A petition with over 11,000 signatures was handed to a letting agent in protest at the weekend.
Some 70 people demonstrated at CJ Hole’s Southville branch in Bristol on Saturday, followed by a separate march about housing costs in which around 200 protestors took part.
The uproar was sparked by a touting letter written by CJ Hole to landlords.
It asked them if they were “getting enough rent” and said that it was “highly likely” their property was due an increase.
The letter was apparently sent to a landlord at a rental address and opened by a tenant who posted it on twitter.
The Southville branch is part of one CJ Hole’s franchise business. The protest petition was signed by another CJ Hole franchisee in Bristol, pointedly distancing themselves from the other business.
CJ Hole is part of Xperience, which is now a Martin & Co business.
One of Saturday’s protestors, Anny Cullum, from community organisation Acorn, said they were demonstrating against “bad practice” and “exploitation of our incomes”.
Ms Cullum said the protesters were asking CJ Hole Southville to retract the letter and to sign Acorn’s ethical letting charter.
A spokesman for CJ Hole Southville said it was “essential” landlords and tenants could “operate on fair and free-market principles”.
He said: “Our approach to landlords was to ensure that appropriate fair and free-market rents were in operation.
“Artificially low rents will not encourage new rental properties to come forward or for investment to be made into existing assets, thereby harming the overall rental market in the locality.
“This benefits no one in the longer term.”
Why shouldn’t Landlords be getting market value for their properties?
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Despite the fact that there is already a mountain of legislation to protect tenants (from the very small minority of rogue landlords and agents), whichever party wins power, on May 7th, (if any?) there is another raft of red tape on its way.
That will make the returns within the sector less attractive to landlords which in turn will reduce supply of properties remaining in the sector and new ones being made available to the sector.
This is turn will increase rents as tenant demand will outstrip property supply.
This will, eventually, attract investors back to the sector as returns improve in order that they can offset the increased risks.
Net result = rents will be higher.
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