Training and qualifications

Before you can register you have to make sure that everyone in your business who needs to has the correct training.

Those who have to be trained as part of the registration process will need to have a relevant qualification covering essential aspects of letting agency work. This will need to be at (or at the equivalent of) Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) level 6 or above.

Anyone who has a qualification over 3 years old at the time you apply, will also need to have done additional training on letting agency work.

Who needs training?

If you're applying as a sole trader, the people who need the qualification plus any necessary training are:

• you
• every person directly concerned with managing and supervising the day-to-day running of your letting agency work

If you're applying on behalf of a company, partnership or other body, the people who need the qualification plus any necessary training are:

• the person holding the most senior position in the organisation's management structure (unless they are not involved in day-to-day running of letting agency work)
• every person directly concerned with managing and supervising the day-to-day running of the organisation's letting agency work

If you have an office where letting agency work is done and nobody in that office is listed above, there must be at least one person in that office who meets the training requirement.

Organisations based outside Scotland

If a business outside Scotland is doing letting agency work in Scotland, every office where this work is undertaken will need to have someone qualified even if they're not in Scotland.

Getting the qualification

Anyone who has to be qualified as part of the registration process will need to have a relevant qualification covering essential aspects of letting agency work. This will need to be at Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) level 6 or above.

There are currently four programmes leading to qualifications that are considered acceptable. They are:

• The LETWELL programme, delivered by Landlord Accreditation Scotland and the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) Scotland: CIH level 3 certificate in letting and managing residential property (equivalent to SCQF level 6)
• Propertymark Qualifications – SCQF Level 6 Certificate in Property Agency (Lettings) – Scotland
• The safeagent Foundation Lettings Course (formerly NALS)
• MRICS qualification, but only if certain conditions have been met. See below for more information.

MRICS qualification

Members of the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (MRICS) may have qualifications considered acceptable for letting agent registration, but only if they:

• attained their MRICS qualification through the residential pathway
• qualified in Scotland after 2006

They also need to have undertaken the following competencies as part of their Assessment of Professional Competence (APC):

• leasing and letting
• either landlord and tenant, housing aid and advice, housing management and policy, or property management
• accounting principles and procedures
• housing maintenance repairs and improvements;
• client care
• communication and negotiation
• dispute resolution
• conduct, rules and ethics

Any RICS professionals who have not covered all the above competencies will need to do additional training to meet the minimum standards for registration.

More information can be found on the RICS website.

If individuals are already qualified

Anyone whose relevant qualification is more than 3 years old at the time you apply, will also need to have had 20 hours of training in letting agency work over the last 3 years.

Training related to letting agency work may include training on:

• legal requirements
• the private rented sector
• customer service
• other relevant topics

It is unlikely to include training related only to business matters such as marketing.

The required training must include at least 15 hours of formal training which could consist of:

• courses
• conferences
• lectures
• seminars
• webinars

They should have documented evidence (like a certificate) showing that they got the training or that they delivered it.

The rest of the hours needed can be informal training. This may include:

• work shadowing and coaching
• informal learning within your company
• interactive discussions with experts
• informal teaching for others
• reading and writing articles on letting agency work

The following organisations offer both formal and informal training:

• Landlord Accreditation Scotland
• Propertymark
• safeagent