Property Ombudsman fires warning shot at agents tying offers to in-house brokers
The Property Ombudsman’s (TPO) newly published guidance on conditional selling is meant to draw a firm line: estate agents cannot make a buyer’s offer contingent on using in‑house or associated mortgage and legal services.
Yet in a cooling market, where every sale matters, brokers say the temptation for some agents to push their own panels and in‑house teams remains strong.
Guy Nyirenda, mortgage broker at Altura Mortgage Finance, says conditional selling is “still prevalent, especially with a slow market”.
“There is a thin line between offering services in-house to ease the process and pushing this as a requirement of an offer being put forward favourably,” he told Mortgage Introducer.
Choice, cost and trust on the line
For Nyirenda, the stakes for consumers go well beyond simple convenience.
“It is always important for home buyers to have a range of independent advice and choice when making such an important purchase,” he said. “It is such an emotive process, any added pressure that can make people think they might not achieve their property dream has a big impact on them.”
He also highlights the built‑in tension when estate agents become too involved in the advice chain.
“There is an inherent conflict while estate agents are paid by the sellers to achieve their sale at the best price possible and also advising the buyers on important advice stages of the process,” he added.
That dual role, he suggests, risks undermining trust on both sides of the transaction if buyers feel they are being steered rather than supported.
Where introducer agreements can help – and where they can’t
Nyirenda is careful to stress that not every relationship between estate agents and brokers is problematic.
“Many independent broker firms have introducer agreements with estate agents, so this can provide a degree of separation and confidence for a buyer as no private information can be passed back to the agent or hard sell applied,” he said.
Handled correctly, such arrangements can preserve independence and confidentiality while still giving buyers access to advice. The challenge, he suggests, is ensuring that introducer agreements don’t drift into de facto conditional selling, where buyers feel their choice is being constrained.
“A starting point” – but more responsibility needed in branches
On TPO’s guidance itself, Nyirenda welcomes the clarity but argues that it is only the beginning.
“The guidance is a starting point and does provide a process for complaint,” he said. “However, the buyers are at the forefront of this, who just want to buy their home.”
Because of that, he believes the onus should sit squarely with firms and senior management, not consumers, to make sure behaviour on the ground matches the Code.
“More emphasis needs to be put on the business owners to train their staff properly with a code of conduct and process for internal referrals that can be easily checked and reviewed,” he said. “This should be the next step.”
In other words, having a Code and complaints process is not enough if branch‑level culture and training don’t reinforce what “good” looks like.
What buyers should do if they feel pressured
For buyers who feel they’re being pushed towards in‑house or associated services, Nyirenda’s advice is to be clear, calm and firm – and to use the protections that already exist.
“Follow the guidance laid down by the Code of Practice and raise it with the branch manager if necessary,” he says.
He suggests being explicit about your intentions while still keeping the transaction moving:
“Make it clear that you intend to speak with a separate broker/solicitor before making your decision, but you will provide the details to them so they can check you are in a position to complete the purchase.”
He also urges buyers to do their due diligence on any adviser they deal with, whether introduced by an agent or found independently.
“Check with the company or network the adviser is attached to and do your research on them to ensure they are independent of the estate agent and also have their own complaints procedure in place if you need to make a complaint,” he said.
Keeping conditional selling under the spotlight
TPO’s intervention, backed by broadcast exposure of sharp practice, has put conditional selling firmly back on the agenda. For brokers like Nyirenda, the guidance is welcome – but the real test will be whether estate agency owners embed robust training, referral processes and oversight so that buyers genuinely feel free to choose how and where they get their advice.
As the market remains challenging, the pressure to “keep everything in‑house” is unlikely to vanish. That, brokers argue, makes it even more important that codes of practice are not just written and published, but lived and enforced in branches across the country.
