Adam Day, managing director at online estate agency Hatched, has resigned from the National Association of Estate Agents following the industry body’s backing of new online property portal OnTheMarket.
The new site, which goes live on 26 January, has been set up by Agents Mutual – a co-operative founded by a number of agents including Savills, Knight Frank and Strutt & Parker.
Agents Mutual dictates that in order to appear on the website, a property can only be listed on one other portal. Crucially, OnTheMarket also excludes all online agencies from advertising properties with it.
In an open letter to Mark Hayward of the NAEA, Day stated: “It’s pure hypocrisy that the NAEA readily accepts my money for membership, yet overtly supports an organisation that excludes agents like us, simply because our business model is different from that of a ‘traditional’ estate agent.
“In my view, the NAEA should be supporting estate agency in all forms, so long as member agencies, like my own, are providing a comprehensive and quality service, whilst also adhering to the various acts & regulations in place.”
