Martin Lewis issues estate agent warning which 'skirts edge of law'

Martin Lewis has issued a warning to anybody who has an estate agent. The BBC Sounds podcast host took to Twitter, now X, where the ITV star spoke out over estate agents who are "hard selling" mortgage brokers to renters and mortgage customers.

"New. Is your estate agent hard selling its mortgage broker or solicitor? Too many do, skirting the edge of the law, it's known as 'conditional selling'. Your rights and what you need to know," Mr Lewis said.

Mr Lewis' Money Saving Expert warned: "Buying a property can be stressful, and isn't made easier by an estate agent saying you MUST use its recommended solicitor or mortgage broker. This dodgy practice is known as 'conditional selling' – it's against the law, can cost you more and even risk sales falling through, yet it's widespread."

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One such type of pressure could be estate agents saying: "We need to make sure you're financially qualified so we can put your offer to the seller – speak to our mortgage broker so they can carry out financial qualification." Or they could say: "The only way I am able to show you properties before they come on to the market is if you come in for a chat with our mortgage broker."

Other examples include: "If the seller get two offers on the property for the same amount, the seller will go with the offer that's using our broker", and MSE also gave real-life examples, like: "That's great you already have a mortgage-in-principle, however the vendor would like pre-qualified buyers who are keeping their mortgage in-house.

"For example, if there ends up being two offers on a property both at £190,000, but one buyer has their own broker and the other buyer is using out broker, the vendor will go with the £190,000 offer that is using our broker because they are keeping it on-house so we are able to get the sale through more quickly."

Another example could be: "We've got exclusive mortgage rates for you from these banks and building societies"