The secret agent

[redwing]

On the back of MsAli's thread

Here's a BBC one (UK version of Today Tonight/Current Affair?) story about an undercover journey into the world of an estate agency

Lying to customers, faked signatures, false passports and dodgy deals with developers. An undercover investigation reveals the secret world of estate agents' dirty tricks.

My boss congratulates me on getting an offer on a flat that has been overvalued by £60,000. The newly-wed young couple viewing the property are stretched to their financial limit. But my manager is happy.

He takes me aside and explains how to convince a surveyor that the flat in London's fashionable Notting Hill is worth more than it is. He calls it "slightly simmering" - I call it cooking the books.

The scenario is not uncommon, in fact the manager himself boasts: "This kind of s*** happens all the time ... that's why we estate agents are here."

That night I head to the weekly sales meeting at Sloane Square. It's held at 7pm on a Friday night - when other people are relaxing in the pub.

Under-performers are heckled and those who have done the most deals are applauded and given champagne and £50. Young agents in Foxtons exchange high-fives as they swap tales of gazumping and over-valuing.

I'm unaccustomed to a sales environment, but when I tell one of the directors that failure is not an option, he looks thrilled

The ambitious young graduates in sharp suits are full of bravado as they discuss their equally sharp practices while their sales figures are projected onto a giant screen.

But I can't stop thinking back to the hard-working young family who dream of getting on the property ladder and have wasted their money unnecessarily.

For BBC One's Whistleblower programme, I spent eight months investigating the murky world of the estate agent.

This involved spending time in five very different agencies and within days, I got a shocking glimpse inside this largely unregulated industry.

Continues...

• Heckled
• Going to war
• Unlawful
• Pressure
• Faking documents
• Relentless
• Backhanders
• Deception

A whistleblowers foray into the life of an estate agent in a UK Real Estate Agency

Source


And a rebutal of sorts here