*Best letting agents in the UK announced*

Martin & Co Bedford has been shortlisted as one of the best letting agents in the southern region at the Estate & Letting Agent Awards.

The results of the competition are determined by research carried out amongst customers who are asked a series of questions about the service they have received from their agent.

“This is the first entry for us at Martin & Co Bedford, so this a great achievement and the network has also been shortlisted for “The Best Lettings Chain” award so good news indeed,” added Neil Fraser

The awards ceremony will take place in London on 8th April. Phil Spencer, media personality and journalist who is perhaps best known as a co presenter on Channel 4’s Location, Location and Re-location, Re-location will be presenting the awards.

Commenting on the awards, Phil said: “This is the 6th year of the Estate Agent and Letting Agent Awards and I’ve increasingly enjoyed being part of the celebrations on each occasion. It’s fantastic to see agents getting the credit they deserve after all the negative press they receive. Throughout the property industry there is a constant need to improve customer service and these awards go along way to help agents focus on keeping clients happy. He adds “After all the most powerful marketing tool for Agents is word of mouth so customer satisfaction is key.”

Martin & co shortlist Award

Wednesday, 10 June 2009

New gas safety laws from April

New gas safety law from April Gas Safe Register, the new gas safety body, replaces the CORGI gas register in Great Britain on April 1st. Only Gas Safe registered engineers will be authorised to carry out this work from the beginning of April.

If you let a property, you must make sure that pipe work, appliances and flues provided for tenants are maintained in a safe condition and you need to have an annual gas safety check.

Darren Johnson, Lettings Manager of Martin & Co Bedford says “Landlords are legally bound to keep tenants safe by making sure the gas appliances in properties are suitably maintained. As part of the fully managed service we offer, we can arrange for this to be carried out by one of our approved Gas Safe registered engineers on behalf of the landlord.

Darren added, “Landlords and tenants should never attempt to install or repair a gas appliance themselves. This would be breaking the law and puts lives at risk. Our tenants safety is a top priority for us at Martin & Co and we will take the problem away from our landlords.”

We will ensure that any gas safety record provided to our clients from April 1st 2009 will only be produced by engineers approved and listed on the Gas Safe Register.

Thursday, 16 April 2009

Is Estate Agency Dragging Lettings Down?

The latest report by Christopher Hamer, the Ombudsman for Estate Agents (OAE) shows a massive 200% annual increase in letting-related complaints, highlighting the need for the public to be acutely aware of rapid changes in the property letting industry.

Ian Wilson, Managing Director of Martin & Co, the UK’s largest dedicated letting agency, with over 160 offices across the UK, said, “The Ombudsman’s report illustrates a dangerous phenomenon that should be of concern to anyone letting, or thinking of letting their property.”

“As properties fail to sell, we have seen a sizeable increase in the number of new (and sometimes reluctant) landlords entering the market. These are the very people who need protecting from the unscrupulous, uneducated or inexperienced letting agent who claims to be able to represent their best interests. However, there is also a corresponding increase in the number of estate agents entering the lettings arena as a way of bolstering their dwindling sales revenues – with potentially disastrous consequences.

“Not only is the continual-service role of the letting agent surprisingly different to the quick-fix function of an estate agent, but there are also over 100 pieces of letting-related legislation in which to be conversant. Indeed, these are so critically important that the Martin and Co Training Academy has an extensive ongoing nationwide training programme for our franchisees and their staff (delivering “best practices”), as well as the 200 or so new staff we expect to recruit (using our internal recruitment team) during 2009 to cope with the 40% year on year growth of our business.

“Knowing how intensively letting agents need to train, and the pressure they are currently under to deliver ambitious results without compromising customer service excellence, it is not a job for the fainthearted. Landlords should be extra vigilant when choosing a letting agent. Martin & Co clients have peace of mind knowing they are dealing with a business that agrees to meet defined standards of customer care, and has a published complaints procedure.”

Tuesday, 24 March 2009