Island countries in the world

Countries without land borders

An island country is a state whose primary territory consists of one or more islands or parts of islands. As of 2011, 47 (approximately 25%^[1]) of the 193 UN member states are island countries.

Politics[link]

The percentage of island countries that are democratic is higher than that of continental countries, although historically they have been more prone to political instability.^[1]

War[link]

Island countries have often been the basis of maritime conquest and historical rivalry between other countries.^[2] Island countries are more susceptible to attack by large, continental countries due to their size and dependence on sea lines of communication and air lines of communication.^[3] Many island countries are also vulnerable to predation by mercenaries and other foreign invaders.^[4] However, their isolation also makes them a difficult target.

Natural resources[link]

Many island countries rely heavily on fish for their main supply of food.^[5] Some are turning to renewable energy—such as wind power, hydropower, geothermal power and biodiesel from copra oil—to combat the rise in oil prices.^[6]

Geography[link]

Some island countries are more affected by climate change than other countries. Some low-lying island countries are slowly being submerged by the rising water levels of the Pacific Ocean.^[7] Climate change also impacts island countries by causing natural disasters such as tropical cyclones, hurricanes, flash floods and drought.^[8]

Economics[link]

Many island countries rely heavily on imports and are greatly affected by changes in the global economy.^[9] The economies of island countries are usually smaller and more vulnerable to shipping costs, environmental damage to infrastructure, and isolation from other economies than those of larger, continental countries (excluding Japan, Australia and the U.K.) ^[10][11][12] The dominant industry for many island countries is tourism.^[13]

Composition[link]

Island countries are typically small with relatively low populations.^[14]

Some island countries are centred on one or two major islands, such as the United Kingdom, Trinidad and Tobago, New Zealand and Singapore. Others are spread out over hundreds or thousands of smaller islands, such as the Philippines, Indonesia, and the Maldives. Some island countries share their islands with other countries; these include the United Kingdom and Ireland, Haiti and the Dominican Republic, and Indonesia, which shares islands with Papua New Guinea, Brunei, East Timor and Malaysia.

Geographically, the country of Australia is considered a continental landmass rather than an island, covering the largest landmass of the Australian continent. In the past, however, it was considered an island country for tourism purposes^[15] and is still often referred to as such.^[16]

Climate change[link]

Climate change poses a threat to island nations. Rising sea levels provide obstacles including reduced land use, water scarcity and sometimes even resettlement issues for island nations. In 2011, the Center for Climate Change Law (CCCL) held a conference attended by 272 registrants from 39 island nations titled Legal Issues for Threatened Island Nations.^[17]

See also[link]

References[link]

A house for sale in London

An estate agent is a person or business that arranges the selling, renting or management of properties, and other buildings, in the United Kingdom and Ireland. An agent that specialises in renting is often called a letting or management agent. Estate agents are mainly engaged in the marketing of property available for sale and a solicitor or licensed conveyancer is used to prepare the legal documents. In Scotland, however, many solicitors also act as estate agents, a practice that is rare in England and Wales.

It is customary in the United Kingdom and in Ireland to refer to real estate or real property simply as property.

The estate agent remains the current title for the person responsible for the management of one group of privately owned, all or mostly tenanted, properties under one ownership. Alternative titles are Factor, Steward or Bailiff depending on the era, the region and the extent of the property concerned.

Origin[link]

The term originally referred to a person responsible for managing a landed estate, while those engaged in the buying and selling of homes were "House Agents", and those selling land were "Land Agents". However, in the 20th century, "Estate Agent" started to be used as a generic term, perhaps because it was thought to sound more impressive. Estate agent is roughly synonymous in the United States with the term real estate broker.

The job of the agent is to know his or her community and local factors that can increase or decrease property prices. e.g. if a new road or airport is to be built this can blight houses nearby. Equally, the closing of a quarry or improvement of an area can enhance prices. It is the job of the agent to value based on what has, or has not sold in comparison and to achieve the best price for their client.

Regulation[link]

The full legal term and definition of an estate agent within the UK can be found on the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) website. Enforcement of these regulations is also the responsibility of the OFT.

In the United Kingdom, residential estate agents are regulated by the Estate Agents Act 1979 and the Property Misdescriptions Act 1991, as well as, the more recently enacted Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Act 2007.^[1]

For residential property, there is a trade association for estate agents, the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA). NAEA members can be disciplined for breaches of their code of conduct.^[2] Their disciplinary process includes everything from cautions and warnings right through to more severe penalties of up to £5,000 for each rule breached.^[3]

Some estate agents are members of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), the principal body for UK property professionals, dealing with both residential, commercial and agricultural property. Members, known as "Chartered Surveyors", are elected based on examination and are required to adhere to a code of conduct, which includes regulations about looking after their clients' money and professional indemnity insurance in case of error or negligence.

