 where he held several senior positions including Acting Managing Director of…
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2018 will see the lettings industry consolidate, predicts Belvoir
The UK’s largest franchise firm Belvoir says a rush of acquisitions by its franchisees of competitor companies both during 2017 and into the New Year suggest the lettings industry faces a wave of consolidation as the fees ban looms. Belvoir says its lawyers are currently processing a “robust pipeline” of competitor acquisitions by its franchisees in recent months. The company says these acquisitions will be completed during the first three months of the year and that the “appetite for securing portfolio acquisitions reflects the entrepreneurial spirit of our franchisees who are adapting to changes within the sector and seeing opportunity for growth as the sector consolidates,” says CEO Dorian Gonsalves. Belvoir also says it helped its franchisees buy up 23 competitors last year, adding 2,264 properties to its lettings business. This brings the total number of properties managed by Belvoir Group companies to over 58,000, and helped increase its network revenue by £3.3 million, exceeding the £3 million target set by its board for 2017, and raising its head office fee revenue by £350,000. Helping hand The high number of competitor acquisitions has also been boosted by Belvoir’s Assisted Acquisitions programme, which encourages existing franchisees to buy local firms, helped…
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