In the Spotlight with Neil Cobbold

We caught up with Neil Cobbold, Chief Operating Officer of PayProp

Related topics:  In The Spotlight
Warren Lewis
21st November 2019
Neil Cobbold 111

PR: How did you get into the property industry?

NC: I was studying at the time and looking for an opportunity that could work around my limited availability. It needed to be something I could do in the evenings and at weekends with few barriers to entry. At the time, property or recruitment looked the best options. My USP was being able to work Sundays, and that appealed to the landlord/tenant market. There also seemed to be little legislation and an aura of mystery around what an estate agent does also appealed.

PR: How does PayProp differ from its competitors?

NC: If you mean competitors who perform the same function as us, then as far as we are aware there is no-one else in the UK that can do what PayProp does. Even if we think of competitors as people who vie for the same pound, we are still the only specialist payment- dedicated property solution on the market. We provide efficiency, compliance, bank integration, agency scalability, client-facing USPs, speed and accuracy to the back-office admin process.

PR: Do you feel that the BTL sector is over-regulated?

NC: I don’t think over-regulated is the correct term - the industry is untidily regulated. Rules have been adopted in a piecemeal fashion and that has led to a level of complexity that no-one wanted. Fully regulating the industry and standardising the current legislation could actually, if done correctly, simplify the procedures that we have at the moment.

PR: How can we best address the gender imbalance within the property industry?

NC: I think an effective way would be to end the taboo around discussing pay and promotion within the workplace. I also think we need to find ways to overturn traditional biases and look at actual circumstances as well as statistics - which can in some instances detract from the conversation. Irrespective of numbers, the work we do should be paid on an equal basis.

PR: How is the current political and economic climate affecting business?

NC: Political and economic factors will always have the potential to impact business performance, both positively and negatively. I think a truly innovative business finds a way to make its circumstances into opportunities. PayProp does this very well, which is why we continue to thrive.

Our approach is always to look for the positive message and never take sides. Property has always been an emotional industry and because of this we will always find people on both sides of any issue. We are here to listen to the market and treat our customers the way they want to be treated. Whether you view the current climate positively or negatively, businesses still want to grow and protect what they have – PayProp makes it easier for them to do both of those things, and so we can navigate the current turmoil relatively unaffected.

PR: What are your predictions for the lettings industry in 2020?

NC: We will continue to move towards becoming a fully regulated market with minimum standards of education for both agents and landlords, and the human side of our interactions will only increase. We will have automated all standard processes in letting and managing a property will become in essence property concierge, paid a convenience-based fee for providing a variety of property-related services to both landlords and tenants. They will be true property professionals, and I think that will be hugely beneficial for the public image of our sector.

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