Estate Agent Scam?

pickledish

Hi,

I'm buying my first house in London and came across the estate agents Clarke & Lloyd. The agent (Sajjad) picked us up outside Stratford station and took us to a few places.

As the trip developed, we established he was the owner of the company and it was a made up name (not necessarily anything dodgy so far). He then showed us a some flats that looked lived in my animals (soiled carpets, holes in doors) which were owned by his 'friend', followed by one lived in by no fewer than 8 "students".

I've researched him on companies house, as well as the company and nothing alarming appears. The places he's selling are all over the internet, and it was me who approached him. He's not mentioned any upfront fees, or anything that, other than his character, seemed strange.

Is it normal to have such small estate agents in east london (I'm all for enterprise after all!) and has anyone had any issues/heard of any scams?

I'd really appreciate some wisdom......

Doozergirl

If you don't pay them anything and they're not offering to pay for anything for you either then I don't see how there could be a scam. As far as buying a property is concerned then 'caveat emptor' (buyer beware) applies to all and that would mean having the appropriate surveys, valuations carried out and using a solicitor that you've picked of your own free will to carry out every check deemed necessary to save yourself from buying a lemon.

There are many small agents in London, there's no rule that says how big you have to be to set up. James Caan from Dragon's den essentially made up the name he uses for himself and also invented a name for his company to make it sound British, legitimate and established. It may well be that these properties are his own, in which case, he should declare any personal interest. Ultimately, I don't think it's entirely relevant if he is selling them for himself as long as you are confident that you are paying the right price.

I doesn't exactly sound like you loved what he was selling anyway.

Enfieldian

Sh1tty little one man band agencies are common in parts of London!

Jowo_2

http://www.clarkeandlloyds.com/

I found them in companies house quite easily.

Name & Registered Office:
CLARKE & LLOYDS PROPERTY CONSULTANTS LTD
4-6 OLD MONTAGUE STREET
LONDON
E1 5NG
Company No. 06812652

The domain name details may perhaps relate to the web service provider rather than the company.

http://whois.domaintools.com/clarkeandlloyds.com


Anybody can set themselves up as an estate agent, it's not regulated.