After more than five years of inaction from the Conservatives, Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook says he will make good on his pre-election promise to implement the regulation of property agents.

During a question-and-answer session on housing in the House of Commons, Pennycook said: “The Government is committed to ensuring that those living in the rented and leasehold sectors are protected from abuse and poor service at the hands of unscrupulous property agents.

“The Government will set out its position on the regulation of letting, management and estate agents in due course.”

The move is being welcomed by Propertymark and CEO Nathan Emerson commented: “Many renters will be unaware that there is currently no requirement for estate or letting agents in England to be qualified or licensed to operate or open their own business leaving many people open to unscrupulous and illegal practice.

“With over 64% of landlords in England using letting and management services to rent their property, it’s crucial that regulation is introduced to professionalise the industry, stamp out bad practice, create transparency and gives consumers more control over who manages their property.”

As yet, there are no details over exactly what form the regulations might take, but as was reported in The Neg, they are likely to be based on Lord Best’s 2019 Regulation of Property Agents: working group report (RoPA).

Some of its key proposals include bringing in licensing, qualifications and a regulator for the sector. An online register of licensed agents would then allow customers to check if a company is trading legally or not.

Read the full RoPA report.