Importance of lettings regulation discussed

News Category: Legal

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The importance of being a regulated letting agent has been highlighted by the Association of Residential Letting Agents (Arla).

According to the regulatory body for letting agents, the downturn in the property market over the last 12 months has led a number of estate agents to turn to lettings - and some of them may not be qualified to do this.

Indeed, an Arla survey found that 76 per cent of its members have witnessed agents in their local area switching from selling property to house letting in the last six months.

Letting agent software can help landlords and agents stay compliant, but operations manager at Arla Ian Potter claimed there are a number of regulations landlords must adhere to.

"In order to make the transition from an estate agent to a lettings agent, they need to have studied more than a hundred different pieces of legislation, and pass minimum competency tests," he explained.

Gaining this accreditation will ensure would-be landlords can talk confidently about the industry, Mr Potter added.

Arla recently called for more protection for tenants' deposits and landlords' funds which are held by Scottish letting agents.

How to stay legally compliant with letting agency software