00:01:11 · Matt Goddard
[00:01:11] S1: We've been alluding to it, I guess, for a little while, and and probably so much so that when this sort of came up, I was like, well, we've covered that, but we don't really need to touch on it. But actually, last week was significant because the new legislation, new rules was um that were whether it was raised and debated in the House in terms of the the property database, and it's quite damning in terms of some of the feedback. So I've sort of touched on I work with the Lettings Industry Council, and we've been, I suppose the phrase is lobbying the government to try change the way this is going to be enacted. It's obviously coming. It's a great thing that every landlord has to register every property for for rental. It drives safety standards, and and a lot of um letting agents that we obviously work with are actually delivering those standards and above already, and it's to try um sort of drive out the cowboys. But the way it's being brought in does it smack slightly of the deposits coming back in back in April 2007, and um sort of we're all sort of scratching around trying to work out what we're actually expected because it hadn't been agreed yet. Um but actually it's worth probably taking a step back and looking at this property registration database where actually, as a landlord, you need to go into the is it guff dot one guff website, register each property individually, and only that stage can you then invite your letting agent. And the letting agent can go in separately. So, for example, if you had um particular landlord we used to work with at Foxtons who had 140 properties, they would have to log in and each property have to put in the basic property database. And at that point, there would be property data at that point for each property separately that they could invite a letting agent, and then the letting agent would have a separate link for every property that they could then click on to go in and add the additional data and upload certificates. And at the end of that, a landlord would then be able to go back into that particular property record and finish the registration. So for 140, it's mental. You said 20,000 when we're trying to bound beforehand, that'd obviously be a lot of that's 20,000 separate links to go into.
00:03:02 · Mal McCallion, Matt Goddard
[00:03:02] S0: But that's some of the bigger guys. That's interesting. [00:03:04] S1: Yeah, well, Lomond have got 57,000, I think, on the last check. Um, you know, LSL was something like 75,000, uh, Connell's countrywide 100,000. That's a lot of links. Um and obviously we're we're over-exaggerating that because the property management centres would be more concentrated in their regions, but it's still a lot of administrations. This was being discussed in the week, and that's but we've been, as the Lettings Industry Council, lobbying lobbying to at least allow us to bulk up loads, sort of help the landlords start it off, um, various different approaches, and and so far it's been falling on deaf ears. Um and the conversations in parliament were very damning last week, and sort of uh Ben Beadle made a certain statement that was read out and and commented on, but um is coming and we've got to sort of get on with it, I guess. And so a lot of agencies are already putting teams of people behind this to just start start processing it.
00:03:54 · Mal McCallion
[00:03:54] S0: Yeah, it's it's it's so uh so huge. And listen, thanks for trying. Keep going. And yeah, look, I I I'm I'm at an event this afternoon. Um it's called um the The Future of Um The Changing Face Athletics with regulation technology and what's coming next. And that's run by the UK uh Prop Tech Association. And you know, for again, loads and loads of agents going to be there. There's a panel there trying to make sense of all of this as well. But it is, yeah, it seems increasingly that this is kind of this big kind of swinging sledgehammer to crack this nut. So what are these properties and where are they and who's you know who's in charge of them? But like you say, you know, simple things like you know, bulk uploads and you know, just being able to send things in fast more straightforward fashion rather than this you know, one step, one step, one step, one step. But yeah, listen, I think for coupled with the the autumn statement from last week and you know, further sort of an areas that um lettings agents and landlords are going to have to pay attention to, it just feels like this whole sector is is is constantly being pushed towards, I guess, you know, professionalization or corporatization where the sort of individual landlords are are kind of being pushed out, really. Is that is that right?
00:04:58 · Matt Goddard
[00:04:58] S1: I think even that. So the autumn statement announced an increase on the tax on rental income, didn't it? It was another plus two percent. So um it's a another chunk out of any any money that might be made if you if you even are turning a profit as a as a landlord. So you mentioned twenty thousand, what about if you've got um eleven or one or two? Um the thing is it's the it's the good landlords that are being driven out. You know, the rogues are gonna continue being rogues and roguing it up. Yeah, exactly, and just continuing to advertise and shop windows and doing dodgy stuff, and um it will, I suppose inevitably drive rents up as well, right? Because there'll be a scarcity of properties.
00:05:37 · Mal McCallion
[00:05:37] S0: Yeah, 100%. All right, well, we will um continue as ever to uh to keep our eyes on this, but yes, hopefully some sense will be seen along the way. And yeah, if you could continue reference, that'd be uh much appreciated. Please, thanks. Um, all right. Next up we are going um down under. So um we are going to uh have a look at a case that has been brought by CoStar, who owned Domain out in Australia, and they have uh they launched a legal case against REA Group. So REA is the uh the right move of Australia, realestate.com.au, and Domain is the kind of number two challenger. Um CoStar acquired Domain, I'm gonna say last year for 1.9 billion. And um they have as CoStar tends to be, they're quite free and easy with the legal cases, bless them. So they've got after REA Group because REA claims in their advertising that nine in ten properties listed for sale on the platform results in a sale, essentially. Uh sorry, nine in ten buyers find a home on the platform. That's the the quote that uh that CoStar and Domain is is challenging. Uh Matt, I know you do some work out there. Um, is this causing some um entertainment? Is our agents kind of up for this? How are they feeling?
00:06:41 · Matt Goddard
[00:06:41] S1: I think I think the main thing is it's more interesting to see these two going at it, right? Because there was a counterclaim came in from REA um to say that when when Domain's parent company CoStar bought Matterport that they were misleading as well. So that they're probably slugging it out. I think the thing that stands out for me down under, as you put it, um and working with Australian New Zealand agents, is more like a focus from a lot of them to get off the portals completely. Um and there's a property portal watch or Prop Tech and Portal Watch to use its rebranded name last week, as you know. And there was a particular presentation from a company showing some of the agents like Nelson Alexander, who've quite a decent size, they put all of their properties on the portals immediately. But actually, some of them, um, Brezick Whitney, I think it is, 40% of their properties never touch the portals. Um, and therefore they've got this focus on sort of email blasts, you sort of your Brezick Whitney firsts, and where you go on the website and it says it's got an icon and logo and and presentation around that, and then social media across there being very much focused on paid adverts and working its way through. So I don't think this is creating as much noise as it would do maybe over here, where obviously I think last week someone was challenging right move stats and um causing a bit of noise. Whereas this this nine out of ten does sound quite significant, doesn't it, in terms of the 90% of the market is finding the property via R.