A Cardiff agent has come up with a novel way to attract students looking for a property in the next academic year, as long as they have a James or Douglas in their name.
James Douglas Sales and Lettings is offering to waive fees for any students renting their properties who can show that their name, either forename or surname, matches that of the agency.
The agency said: “Any students with a first name, middle name or surname that is James or Douglas, reserve your property and receive a free agency fee!
“So, if you’re a Sally James, Douglas Jones, James Evans, your agency fee will be waived. The rest of your housemates will still need to pay their part of the fee, and proof of ID will be required.
“Students, you will be pleased to hear that we have launched our student property list for next academic year 2018/2019, with a variety of student properties to let throughout areas such as Roath, Cathays, Adamsdown and the city centre.”
Most students start looking for properties in February or March for the next academic year so while the Welsh Assembly is pursuing a letting fees ban separately to that in England, it is unlikely to be in force by then.
If the ban isn’t in by then, the agency may take some comfort in the falling popularity of the names, according to ONS figures.
Although the name James has been around the top ten most popular in recent years, Douglas hasn’t been in the top 100 since the 1960s.
Smacks of racism.
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What about “Sales”! it’s a surname.
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Hardly racism, LK07, unless you can prove that everyone called James or Douglas is Scottish! We sometimes forget that we can sell to anyone we like, as long as we respect the Race Discrimination Act, the Age Discrimination Act and gender equality legislation. Still pretty much a free country, and I think that includes Wales!
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