RICS to tighten up investment agent rules
The RICS is to bring in mandatory requirements prohibiting agents “under any circumstances” from acting for both a buyer and seller on investment deals.
A consultation into the proposed rules was launched this week and is open until 10 February.
The RICS intends for the rules to come into force in January 2018.
The RICS is to bring in mandatory requirements prohibiting agents “under any circumstances” from acting for both a buyer and seller on investment deals.
A consultation into the proposed rules was launched this week and is open until 10 February.
The RICS intends for the rules to come into force in January 2018.
The existing guidance states that dual agency should not be undertaken as a “general rule” and only if both contracting parties have given their express consent.
The UK-specific guidelines come after industry professionals questioned the lack of tough rules on the practice in the RICS global consultation last summer. They address potential conflicts of interest through dual agency, multiple introductions (where an agent competes for contracts with several buyers for investment opportunities) and incremental advice (where an agent is approached to provide advice related to a purchase or disposal that is incremental to an existing instruction to advise the buyer or seller).
RICS associate director Nigel Sellars said: “In response to demand, we have developed UK-specific mandatory requirements, building on the good work of the Investment Property Forum protocol that outlines the best practice that we expect RICS members and firms to adhere to.”
The IPF’s protocol, published in 2014, called for greater transparency and early disclosure of potential conflicts.
It stipulated that agents can act for multiple bidders only with their clients’ consent and only if they can maintain confidentiality at all times through a barrier policy, which must include separate teams and password-protected IT.
Click here to read the consultation.