The Ombudsman for Estate Agents Scheme,^[4] which obtained OFT approval for the Code of Practice for Residential Sales in and, as of November 2006 claims to have 2,532 member agencies.

There is a legal requirement to belong to either organisation to trade as an estate agent. Agents can be fined if they are not a member of a redress scheme. The redress scheme was brought in alongside and to govern agents in reference to the HIP (Home Information Pack).

Industrial structure[link]

A handful of national residential estate agents chains exist, such as Connells, with the majority being locally or regionally specialised companies.

Several multi-national commercial agencies exist, typically being Anglo-American, pan-European or global. These firms all seek to provide the full range of property advisory services, not just agency.

Only a handful of large firms trade in both commercial and residential property.

Fees[link]

Lettings[link]

Estate agents who handle lettings of commercial property normally charge between 7–10% of the first year's rent as fees, in addition to taking the first month's rent in its entirety. If two agents are charging 10%, they will split the fee between them. Estate agents selling commercial property (known as investment agents) typical charge 1% of the sale price.

The fees charged by residential letting agents vary, depending on whether the agent manages the property or simply arranges for new tenants. Charges to prospective tenants can vary from zero to £300 in non-refundable fees usually described as "Application", "Administration" or "Processing" fees (or all three). There are no guidelines for letting agents on charges, except that they are forbidden by law to charge a fee for a list of properties. Otherwise, they are free to charge as they please.

The first month's rent in advance plus a refundable bond (usually equal to one month's rent) is also generally required. Most residential lettings in the UK are governed by "Assured Shorthold Tenancy" contracts. Assured shorthold tenancies (generally referred to simply as "Shorthold") give less statutory protection than earlier, mostly obsolete, types of residential lettings. Shorthold tenancy agreements are standard contracts generally available from legal stationers and the internet for around £1.00, although most lettings agent will charge £30 to provide one.

It is important that tenant referencing checks are in place prior to a tenant moving into a property. The credit check can be run using credit history data from Equifax, Experian or Call Credit (the three main UK providers) using an in-house website system or a managed referencing service. A reputable agent will also ask for an employment reference and a previous landlord reference to verify that the tenant can afford the rental on the property and that there were no serious problems with the previous agent. It is also essential that proof of ID and proof of residency are also collected and filed.

Selling[link]

Estate agents selling residential property generally charge between 2% and 3% of the sale price plus VAT (Value Added Tax) Additional marketing charges are also applied for advertising, in media such as newspapers and websites.^[5]

Other approaches[link]

Since around 2000, online estate agents have provided an alternative to the traditional fee structure, claiming cheaper, fixed fee selling packages. These online estate agents claim to give private property sellers the ability to market their property via the major property portals (the preferred medium used by traditional high street estate agents) for a fraction of the cost of the traditional estate agency. New models have been introduced, which uses digital media screens in place of the agents traditional high street window. These screens allow agents to take their listings into remote locations where an office may otherwise not be available.

A report in 2010^[6] showed that online estate agents typically charge a fixed fee between £400 - £1,000 with some charging a further commission on sale and many charging additional fees for extra services such as the supply of a "For Sale" sign, professionally taken photographs and accompanied viewings.

In February 2010 the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) announced that a change in the legislation for estate agents has led to a shake up in the way homes are sold, allowing cheaper online agents to become more established than they could before.^[7]

New types of property portals based in the United Kingdom have started to encourage UK and worldwide estate agents to collaborate by showing all their properties, thus allowing site visitors to see a vast array of UK and overseas properties all on one website.

Screenshot of estate agency software programme dezrez which estate agents use to manage their estate agency

Many estate agents are using estate agency software to assist in the sale of houses. The latest technology enables home buyers to receive property details while outside a property, visit estate agents' websites for the latest listings and display properties for sale in the local vicinity using location based applications on mobile phones. A lot of property advertising is now automated for the agents using estate agents' software. Research undertaken in 2007 said that the most effective way of selling property is via 'For Sale' signs, 28% of customers had seen the estate agent's For Sale signs before researching more in depth into the properties. Searching for houses via the internet came in a close second (21%), with newspapers third at (17%). The fourth most effective way, and the most traditional, was customers visiting an estate agent's office (15%). However now in 2010 80/90%% of properties are found via the internet and agents see less people walking into their offices. Boards are still very effective, but many agents are now cutting out paper advertising and moving just to digital such as eMags and just the web.

Other methods included auctions (11%), word of mouth (3%) and leaflets (2%).

'Estate agent speak'[link]

Estate agents are known for their unique way of putting a positive spin on their description of properties. For example, 'in need of modernisation' may actually mean a great deal of repair work is required to a house.^[8]

See also[link]

• Buying agent
• Estate (house)
• Guaranteed home sale
• Price on application
• Real estate broker/agent

References[link]

External links[link]

• Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors
• National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA)
• The Independent Network of Estate Agents
• Association of Residential Lettings Agents (ARLA)