Letters of Engagement

Letters of Engagement also known as Property Services Agreements are a requirement under Section 43 of the Property Services (Regulation) Act 2011. The Act states that a Licensed Property Services Provider (Licensee) must have a signed Property Services Agreement in the specified form in place within 7 days of starting to provide a property service.

These documents are a contract between the Licensee and the Client and should clearly outline what property services are being provided along with all costs involved. The Licensee should ensure that the Client has been made aware of all conditions in the agreement before signing.

Failure to use a Property Services Agreement is “Improper Conduct” within the meaning of the Act.

Each Licence category type has a specific Property Services Agreement and the appropriate Agreement should be completed dependant on the Property Service being provided.

If only one Licensee is providing a Property Service to a Client, the Sole Agency Agreement should be used. There are also instances where more than one Licensee is responsible for a Property Service being provided to a Client. The Property Services Agreement to be used in these instances is Joint Agency or Multiple Agency.

Property Services Agreements may be printed on the headed paper of the Licensee if so required.

The PSRA approves the use of electronic signatures for signing all PSRA documents. The agent must ensure that if providing a service for signing documents using an electronic signature system, this must be done through a secure encrypted method which cannot be edited or the document changed in any way after the document is signed. A Letter of Engagement or Contract for Service is a legally binding document and a full audit trail is required by the PSRA should any dispute arise as to the authentication of the document.

Further information about the use of Electronic Signatures can be found at the following link: PDF with information on the use of Electronic Signatures