Estate agents and any dress code

Nit just female Edtate Agents though. Went for an eye test at M & S opticians in Kent. All the females looked very smart and conservatively dressed. There was a scruffy mudfle aged man outside the examination room who seemed to be hanging around so I asked who he was.
The Area Manager would you believe!
I am also sick if seeing young men in once white shirts that have obviously been thrown in the washing machine with a black sock and so are a dingy grey.
Is it my age making me so critical?

Not acceptable to me.

What’s the feeling of teachers and other professionals having visible tattoos?

I think some of these ideas about professional dress are a bit old fashioned now. That sort of corporate image was quite demanding and women have been rebelling against requirements to wear stilettos and pencil skirts for some time. Why shouldn't a woman be herself in such a role. In midlife a more relaxed and comfortable style perhaps made her more approachable and she may well have had excellent people skills.

Granmarderby10

Hmmm 🤔 I’m not sure that women (in particular) should be voicing criticism towards another woman because she had a pale and uninteresting face ……whatever her occupation was.

Quite!

We had a very unpleasant experience with an estate agents on viewing our house to value it they extolled it’s virtues, ie well maintained secure gardens, fresh decorations new kitchen etc , but that all changed when one of the agents brother and his wife were interested in buying the house. The agents then said they’d overpriced the house and advised us to lower it, when we refused they became difficult to deal with. Shortly after this they went out of business.

Some modern styles of dressing are simply that. Modern. I like them. Some 'smart' styles are outmoded and old fashioned. I don't much like them. It can be a simple question of taste.

I agree with "Germanshepherdsmum". "^a professional woman should get it right. She is always in competition with men in a decent suit and polished shoes....women have to make a greater effort in everyway"^. When I worked many moons ago in the rarefied air of a traditional & formal legal firm, I, too wore suits (mostly dark colours) and very little make-up and jewellery. It goes with the job.

Haven't had recent dealings with estate agents but do agree that when you go to work especially in a customer facing environment you should look clean and dress smartly.
I have been amazed at how the teachers at my grandaughter's school dress. Several of the men look as if they're about to do the gardening, shoes that look as if they've never seen any polish, trousers that look as if they've been slept in, unkempt hair etc etc. The rules for the student's uniform are very strictly observed I think they need the students to bring in a dress code for the teachers!

I’d be more concerned about her interest in the job in hand than what she looked like or was wearing. Was she dirty? Did she smell? Did she engage with you in the correct manner? Did you dress up…..? Poor woman can’t help her face and dress sense!

After living in our first and only house since 1970, we are in the process of selling/down sizing now (never want to do this again but nothing to do with the way estate agents dress!). We've not encountered any women agents as yet but the men have been smartly dressed. However, even though the agency has been easy to deal with, they have not sold our house after 13 weeks and we have just signed a contract with a new agency. Part of the attraction is the short contract (4 weeks as opposed to 12), but partly as the two young partners in the agency have more creative ideas for reaching the target market for our large family home, i.e. young families, using social media and videos of the home and area as well as traditional advertising. The fact that they dress in smart casual clothes (and one has longish curly hair!) rather than suits, shirts and ties, to me has no bearing whatsoever on how well they will market and show our home to potential buyers and hopefully sell it shortly (as they are marketing the flat that we hope to buy).

I tend to agree, and I know I shouldn't say this but I will, I'm amazed at how many clinical staff are also clinically obese. We had an ambulance crew member attend my workplace and had to use the stairs as lift out of action; one flight, 15 steps. She was so out of breath that by the time she got to the patient she couldn't treat him until she had got her breath back, about 5 minutes.

MOnica, maybe it was a
"walk of shame"
situation she found herself in.

When I was an academic the lecturers often dressed just as informally as the students. The only apparent difference was the age range. However I always "power dressed" in a suit when I was presenting a paper at a conference because I did wish to appear to be an expert in my subject. Ive always worn either a suit or jacket and skirt/trousers for interviews.

Anyone watch Buying London on Netflix? Those Agents are very well dressed!

Though you say you would feel the same about a man with a pale uninteresting face, I'm not sure what a man could do about it. Do you feel such men should wear make up? Or perhaps grow a beard?

Oh dear Monica. I’ve always rather envied the Pre-Raphaelite women with their long, interestingly coloured, wavy hair 😆

To be honest how they dress is irrelevant, con artists are usually well turned out to give a good impression. I’m going to view a property not the Estate Agent, and when looking for Agent to sell your house you would check out their charges etc and efficiency, also go on recommendations. As for teachers and the way they dress, I’d be more interested in how they teach, educate and communicate with the children. If children are happy and like their teacher they will learn regardless of what said teacher is wearing.

I’d never engage anyone who turned up in a battered work van!

I am also house buying and have to say this has not been my experience but then I don’t tend to judge a house by what the estate agents representative is wearing. One or two of them have turned up late but on the whole have been professional and helpful with the odd exception. At the end of the day comfort at work is important and it s more about how good an estate agent is at doing their job rather than what they look like

Granmarderby10

Hmmm 🤔 I’m not sure that women (in particular) should be voicing criticism towards another woman because she had a pale and uninteresting face ……whatever her occupation was.

Agreed. Also, nothing wrong with 'long hair and tight curling'. Must we all have hair straightened beyond healthy?

I agree I'd expect a professional to dress professionally, but curly hair is a human occurrence: deal with it. So is pale skin. And expecting women to wear makeup: who are you, James Bond? For God's sake, woman. Stop being such a chauvinist.

If I understand correctly, estate agents don't need any qualifications, however if the person doing the "donkey work" will need to work with chartered surveyor and a solicitor. Or that works well here.

The "donkey worker" (in jeans and boots) appears to earn less than 1.5% of the price, apart from the surveyor and solicitor - not much.

Last we purchased a house/land it was far under £200,000 (to add to our ground here) - I think the "donkey worker" only received £3k for dragging me all round for days on end. Rational for no qualifications, imo.

Which is why I wrote of dealing with reputable estate agencies

Germanshepherdsmum

Unfortunately anyone can set themselves up as an estate agent and many of the high street firms don’t have so much as one chartered surveyor - someone who has to comply with professional ethics and standards.

It seems, here far from the city, estate agent is not so much a "profession" - rather a quick way to begin at work. Or appears that from what I see of "agents" round here whilst looking for property.

Out here in the country, many wear jeans, fine to me. No suits in fields.

Sorry ignore that.