Tiger Estates

A Message from Lord Pickles and Lord Blunkett, followed by Tiger Estates's best practice article

The ability to listen and learn from one another has always been vital in parliament, in business and in most aspects of daily life. But at this particular moment in time, as national and global events continue to reiterate, it is uncommonly crucial that we forge new channels of communication and reinforce existing ones. The following article from Tiger Estates is an attempt to do just that. We would welcome your thoughts on this or any other Parliamentary Review article.

Rt Hon The Lord David Blunkett

Rt Hon The Lord Eric Pickles

www.tigerestates.co.uk

THE PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW

Highlighting best practice

34 | TIGER ESTATES

Owner and Manager

CraigWebster

Our Blackpool-based

office

Tiger Estates embrace technology and are constantly

challenging tradition in order to bring a cutting-edge

approach to an ever-changing property market. With

a wealth of experience dealing with all aspects of selling,

letting and property management, they recognise the need

for a professional and proactive property service. Owner and

Manager Craig Webster completes both sales and lettings

valuations across the Fylde Coast, and he discusses some of the

issues facing the property sector.

Having spent my university summer holidays working in a Blackpool-based property

lettings and management company, I gained valuable experience in the sector.

Soon after, I acquired my first residential lettings property, before completing a

full refurbishment, utilising my savings and financial assistance from my parents.

I later sold the property in order to purchase two failing property management

companies, which I transformed into Tiger Estates. I merged their portfolios,

infrastructure and staff, and this established the sturdy foundation for the success

that we enjoy today.

Rapid expansion

A significant assistance and challenge for the new business were the portfolios and

properties that were acquired as part of the purchase. It quickly became apparent

that many of the properties were dilapidated and had been managed by landlords

who were reluctant to spend money on their properties to improve the condition.

These properties were still providing a very valuable source of income, however,

FACTS ABOUT

TIGER ESTATES

»Owner and Manager:

CraigWebster

»Established in 2008

»Based in Blackpool

»Services: Experienced sales and

lettings

»No. of employees: 14

»Tiger Estates agree over

£500,000 in new rental

income and process over £20

million in sales transactions

every year

»www.tigerestates.co.uk

Tiger Estates

35TIGER ESTATES |

BEST PRACTICE REPRESENTATIVE 2019

so we looked to find an appropriate

balance between advising the

landlords to complete the necessary

works and accounting for the loss in

rental income in the short term.

As a result of the refurbishments,

we aggressively advertised for new

clients and welcomed networking

opportunities to increase the size

of our rental portfolio, primarily to

support the loss of fee income and

then to increase our fee income. This

strategy was successful: within one

year of trading, we had grown our

portfolio by 25 per cent. We soon

established a zero tolerance policy

towards landlords who wouldn’t

improve the condition of their

properties, and such contracts were

brought to an end when the units

became vacant. This strategy improved

our relationship with the local housing

enforcement officers, who view the

private rental sector with scepticism.

In 2010, the residential sales market

endured a turbulent period, and many

established estate agency businesses

were closing down or switching their

focus to lettings and management.

I took the bold decision to open a

second office in South Shore and

entered the residential estate agency

market. Having completed thorough

market research, we felt that a

different approach to estate agency

could prove rewarding for people

looking to sell and would suit the

changing local estate agency market.

We were the first Fylde Coast agent

to both introduce fixed fees rather

than the traditional 1.5 per cent

commission structure and to provide

floor plans, virtual tours and digital

displaymarketing.

Within nine months of trading in

the estate agency market, another

opportunity was made available to us,

with the largest estate agency in the

South Shore area facing bankruptcy.

Through networking and friendship,

we were quickly able to acquire

the client contracts of Troy County

Estate Agents for both their sales and

property management. Subsequently,

we rebranded as Tiger Sales and

Lettings, operating across South Shore

and Blackpool, servicing 75 per cent of

the population.

Operating across both sales and

lettings markets, we continued to grow

at an unprecedented rate, increasing

turnover by 75 per cent between

2010 and 2014. We soon became the

outright market leader in Blackpool

and on the Fylde Coast, so in 2015 we

moved premises to the former NatWest

bank on Whitegate Drive.

Confronting challenges

Despite our success, there have

been challenges. For example, the

introduction of selective licensing by

Blackpool Council was one of the most

absurd policies. Housing enforcement

officers were already overworked,

and it is nearly impossible for them

to satisfy the workload that selective

licensing entails. It has been a lucrative

way of earning revenue for the

council, but it is one of many policies

introduced by the government and

local councils that have penalised the

private rental sector.

