Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Paul Simon's 2 Let signs
I just spoke with Lee in Paul Simon Letting 0208 800 1155 regarding their rather shabby 2 Let signs above the following properties
36 Grand Parade
59 Grand Parade
63 Grand Parade
449/450 Green Lanes
451 Green Lanes
453a Green Lanes
465a Green Lanes
And guess what? Not one is 2 Let. Wow! When I explained that it is illegal to have the PAUL SIMON 2 let signs on the buildings that are not actually 2 let Lee admitted that they need to be taken down. I explainred to Lee at PAUL SIMON LETTINGS that I will call the coun.... Lee hanged up just before could add the 'cil'
Once again PAUL SIMON LETTINGS can be contacted on 0208 800 1155 if you wish to make a compliant.... Please do.
The LB0H website has a whole section dedicated to dodgy estate agents boards its here.
Please note that this has nothing to do with Paul Simon Sales
Tags for Forum Posts: Paul Simon, estate agents signs, paul simon
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by james walsh on
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I usually pull/snap them down and lay the sign respectfully in/on the property's ground. Come and put the cuffs on me.
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Permalink Reply by Christopher Fowler on
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James: I'm with you on this. The "To Let" signs are bad enough, but the "Let By" ones are worse. Those are just permanent adverts for the estate agent. In fact, I find it hard to believe that anyone buys a property, or rents it, on the basis of seeing a sign in someone's front garden. I suspect that almost all sales or lettings start either online on web sites, or by visits to estate agents' offices to collect lists of properties available. I also suspect that _all_ estate agents' signs are just adverts for the estate agents, and are no help to the client in selling or letting their property.
Re those _enormous_ signs hanging precariously over parts of Green Lanes: how long before one of them falls on someone and causes injury? I'm sure the signs they are using now are about four or five times as big as they used to be. They must weigh a ton. It's just another way in which estate agents pollute the visual landscape of cities, in the same way their dodgy practices pollute the housing market.
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Permalink Reply by Protheroe O'Shea on
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Christopher why not give them a call enquiring about the properties above?
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Permalink Reply by Hugh on
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I'm not sure how much difference reporting the signs to the Council will make. This discussion is the 23rd on this issue. I've had a meeting and various correspondence with the council. I think the two residents associations have also. (Here's something I put on HoL's Wiki some years back)
This is a long playing issue that the Council don't have as a priority and, as far as I can tell never have.
The only thing that has worked has been the sort of direct action James refers to or that Steve Hatch at Castles helped out with on the Salisbury. I'd be interested to know what the legal position is of someone who removes an illegal sign. Are they acting illegally?
It's worth pointing out that not all estate agents are culpable.
If you really want to make a difference on this Ben, you need to be prepared to mount what will probably be a long running campaign with the Council and the agents.
Here's an approach neighbouring Waltham Forest are using.
Here's what someone in another area did:
I once took 3 of them back into the Winkworth office on a busy Saturday morning and put them gently on the overconfident one's desk.
Below is an article from The Times published a couple of years ago:
ESTATE AGENTS FOR SALE BOARDS: Top ten: For Sale boards
The Times. April 3, 2009
Fly-boarding, board wars and board rage - some of the ten things you need to know about estate agents' signs
1. Estate agents boards proliferate in a recession. "They reflect desperation," says Ed Mead, of Douglas & Gordon, an estate agent in London. "When the market is really flying, you don't see many boards because properties sell quickly." But when sales are slow, boards are left to linger even after the completion of a sale. Although the law requires agents to remove their boards within 14 days of a sale or let, some deliberately ignore the regulations as they compete fiercely for business in a difficult market.
2. Certain agents say that as much as 40 per cent of new clients come to them because they have seen boards in the area in which they wish to buy and sell. At a cost of about £6 for a board and a further £3 to put up, boards are cheap and effective advertising. Matthew Rothery, of Kinleigh Folkard & Hayward, says: "They can be particularly useful when a property comes up on a desirable road where it is rare to see properties for sale. It increases word-of-mouth inquiries, where a person who is not seeking to buy themselves points out a property to a friend or relation."
