Agency trade bodies are gearing up for new regulations and home buying reforms with the appointment of new presidents.
Angela Davey has been named president of ARLA Propertymark and Kirsty Finney will take the helm at NAEA Propertymark.
Davey succeeds Phil Keddie and has more than 30 years’ industry experience having been an ARLA Propertymark board member and she has been involved in advising the Welsh Government on housing policy.
She also developed training for agents accredited by Rent Smart Wales.
Davey said: “I’m honoured to have been appointed the first Welsh ARLA Propertymark President.
“The sector has changed significantly over the last few years, however it is my intention to use my time in role to bring both sides of Propertymark together so that from a member’s perspective, we lead the way in setting the highest standards within our property industry.”
Finney succeeds Lauren Scott as president of NAEA Propertymark.
She is a director of Belfast estate agents Rodgers & Finney and was involved in the signing of a memorandum of understanding in Northern Ireland between Propertymark, the Law Society and RICS in 2018 that seeks to speed up communications with conveyancers and reduce transactions times.
Finney said: “I am very excited to take on the role as NAEA President this year.
“Alongside giving Northern Ireland more of a voice when it comes to legislative changes in the sector, I plan to focus on education.
“The regulation of property agents is fast approaching and it’s key that the industry is prepared.”
Christopher Hamer, chairman of Propertymark, said: “Thank you to Lauren and Phil who have brought endless energy and enthusiasm to support agents through a challenging year.
“Championing high standards and teamwork, they have been a fantastic presidential team.
“Angela and Kirsty are both experienced agents who bring strong knowledge of their sectors and will be great representatives of the industry.”
Comments (5)
Is that the same Propertymark that only introduced ‘highest bidder’ suppliers to its members?
Before everyone rushes in with various training programs and qualifications surely there needs to be a single standard. Given ARLA performance in the past and their inactivity when it came to supporting agents/members (fee ban as 1 example) I personally would like to see an independent body formed with the sole purpose of managing the qualifications. I left ARLA as I felt that they did not represent agents, I will need a lot of convincing that they have changed before jumping back in!
Kind of agree with you.
Think it needs something fresh and modern. There are also too many of these bodies across the industry. Why is this? Are Propertymark looking to be the new ROPA as it would seem that way? The regulatory industry needs a complete overhaul and fresh blood as there are no stand out ones at the moment and most charge substantial fees for at the end of the day, the licence to display a logo that can easily be abused, as we have seen with many agencies being fined for misleading the public with expired memberships.
Lauren will be a miss- welcome to the new Presidents – and Country Bumpkin – there is an alternative to Propertymark qualifications – all online, with test questions! Able Agent and CePAP
Congratulation on the new posts. Please help your members. Take Propertymark into the 21st century and get these study packs into Bluetooth audio so they can be more easily accessed (in car, at the gym and so on) . Save reams of paper and print and help save the planet. The level 3 packs arrived just prior to lockdown and they are literally 150mm deep in paper study. It’s like trudging through thick treacle and hardly material that can be taken anywhere to ‘learn on the go’ ! Get these tests on line with mock tests, in order for members to access learning and qualify more easily. Most of us are happy for regulations and change, but do please try and get your training house in order (as suggested) to give us agents a fighting chance. There will be this big cheer go up in swathes around the country when we read a PIE heading “Propertymark introduce prop tech to help members train” This means that NAEA need to get prepared first, to help prepare us.