The complaints keep coming in about Philip james Didsbury

The complaints keep coming in about Philip james Didsbury

Even over the holidays we have been amazed by the number of people who have contacted us. Because of the sheer volume we are dedicating more staff and resources to assist you all. We are in the process of designing two brand new websites: trottersville.co.uk and philipjamesrentals.co.uk.

We aim to get these live as soon as possible, but in the meanwhile, please keep coming back here and using the "comments" section to get in touch. Some of your complaints have been forwarded direct to the relevant authorities.
For those of you with problems with Philip James, we hope to be having a "surgery" with our solicitor shortly.

Stay safe and take care 

 

 re-published as this listing receives 101 hits a month

New report calls on government to regulate all letting agents

Tenants are being ripped off by cowboy agents in the ‘exploding’ rental market, says a major new report out today.

It is urgently calling on the Government to regulate letting agents to the same standards as estate agents.

The Resolution Foundation, an independent think tank which focuses on lower income groups, says tenants are having to pay significant upfront costs, whilst agents’ fees are variable and there is a lack of transparency around charges.

The organisation carried out a mystery shopping exercise of 25 unnamed letting agents in three cities – London, Cheltenham and Manchester. It found the range and type of fees charged varied enormously.

For example, administrative fees ranged from £95 to £375. Total upfront costs (including deposit, admin fees and rent in advance) for a one-bed property in London were £2,166, around double those charged in Manchester (£1,028) and Gloucester (£1,094).

Just two of the letting agents displayed the costs of renting on their websites and many renters only discovered charges after they had decided to rent a property.

Average deposits for a one-bed property ranged from £487 in Manchester to £1,099 in London.

Many tenants reported difficulties when moving within the private rented sector as they had to hand over a new deposit before they had got their old one back.

Resolution says its findings are particularly relevant given the growing number of households forced into renting for the long term. In 1988 only 14% of low to middle income households aged under 35 were living in rented accommodation, but by 2008 it had tripled to 41%.

The report points out that unlike estate agents, letting agents are unregulated and under no compulsion to hold membership of an ombudsman service.

The Resolution Foundation is calling for:

•  Letting agents to be regulated to the same level as estate agents, so that unscrupulous agents can be banned;

•  All agents to be signed up to an ombudsman service giving redress to tenants;

•  The ombudsmen’s codes of practice to stipulate that agents must display all charges to tenants and landlords on their website and in adverts in a way that is easily comparable across agents;

•  The Government to consider ways to make it easier for tenants to transfer deposits between landlords when they re-tender for the tenancy deposit protection schemes in 2012.

Vidhya Alakeson, Resolution’s director of research, said: “The lack of regulation in the exploding private rented market is of growing concern.

“We need more transparency so tenants at least know what fees they’re facing and to help create a more competitive market. Given that an increasing number of families have no option other than to rent long term, we need to question why letting agents are not regulated to the same degree as estate agents.”

Christopher Hamer, The Property Ombudsman, said: “This report emphasises the growing importance of the lettings sector for people seeking a home to live in.

“The Government does not see regulation of the sector as a priority and I, therefore, welcome the recommendation of this report that all letting agents should be required to be registered with an ombudsman scheme so that, at least, landlords or tenants can gain redress where they have been disadvantaged by an agent.

“Providing clarity and transparency of fees is also very important. As more and more people become tenants or landlords, these measures would assist them in fully understanding the commitments they are taking on and enable them to challenge the agent if anything is unclear.”

Estate agent faces jail after masterminding property scam

Wednesday 14th September 2011

An estate agent who was an undischarged bankrupt is awaiting sentencing after masterminding a property scam worth over £1m.

One of his accomplices was a mortgage adviser.

Both Raymond Abramson, 68, and Mark Jopson, 52, who ran Mark Jopson Financial Services, admitted conning investors into buying 21 homes in Lancashire.

The values of the properties being sold were inflated on the promises of guaranteed tenancies, rental income and refurbishments that didn’t materialise.

The investors were from Ireland, with the frauds taking place between January 2005 and September 2008.

The two men, together with a third accomplice, John Edwards, 43, were originally charged in October 2009 after an investigation by Greater Manchester Police’s fraud unit, and had been due to face a lengthy trial but changed their pleas at the last moment.

Prosecutor Andrew Nuttall QC told Manchester Crown Court how investors from Ireland were tempted with the promise of purchasing properties with guaranteed rental income. The offences related to 21 properties out of 31 on the defendants’ books.

Abramson masterminded the scam, using the pseudonym Trevor Smith so that he could prevent investors from finding out that he was trading illegally as a bankrupt. He recruited Jopson to arrange the mortgages, bringing in Edwards to help.

The three men all admitted conspiracy to defraud, and are due to be sentenced on November 28.

Medical reports will be sought for Abramson, who is said to have a number of medical difficulties, and a psychiatric report will be compiled on Edwards.

The defendants will also face Proceeds of Crime Act hearings following their sentencing.

Jeffrey Samuels QC, defending Abramson, said it was understood by the defendants that they were at risk of receiving custodial sentences.

Are "anonymous" really Philip James staff ?

Hahaha her......hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahaha! You sound like you were the worst tenant in manchester. The world would be a better place without assholes like you wasting everyones time. Bet you don't post this comment. By Anonymous

bet this comment supposedly posted on 22 December isn't even real!! you are a real loser! By Anonymous

Are you still going on with yourself?! See you can't think of anything new to say, so now you've just re posted the old stuff. Get a life dickhead! Do let us know what happens with your so called 'court case'...more like waste of everybodies time!! bet when you lose you still won;t stop will you because you are too sad to accept things the way they are. Bet you don;t post this comment. WHich means that you have no idea what you are doing and are the spineless idiot you come across as. Shame on you! I hope they absolutely tear you to shreds if it ever gets to court. By Anonymous   What these "anonymous" people are forgetting is that NOTHING is anonymous in cyberspace. There are many many trails left behind to the clever people in the world of IT Stay lucky it's a scary world out there Bridgfords – lettings – sales 731 Wilmslow Rd, Didsbury, Manchester, M20 6WF 0161 434 9719

The complaints keep coming in

Even over the holidays we have been amazed by the number of people who have contacted us. Because of the sheer volume we are dedicating more staff and resources to assist you all. We are in the process of designing two brand new websites: trottersville.co.uk and philipjamesrentals.co.uk.

We aim to get these live as soon as possible, but in the meanwhile, please keep coming back here and using the "comments" section to get in touch. Some of your complaints have been forwarded direct to the relevant authorities.
For those of you with problems with Philip James, we hope to be having a "surgery" with our solicitor shortly.

Stay safe and take care