Estate agents are banning term ‘master bedroom’ in wake of blm

It comes in the wake of the death of George Floyd in May which saw a spike in global support for the Black Lives Matter movement with protests erupting around the world. Now, when showing

properties, estate agents have claimed they have changed their language to ensure it "does not offend" potential buyers. Jeremy Gee, managing director of Beauchamp Estates in

Mayfair said he was swapping the term master bedroom or suite for “principal”. He said: “In a typical week we are selling to a British couple one day, a family from Saudi Arabia, Nigeria or

Hong Kong another day and a same-sex couple from Britain, France or America on another day. “We always try to use neutral and non-offensive marketing terms. Using ‘his’ and ‘her’ bathrooms

would be incorrect if we are marketing to a same-sex couple, for instance.” The practice has been replicated in the USA as the Houston Association of Realtors (HAR) will no longer use the

term "master" to describe the primary bedroom of a home on their housing listings.   The company told The Times their property listing service will use "primary bedroom"

and "primary bath" noting that some members viewed the word "master" as sexist while others viewed it as racist. A company spokesman added: "The change of primary

bedroom and primary bath were among nine requests members submitted for review. "The overarching message was that some members were concerned about how the terms might be perceived by

some other agents and consumers. “Based on the discussion that took place, more members viewed the terms as sexist than racist, although some did view them as racist.” READ MORE: COVIDIOTS

RAIN ON CITY'S PARADE, SAYS CAROLE MALONE “The word master does carry historically racist undertones. “If it were to cause offence to any buyer, seller or tenant, we wouldn’t have a

second thought in amending our advertising material to remove it. “It is something we are considering doing to prevent such offences occurring.” It comes after Prime Minister Boris Johnson

said that people should not be "bullied" into "taking the knee" in support of the Black Lives Matter movement. Speaking on LBC, the Prime Minister indicated that he is

not prepared to follow the example of Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer - who was photographed in the symbolic act of support - saying he believes in "substance" not

"gestures".