THE image of British estate agents is to be revolutionised today. Gone are the days of those slick yuppies demanding wads of money for a damp, rat infested bed sit. From now on agents will forget about door keys and mortgages. Instead, they will concentrate on advising clients which window to climb through to view the property.
OK, this novel idea may take a while to catch on. But the organisers behind Britain's first estate agency for squatters, which opens today in Brighton, are confident that their marketing strategy will be a success. Even though, unlike their mainstream competitors, they will not charge a fee.
"It will be run exactly the same way as an estate agency is apart from the fact we will not give them a key to get in. People buying properties have estate agents. All we are doing is providing the same service for squatters," explained Joe Makepeace, a member of Justice, one of the groups supporting the idea.
Sporting a Mohican haircut and a nose ring, Paul, one of the estate agents, described the agency as "purveyors of the finest properties". They even have their own PO box address On the Fiddle for those clients living outside Brighton who need information.
"We will have photographs for people to look at, with descriptions saying `desirable property.' It is all quite professional. If people go and view the place and squat in it, the property details will be removed from the window," he said.
Brighton police point out that squatting is not actually a crime, but will monitor the agency's activities. Insp Grenville Wilson said "When it involves breaking into the property then it becomes an offence. If any instances of breaking and entering are reported to us we will take action."
However, Paul insists the agency will only offer properties that have been empty for a long period and will advise squatters that as long as they do not cause any damage or change the locks they have not committed any crime.
He said `We are not going to hand people a load of tools and say, `Get out there and break in'. And we certainly don't advocate breaking into private property and moving in while the owners are on holiday. We are talking about buildings which have been empty for a considerable period. Often owners are just waiting for places to rot and fall down so they can grab some land and money. Sometimes people can live in a building for a year or more before the landlord even notices.
Perhaps not surprisingly the agency's presence is not exactly welcomed in Brighton. "Outrageous, spluttered Sir Derek Spencer, the local Tory MP. "We need this estate agency like a hole in the head."
However, one of Sir Derek's colleagues has actually voiced his support for the agency's principles and has even tabled a Commons Bill, dubbed the "Squatters' Charter."
Until now Mr Hartley Booth, who inherited Lady Thatcher's Finchley seat at the last election, was best known for squirming in front of the media, clutching his wife's hand as he tried to explain sending romantic love letters to his secretary.
This unlikely figure has now become the squatters' hero. "It is a national scandal. There are 800,000 empty homes across Britain and there are 150,000 homeless people. That means there are at least five empty properties for every homeless family," Mr Booth said.
His figures certainly ring true in Brighton. According to recent figures the town has the highest homeless population outside London, yet there are more than 1,000 empty commercial and residential properties.
Under Mr Booth's Bill, if a property is empty for over five months a squatter should be entitled to place a notice on the front door informing the council it has 21 days to either condemn the property or repair it. He said "The beauty of the scheme is that it shouldn't cost the local councils any money because they could use the homeless person's housing benefit money to pay for the necessary repairs."
The estate agency's future appears bleak, however, as Brighton County Council has threatened to evict them from their new plush offices. To add insult to injury, they are squatting in empty council buildings.