If you’re in the property industry, or have half an eye on it, you may (or may not) have spotted news about pay per viewings. No this isn’t to watch Manchester United v Manchester City on tv; this is paying to view a property for purchase or rental.
A new company called ViewRabbit, a PropTech platform, hit headlines in property circles for proposing just that. A minimum charge of £30 was to be levied and paid before a property viewing. Now you might say, if you’ve worked in estate agency or lettings, that “no-shows” are a painful part of every day work. BUT. Does the assumption that a £30 payment make it more likely they will actually view? Possibly. Will they definitely make an offer after paying to view? We doubt it.
“In principle, it is fine for sales viewings as long as agents and traders are transparent and upfront about any terms and conditions or charges applicable to payments and refunds. The business must not make any misleading statements or omissions as these are criminal offences.” Chartered Trading Standards Institute
But this initial advice was tempered somewhat when the Tenants Fees Act of 2019 was considered.
“The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government’s statutory guidance states that charging for viewing a rental property is prohibited.”
So, it seems that viewings cannot be made chargeable for tenants, yet they can for investors and buyers.
This got us thinking, at DSL Consulting, about other industries that depend on inspections.
Should car dealers, for example, charge customers to look at, and test drive cars?
Should tradespeople charge people to quote for new windows, a new roof, a new patio etc?
Certain professions already do this.
If you needed legal advice, for example, there is a small “free window” of time, but if you wanted an hour talking with a barrister, you probably wouldn’t be surprised to be asked to pay £500 or more for the privilege. Ergo, dentists. Inspections are chargeable and those charges are even higher if you take private treatment.
The property viewing fee, raised by ViewRabbit, is an interesting one and, as you can see, it led back to revised opinions when the law was considered.
The service though has laudable aims. What is clear is that the £30 is refundable on purchase. It is also an attempt, in a very heated property market, to give all equal access. Annually, 60 million property viewings take place in the UK, but many sell without viewings as buyers and investors are shoehorned in quickly.
What do you think? Would you pay £30 to secure a property viewing? Or not?
We’ll close this blog post with a breaking story in Manchester this week where a city centre estate agent made local headlines for securing so many mammoth property transactions.
Reside Manchester Between August 2020 and July 2021, the firm has sold 167 properties, he said, amounting to £51.25 million in sales. That’s an average of just under £1 million a week in sales (all to UK-based buyers), in addition to the 555 properties the firm let over the same time frame.
Now just imagine if he’d charged £30 per property viewing – his commission would be even higher, and perfectly legal!
