Accidental landlords 'caused rise in complaints about letting agents'
News Category: Industry News
Published: 07-Apr-2010
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The rise in the number of complaints about letting agents is likely to be a side effect of the accidental landlords trend, according to one market expert.
Figures published by the Property Ombudsman last month showed he handled 435 disputes related to lettings in 2009, compared to just 300 cases in 2008.
Chris Horne of Property Hawk, an advice website for landlords, said the figures probably reflect a change in the market rather than a widespread drop in standards.
He suggested many of the complaints came from people who had become landlords because they were unable to sell their home, rather than from professional landlords.
"Probably because they were inexperienced, [they] would go and use letting agents that perhaps weren't of the best quality and then problems would result," said Mr Horne.
However, he added that he is in favour of greater regulation of letting agents and the establishment of a single code of conduct for the sector, in order to help protect the interests of landlords.
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