Forum Topic

ESTATE AGENTS' BOARDS/SUMMER FETES

Is it me or does the excitement of seeing a ''for sale '' sign on your next door neighbour's house  diminish/disappear the minute you see it's actually advertising a school fete?They also seem everywhere and stay up for long after the event. Seems to benefit the agent more than the school as some do not even give date of fete just says ''summer events''.Is there a way of checking the law on this?

Simon Wycombe ● 4666d22 Comments

My husband got very excited when he drew the bedroom curtains one morning and saw a board up outside our semi-attached. I had to break it to him gently that it was just advertising the fete at their daughter's school.

Susan Kelly ● 4658d

Simon - Amongst the many summer fair boards around in Ealing I have only spotted one Estate Agent that has no date for the fair itself. I do of course keep a keen eye as I am interested in what Estate Agents support Ealing Schools.As for the other comment aboutdoing it to benefit them - of course they do! It is a mutually benefical relationship hopefully where we get much needed money and they get some advertising and being associated with a fantastic School.

Diane Gill ● 4658d

Remember the golden rule. Estate Agents will never help anyone if it doesnt benefit them.

Asha Smith ● 4658d

Is this a form of fly posting?The boards may help schools. So then why did someone not think about defacing our streets a long time ago.

George Knox ● 4658d

Quick to condemn - slow to praise. That seems to be the thinking amongst most readers of this thread. Estate agents seem to be the betes noire of most people, but they are a force for good(it seems to me) for local schools.

Gerry Tan ● 4661d

When people refer to "greed" above, do they mean profit?

James Brown ● 4661d

Good to hear but being cynical,it's odd that some boards say ''sponsoring xyz's summer events'' with no date/time etc.

Simon Wycombe ● 4661d

Going back to the subject of the original thread. As Chair of my sons School PTA I can assure you that sponsorship from Estate Agents is deifnintely worth our while in relation to the Summer Fair. All boards put up this year had a specific date and location of the event and the boards were placed at parents houses with full permission. They were taken down less than a week after the summer Fair.  We also had banners and advertised at the back of our Summer Fair programme. We have had ice cream vans at the Summer Fairs in the past but decided this year to buy our own to make more money. You wuld be amazed at how difficult it actually is to obtain sponsorship form corporates even though based in Ealing.  We have had a mutually beneficial relationship with the Estate Agents who sponsor us for many years and look forward to it continuing.

Diane Gill ● 4661d

I believe the rules for these are the same as temporary structures meaning they must be removed after 3 months (doesn't matter if house bought or still for sale)Agents can get fined quite heavily for contravention Another scourge is fly boards. These usually appear outside flats where none of the residents would be sure who is selling. Actually nobody is but the Agent is attempting to drum up interest in their website or Agency These are common and again fines can be issuedHaving had the misfortune of dealing with an Agent these last 6 weeks I cannot understand why this industry is not more heavily regularised. They are rock dwellers!

Colin Goodman ● 4662d

There are three in our road that are well into the 3rd week.It's not really on. Can you imagine the hoo ha if I put a for sale type sign up plugging my business outside my place?

Michael Brandt ● 4663d

Apparently a sold sign is only allowed up for 2 weeks after the moving day.Presumably the same applies to fete signs?Having said that some have been up weeks BEFORE the event for maximum publicity.

Simon Wycombe ● 4663d

I think it's a bye-Law or a local civil law.But there are definitely restrictions.One involved the size of signs and they were reduced after a spate of accidents and injuries in the late 1970s early 80s.But this is crass free advertising and cynically on the back of local schools and groups who get a backhander.To me it is distastful and a poor reflection on the schools who are cosying up to businesses which are greed driven and something that should not be an influence on childrenIt just needs a bit of regulation and a bit more about the school or group .event

Michael Brandt ● 4664d

Michael,"There are supposed to be rules about sale boards and I think they are still in effect"Interesting.In the car the other day, I was just short of the lights on Cherington Road adjacent to the new flats and was blown away by the number of estate agent boards. It was ridiculous!!When I have sold a property, I have always insisted on not having a board. My view being that I am paying the agent a handsome commission to sell my property and they should be able to do this without sticking their ghastly board on my property. A good estate agent has a pool of prospects and should (in theory) be able to match your property up to a reasonable number of prospects and get it moving quickly.

Bud Richards ● 4664d

They're all very well are estate agents' sibnboards, but I do dislike the way they attach them to your front wall.

Gerry Tan ● 4664d

There are supposed to be rules about sale boards and I think they are still in effect. But probably not enforced.If the council wake up they might make a few quid from the abuses of sale boards.I think if the must do it they do it like in some US states.The school  or organisation name is prominent and the agents colours can be used but the Branding and name is only in a small font size and not at all prominent and it can be displayed for 14 days max.It also displays how much a donation the agent has made to the event.

Michael Brandt ● 4664d

Presumably there is nothing stopping an E Agent giving a school £50 and it being publicised in a school/fete  magazine rather than littering our streets with boards?It seems no-one seems to agree with me that they are unsightly.

Simon Wycombe ● 4665d

I make the same point, please suggest a viable, equally lucrative, alternative.

Nigel Brooks ● 4665d

It's shameless cynical promotion of businesses that feed greed.It's funny how schools will go out of their way to prevent ice cream vans pitching up outside schools but are happy to allow businesses that use greed as their prime motivation.I wonder if the children are educated in the thin line between business , greed and methods of manipulation?

Michael Brandt ● 4665d

Of course they are doing it for their benefit and I would be pretty peed-off if the date of the event wasn't on the board. That's what most schools agree and they are daft if they do not.

Nigel Brooks ● 4665d

More in terms of a 'law' as to how long they can stay up after the event. Not sure apart from an agent paying the school to have a sign in someone's front garden, how it benefits the school when there is no date on the sign telling you when the event is.You are being very naive if you think the agents are not doing it for their benefit. At the moment there must be at least 100 in the borough and a real eyesore. Only my opinion but isn't that what a forum's for?

Simon Wycombe ● 4665d

They are a very good source of income/sponsorship.If you can suggest an equally good sponsor Simon, I am sure that the local schools would 'bite your arm off'.Until then......

Nigel Brooks ● 4665d

It does benefit the school, as the school gets sponsorship money from the agents. Some schools have agents fighting to sponsor them, so they go to the highest bidder. Does it really bother you that much? I cant see why there would be a law against it.

Marie Shelny ● 4666d