AWARDS The ESTAS announce best
franchise award The Estate & Letting Agent Awards, better known throughout the industry as the ESTAS
have announced another innovative new category based on their formula of rating agents via feedback received from their clients. As Simon Brown, founder of
the ESTAS explains, “Many franchise brands have entered the ESTAS over the years and done extremely well. Clients have rated the franchisees on the level of service they’ve provided and the franchisors have used this accolade to market their brand regionally and nationally to end customers. However until now franchisors haven’t been judged on the quality of the support they provide to their own clients, the franchise owners.” With the new category
franchise owners have the opportunity to rate their franchisor on the level of support they provided during the crucial set up period and beyond. Each questionnaire will be filled out anonymously by the franchisee providing honest and valuable data to the network in the form of a Franchisee Feedback Report.
“We want to find out which
franchisors provide the best support and help them identify areas where they can improve. In the same way that agents sign up for the ESTAS as a sign of commitment to providing high levels of customer care we want to encourage franchisors to sign up for this category to send a similar message to potential franchisees.” One franchise network that
has already committed to entering is Martin & Co, who have excelled regionally and nationally in the ESTAS over the last few years. Scott Burgess, Franchise Director said, “We firmly believe we provide one of the best franchise roll-out processes and support systems to franchise owners in the industry. We are no strangers to franchise owner feedback as this formed part of our Investors in People review earlier this year. As business partners we need to understand where we can make improvements and these responses will do just that.” Franchisors that wish to
enter this category must have at least 10 franchised branches competing in the main ESTAS.
www.theestas.com
COMMERCIAL
Failing tenants or Empty Rates bill? “In some extreme cases, drastic
Landlords are being left with the unenviable decision of whether to remove failing tenants from their premises or allow them to stay due to the hike in empty property rates imposed by the Government in April, says Ellen James, associate at Bircham Dyson Bell LLP. “It’s a dreadful trade off to have to make and it ultimately puts a failing tenant in the driving seat. It may be cheaper to simply allow a tenant to stay rent free, than to pay the high empty property rates that have been imposed on landlords since April this year. Properties are difficult to re-rent and sell presently, and the three months and six months grace for retail and industrial premises respectively doesn’t leave much room for manoeuvre.
EDUCATION New estate agency apprenticeship
National apprenticeships and training organisation Positive Outcomes has launched a new professional apprenticeship- based qualification for estate agents. Backed by the Awarding
Body for the Built Environment (ABBE), NFOPP and Asset Skills, the Estate Agency Award is based on a Level 2 Intermediate Apprenticeship and Level 3 Advanced Apprenticeship training framework. The programme is being
launched in the South West and Positive Outcomes plans to extend its availability across the UK from next year. The Award is designed to help ambitious estate agents
and property professionals boost their professional qualifications, as Sarah Breadner, Positive Outcomes’ Training Team Manager who is heading the Awards’ launch in the South West, explains: “This is a significant
development for estate agents seeking to enhance and improve their professional expertise and customer service skills. The programme is designed to give them an edge by delivering practical training on the key aspects of the estate agency profession, and the skills to give their clients the very best service and advice when selling, buying, leasing or renting a property.
www.positiveoutcomes.org.uk.
PROPERTYdrum OCTOBER 2011 7
rates mitigation tactics are being considered to the point where landlords are considering pulling down their premises to avoid paying taxes affecting less desirable areas of Britain’s cities. “Landlords are simply less willing
to take back the keys to properties because they can’t fill it again, can’t sell it and would rather not destroy their premises to avoid the tax – and so failing tenants are being seen as the lesser of all evils. It’s an absurd situation and leaves the landlord without any bargaining power. “One alternative is to allow a
charity which receives 80 per cent rates relief to occupy premises; but there simply aren’t enough of those to go around.”
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