Estate agents act

Are you totally fed up with the lies told by Estate Agents in an effort to make you arrange your mortgage with them?

Are you advised that you cannot view or offer on a property until you have seen their mortgage advisor?

This is ILLEGAL!!

An Estate Agent can and should ensure that anyone that puts an offer on a property can actually proceed - in other words, they have agreed a sale on their property (if they have one to sell) and they are in a position to obtain the necessary finance to purchase.

However, if you have already spoken to another mortgage broker and they have confirmed that you will be able to obtain a mortgage, provide the Estate Agent with your mortgage brokers name and telephone number and suggest that they call to confirm your ability to proceed!

If they still insist that you must speak to their mortgage advisor, I suggest that you draw their attention to the Estate Agents Act (see below), or threaten to complain to the Office of Fair Trading! DO NOT GIVE IN

Be aware that although some Estate Agents can provide independent mortgage advice, most only use a very small panel of lenders, will probably be "tied" to one insurance company and may even charge broker fees!

Tailored Mortgages is an independent broker and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. We have a duty to ensure that we "Treat Customers Fairly". Please be aware that at the time of writing Estate Agents are not regulated and the only sensible way to complain is through the Office of Fair Trading.

Together we can stamp out this illegal and unprofessional behaviour.

Estate Agents Act 1979

This is an extract taken from the Estate Agents Act relating to “AVOIDING BIAS”.


You must not discriminate against potential buyers because they don’t want, or might refuse, to take services from you or a connected person.

For example, you must not:

· refuse to provide information about a property to
these buyers.

· take longer to send property information to these
buyers, compared to others.

· set additional requirements, as a condition of passing
on an offer, eg, forcing them to have a mortgage
survey before you will pass on their offer to your
client.


In summary, estate agents cannot discriminate against you because you don’t want to use their financial services.

So called “preferential listing” is not permitted. This is when buyers are told that they will be put on an open and fast-track priority or preferential service list if they take financial services, such as insurance or a mortgage, offered by the estate agent.

If you believe that an agency has failed to meet its obligations, you can complain to your local trading standards department.