3. But not all boards are selling homes. In an illegal practice known as "fly-boarding", some agents put up boards to make themselves look busy and successful. Buyers are fooled into thinking that an agent has lots of properties on its books while sellers are lead to believe that the agent is doing good business. A few years ago Foxtons had to apologise to Alastair Campbell, then Tony Blair's director of communications, for erecting a board outside his home - which was not for sale.
4. Similar ruses are employed online. Given the shortage of properties for sale, agents with little stock have listed competitors' properties as their own. Some have gone even farther, particularly in the lettings area, and listed dozens of properties to let that were not available, simply to increase their profile on the most popular property search engines.
5. Back on the streets, there are cases of agents tearing down rivals boards and sometimes replacing rival's advertising with their own. The "board wars" were rife at the height of the market in the late 1990s. But some London agents say it continues today and that they frequently have to re-attach boards that have been torn down.
6. Fly-boarding is most common in London, but abuses of this kind are by no means confined to the capital. Bill Spreckley, of the buying agent Stacks Property Search, says: "One of the worst abuses I have seen in the Surrey area is agents sponsoring school fetes and sports days and then putting up boards in parents' gardens advertising the event. These are their 'for sale' boards with different writing in very small letters, giving the impression that they have a load of houses for sale in the area."
7. The wording on boards can be misleading for other reasons. What agents mean by "sold", "under offer" and "sale agreed" varies. Roger Wilkinson, of Wilkinson Grant & Co in Devon, marks his boards with "sale agreed" after a buyer has committed to a survey. But many agents mark their boards as "sold" when what they really mean is that the property is under offer. The words "subject to contract" is often in tiny print.
8. Too many "for sale" signs are unsightly and can damage the brickwork. They can also lower the value of homes in an area. Heather Wimshurst, of Stacks Property Search, says: "It usually indicates that it's difficult to sell and sellers have to keep bringing down their price so that they are the lowest. But it is very useful for an investment buyer looking for a bargain."
9. As the market slumps, homeowners are taking action to stop the build-up of for sale boards. Residents' complaints have prompted the London boroughs of Islington and Harrow to ask agents to remove excessive boards under "responsible retailer" agreements. In Brighton and Hove, the East Brunswick Residents' Association has begun its a crusade against boards by asking residents to contact the council if they think that an estate agent is in breach of the regulations.
10. Agents are allowed to display only one board, no bigger than half a square metre per property, but joint agents often skirt round the rules by erecting two boards on one post facing opposite directions. Some agents, such as Douglas & Gordon, have been calling for a ban on for sale boards altogether. Boards have already been banned in conservation areas, most notably parts of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.
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Yup, when I reported the issue to Brian Ellick he explained how difficult it is to get these boards down. my theory is that this cannot be done by just one person alone. Lets all call Paul Simon regularly whenever one of their signs stays up, Ask them whether the property is available, waste their time enquiring about a property that does not exist then ask them to remove their signs. if this happens 20 - 30 times per day by different people they will get the message.
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Permalink Reply by Anette on
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I'll call them tomorrow. Who else are in? Come on, people. It's one call!
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Good on ya Anette.This is the big society in action (although I am not a blue). Come on HOL We just need 10 of us to reel off each house number a day
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There is also one on 527 Green Lanes, none of which are to let as far as I'm aware. They are my Letting Agent and are, in my experience, the most incompetent office of people I have ever encountered.There has been endless frustration since the moment I contacted them about moving in and a shocking lack of communication between staff. One hand does not know what the other is doing. I was told we could move in on the 22nd of April, with repairs complete. The previous tennants didn't move out until the 30th and still no repairs have been done by November. Just an example of how they are so good luck with any battle you choose to have with them.
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I should add however, that the people I have dealt with are very nice. They've never been rude or difficult with me.
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Permalink Reply by cara howard on
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This may have been said elsewhere and I will try and find the relevant law/section to quote, but I beleive, once alerted, they have 24 hours to removed the signs beore you can legitimately take it further.
Alternatively as I used to do with the shark that is Terry Hobart of Stroud Green, if able, rip them down, walk them round to their office and dump outisde. They don't seem to like that much.
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I would love do that but I need a ladder get up to the 1st floor!
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All the law is referenced & linked to on our wiki, as above.
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