Certain areas of Reading have a high turnover of homeowners (Picture: Councillor Will Cross)
A man has demanded an end to a ‘forest’ of estate agent signs dotted up and down his local streets.
Large numbers of ‘for sale’ or ‘for let’ signs have popped up in parts of Reading – such as the Redlands area.
Streets such as Erleigh Road, Addington Road, Blenheim Road and Cardigan Road have high turnover of people moving in and out of homes.
The area is popular with students on short tenancies due to the University of Reading being situated there.
Councillor David McElroy has now made a plea for action over the growing ‘forest’ of estate agent signs.
The issue was debated at a full meeting of Reading Borough Council.
Councillor Will Cross explained an audit had been carried out which found 70 signs across the area.
He branded them a ‘nuisance’.
Councillor Will Cross carried out an audit on the number of signs (Picture: Councillor Will Cross)
Councillor Cross was praised by his colleagues for his ‘Columbo style detective work’ on the issue.
Letting and for sale adverts do not require permission, however they do need to comply with rules.
Estate agency boards can only put up at the property they relate to, and only one board is allowed per property – one each for flats and HMOs.
Furthermore, boards must be removed within 14 days of a sale or let agreement.
Councillors demanded answers on how long signs can be kept up (Picture: Councillor Will Cross)
Boards that do not comply with rules -including ‘managed by’ advertising- are unauthorised, therefore constituting a criminal offence and must be removed.
As a result of the concerns, council officers will send letters reminding estate agencies of their duties in the original agreement made in 2014.
The area covered in the agreement runs from Alexandra Road to Lennox Road in Park ward.
If the council is unsatisfied that estate agents are not complying with the agreement, it can apply for the Regulation 7 Direction from the government.
The rules and regulations for displaying estate agents’ boards are laid out on the council website.
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The area is popular with students on short tenancies.