The private rental

sector hasbeen

harshly targeted

by government

legislation,

despite the

necessity for

private rental

accommodation

to meet the

housing

demand

“

THE PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW

Highlighting best practice

36 | TIGER ESTATES

The private rental sector has been

harshly targeted by government

legislation, despite the necessity for

private rental accommodation to

meet housing demand. The decision

to pay housing benefit to tenants

directly, as opposed to landlords, was

a poor decision that has ultimately

increased rental arrears for landlords

and resulted in the evictions of

moretenants.

The attack on the private rental sector

is constant, with the increase in taxes

and costs and the phasing out of

mortgage relief over the next four

years putting a strain on landlords.

Many landlords will suffer financial

difficulty because of an increase in

repossessions. To combat the increase

in costs, there will be a rise in rental

prices, leading to an increase in

rental payments from local councils

or an increase in homelessness. The

government, with their sustained

attack on the private rental sector,

could create a vicious cycle within the

housing market.

Letting agents are now being targeted

with the ban on tenant fees. Many

letting agents will close as a result

of this ban. Despite lobbying from

professional bodies – the Royal

Institution of Chartered Surveyors,

the Association of Residential Letting

Agents and the Residential Landlords

Association – the calls have not

been heard. Many unregulated and

unprofessional letting agents charge

excessive tenant fees, but a ban is not

the solution. Instead, it should become

a legal necessity for estate, letting and

management agents to be members of

a professional organisation and redress

scheme. Introducing letting agents to a

professional organisation would ensure

that those dealing with property

assets are adequately qualified to look

after client monies and landlord and

tenantinterests.

Currently, there is no regulation of

the industry, and anyone can enter

the industry and manage properties

with no qualifications or industry

experience. Client money is therefore

not protected, and any dishonest

letting agent could disappear with rent

or use it for their own resources.

The future will see challenges across

both the sales and letting markets,

including the ban on tenant fees and

the rise of the internet estate agent.

Further regulation and legalisation can

improve the quality of the property

market. It is a massive injustice that

professional, qualified property

professionals have to compete

against agencies with no property

qualifications or prior industry

experience. Property is the most

significant asset a person will purchase

in their lifetime. Those working in

the industry should be fully qualified

and regulated by a professional

organisation, protecting clients and

improving standards and the service

enjoyed by buyers, sellers, landlords

and tenants.

Property is the

most significant

asset a person

will purchase in

their lifetime.

Those working

in the industry

should be fully

qualified and

regulated by a

professional

organisation

“

The Tiger Estates team

www.tigerestates.co.uk

This article was sponsored by Tiger Estates. The Parliamentary Review is wholly funded by the representatives who write for it. The publication in which this article originally appeared contained the following foreword from Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng.

Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng's Foreword For The Parliamentary Review

By Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng

This year’s Parliamentary Review reflects on a tumultuous and extraordinary year, globally and nationally. As well as being an MP, I am a keen student of history, and I am conscious that 2020 would mark the end of an era. It will be remembered as the year in which we concluded Brexit negotiations and finally left the European Union. Above all, it will be remembered as the year of Covid-19.

In our fight against the pandemic, I am delighted that our vaccination programme is beginning to turn the tide – and I pay tribute to the British businesses, scientists and all those who have helped us to achieve this. But the virus has dealt enormous damage, and we now have a duty to rebuild our economy.

We must ensure that businesses are protected. We have made more than £350 billion available to that end, with grants, business rates relief and our furlough scheme supporting more than 11 million people and jobs in every corner of the country, maintaining livelihoods while easing the pressure on employers. The next step is to work with business to build back better and greener, putting the net zero carbon challenge at the heart of our recovery. This is a complex undertaking, but one which I hope will be recognised as a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Through the prime minister’s ten point plan for a green industrial revolution, we can level up every region of the UK, supporting 250,000 green jobs while we accelerate our progress towards net zero carbon emissions.

With our commitment to raise R&D spending to 2.4% of GDP and the creation of the Advanced Research & Invention Agency, we are empowering our fantastic researchers to take on groundbreaking research, delivering funding with flexibility and speed. With this approach, innovators will be able to work with our traditional industrial heartlands to explore new technologies, and design and manufacture the products on which the future will be built – ready for export around the globe.

And I believe trade will flourish. We are a leading nation in the fight against climate change. As the host of COP26 this year, we have an incredible opportunity to market our low-carbon products and expertise. Our departure from the EU gives us the chance to be a champion of truly global free trade; we have already signed trade deals with more than 60 countries around the world.

As we turn the page and leave 2020 behind, I am excited about the new chapter which Britain is now writing for itself, and for the opportunities which lie ahead of us.

Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng
Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy