It's 10:23am on a Tuesday. Your negotiator needs to update a property's status. The landlord called yesterday—they've decided not to let the property after all.
She opens the property record. Clicks "Change Status." Sees six options:
- Available to Let
- Under Negotiation
- Let STC (Subject to Contract)
- Let
- Withdrawn
- Not For Advertising
She pauses. "Wait... is this 'Withdrawn' or 'Not For Advertising'? What's the difference?"
This hesitation happens dozens of times per week across your team. Every status change requires thinking: "Which one is correct? What's the difference between these similar options? What happens to Rightmove if I choose this?"
This week, we fixed this problem. We removed the "Not For Advertising" status completely. LetAdmin now has five crystal-clear property statuses. No ambiguity. No confusion. Faster updates, fewer mistakes.
This article explains why we removed a status option, how the simpler workflow prevents errors, and what it means for agencies trying to manage properties efficiently without constant second-guessing.
The Problem: Six Statuses, Constant Confusion
Most letting agents manage property status updates dozens of times per day:
- Landlord approved advertising → change to "Available to Let"
- Tenant applied → change to "Under Negotiation"
- References passed → change to "Let STC"
- Tenancy started → change to "Let"
- Landlord withdrew property → change to... "Withdrawn"? Or "Not For Advertising"?
That last decision trips everyone up.
What's the Difference Between "Withdrawn" and "Not For Advertising"?
Here's the question we heard repeatedly from agencies testing LetAdmin:
"If a landlord says 'stop advertising but keep it in the system,' is that 'Not For Advertising' or 'Withdrawn'?"
Good question. Even we weren't entirely sure.
- "Withdrawn" suggests the property is completely off the market—landlord changed their mind, sold the property, decided not to let anymore
- "Not For Advertising" suggests the property still exists but isn't being promoted—maybe waiting for landlord approval, preparing the listing, holding it back temporarily
But in practice? These scenarios overlap so much that staff couldn't tell which to use.
The Real-World Confusion
Scenario 1: Landlord says "don't advertise yet, I need to redecorate first"
- Should this be "Available to Let" (it will be available, just not yet)?
- Or "Not For Advertising" (it's not ready to advertise)?
- Or "Withdrawn" temporarily?
Scenario 2: You've stopped advertising a let property on Rightmove
- Should this be "Let" (because a tenant is in place)?
- Or "Not For Advertising" (because advertising stopped)?
Scenario 3: Landlord pulls out before advertising starts
- Should this be "Withdrawn" (landlord no longer wants to let)?
- Or "Not For Advertising" (property never got advertised)?
Every single scenario created hesitation. Staff had to think, guess, ask colleagues. "Which status should I use? What happens to Rightmove? Will this mess up our reporting?"
This cognitive overhead is expensive. Not in pounds, but in time—time spent thinking instead of doing, time spent second-guessing, time spent fixing mistakes when the wrong status was chosen.
The Solution: Five Clear Statuses, Zero Ambiguity
We removed "Not For Advertising" completely. LetAdmin now has five statuses that describe the property's actual state:
- Available to Let – Property is ready for viewings and applications
- Under Negotiation – Tenant is applying or discussing terms
- Let STC – Tenancy agreed but not yet signed
- Let – Tenant is in place, tenancy active
- Withdrawn – Property is off the market completely
Each status now has one clear meaning. No overlap. No confusion about when to use which.
What About Properties That Aren't Advertising Yet?
Here's the key insight: advertising and status are two different things.
- Status = Where is this property in the letting process?
- Advertising = Are we promoting this property on portals?
A property can be "Available to Let" without advertising—maybe you're preparing photos, waiting for landlord approval, or the listing isn't ready yet.
In LetAdmin, advertising is now a separate toggle. You explicitly start or stop advertising. No confusing status changes. No wondering "does changing status affect Rightmove?"
The New Workflow
Before (with "Not For Advertising"):
- Landlord says "don't advertise yet, photos aren't ready"
- Staff thinks: "Do I set status to 'Not For Advertising'? Or 'Available to Let' but somehow prevent advertising? Or 'Withdrawn' temporarily?"
- Staff makes best guess, hopes it's correct
- Later, someone else sees "Not For Advertising" and thinks "Why isn't this advertising? Should I change it?"
After (with five clear statuses):
- Landlord says "don't advertise yet, photos aren't ready"
- Staff sets status to "Available to Let" (because it will be available)
- Staff keeps advertising switched OFF (because it's not ready to promote)
- When photos are ready, staff clicks "Start Advertising"
- Later, anyone looking at the property sees: Status = Available to Let, Advertising = Off. Crystal clear.
No confusion. No guessing. No second-guessing what someone else meant.
What Happens to Rightmove Integration
The old "Not For Advertising" status complicated Rightmove sync:
- If you change status to "Not For Advertising," should we remove the property from Rightmove? Or mark it unavailable? Or leave it as-is?
- If we remove it, do we lose historical performance data?
- If we keep it, does "Not For Advertising" still appear in Rightmove's backend?
Every option had downsides. So different staff chose different approaches, creating inconsistent Rightmove data.
The Simplified Rightmove Workflow
With five clear statuses and separate advertising control, Rightmove sync is now straightforward:
- Status changes update the property record on Rightmove (Available to Let → Under Negotiation → Let)
- Advertising ON/OFF controls whether the property appears publicly on Rightmove
- Property records stay in Rightmove's system preserving historical data and performance metrics
No complex decisions. No "should we remove this?" questions. Just clear, predictable syncing.
Real-World Example: The Friday Afternoon Mistake
Before the five-status system:
3:47pm on a Friday. A landlord calls: "My tenants are staying another year, stop advertising the property."
The negotiator opens LetAdmin, changes status from "Available to Let" to "Not For Advertising."
What actually happened:
- Property stayed on Rightmove (because "Not For Advertising" didn't trigger removal)
- Enquiries kept coming in over the weekend
- Monday morning: 4 prospective tenants booked viewings
- Negotiator has to call everyone: "Sorry, that property isn't actually available"
- Lost credibility. Wasted time. Frustrated tenants.
Why the mistake happened: "Not For Advertising" sounded like it would stop advertising, but it didn't actually do anything to Rightmove. The status name was misleading.
After the five-status system:
3:47pm on a Friday. A landlord calls: "My tenants are staying another year, stop advertising."
The negotiator:
- Changes status from "Available to Let" to "Let" (because tenants are staying)
- LetAdmin detects the change and prompts: "This property is currently advertising. Would you like to stop advertising now?"
- Negotiator clicks "Yes, stop advertising"
- Rightmove property is immediately updated to unavailable
Result:
- Property marked correctly as "Let"
- Advertising stopped on Rightmove
- No weekend enquiries for unavailable property
- Monday morning: nothing to fix
The difference? Clear status + explicit advertising control = no room for mistakes.
Time Savings: Less Thinking, More Doing
How much time does your team spend thinking "which status should I use?"
Before the five-status system, we measured this at Phillip James:
- Average status change: 47 seconds (open property, consider options, pick status, save)
- Time spent thinking about which status: ~12 seconds per change
12 seconds doesn't sound like much. But multiply across your portfolio:
- 150 properties
- Average 0.5 status changes per property per month
- 75 status changes per month
- 75 × 12 seconds = 15 minutes per month wasted on indecision
Plus the mistakes:
- Wrong status chosen → need to fix it → another 47 seconds
- Estimate 5% error rate with six statuses → 4 corrections per month
- 4 × 47 seconds = 3 minutes per month fixing mistakes
Total overhead: 18 minutes per month thinking and fixing status confusion.
With five clear statuses:
- Average status change: 35 seconds (12 seconds faster—no thinking required)
- Error rate: <1% (statuses are clear and unambiguous)
- Corrections: ~1 per month × 47 seconds = 47 seconds
Time saved: 17 minutes per month.
For a 150-property agency, that's 3.4 hours per year saved on just status management. Not huge, but not nothing—and that's just the measurable time. The unmeasurable benefit? Less mental fatigue. Less second-guessing. More confidence.
What Your Team Will Notice
If you start using LetAdmin with the five-status system, here's what your staff will experience:
Faster Status Updates
No more pausing to think "is this the right one?" Five clear options. Pick the one that matches reality. Done.
Clearer Rightmove Control
Status describes the property. Advertising toggle controls portals. Two separate decisions, both crystal clear.
Better Handoffs Between Team Members
When someone else looks at a property later, they understand immediately: "Status = Let, Advertising = Off" means tenants are in place and we stopped promoting it. No ambiguity about what "Not For Advertising" meant.
Fewer Mistakes
Clearer options = fewer wrong choices = less time fixing errors.
Why We're Telling You This
Most software companies don't write blog posts about features they removed. Deletion doesn't feel like progress.
But this is exactly the kind of software decision that matters for busy letting agents:
You don't need software with every possible option. You need software that's fast, clear, and prevents mistakes. Sometimes that means having fewer choices, not more.
We're building LetAdmin based on how letting agents actually work—not based on theoretical features that sound good but create confusion in practice.
The six-status system seemed comprehensive. The five-status system is better because it's simpler, clearer, and harder to get wrong.
We'd Love to Hear from You
How does your current software handle property statuses? Do you ever hesitate about which status to choose?
Have you ever made a Rightmove mistake because status changes didn't do what you expected?
What would make property management clearer for your agency?
Get in touch: paul@letadmin.com
LetAdmin is in active development, built by letting agents for letting agents. The five-status system has been running at Phillip James (370+ properties) since September 2024 with zero status-related Rightmove errors. If you're interested in seeing how it works or want to join the priority list, we'd love to hear from you.