to wonder what the fuck I am paying the bloody estate agent for

[BouncingTurtle]

Just spoken to them now, they haven't put the floor plans I sent to them on the website so I rang them again (after they failed to return my phone call last week).
Apparently one of them called and left a message (no he fucking didn't ) and spoke to me to say the floor plans couldn't be read (again no he didn't and the floor plans were a standard JPG file which I had downloaded when I bought my house from the housebuilder's website ).
In addition, apparently people have been enquiring about the house, but as it has been priced at the same price as a house on the same street (on the EA advice!!!) which is detached (ours is a semi but larger), people are apparently not interested.

So AIBU to think that
a) they are a bunch of fucking liars
b) they are not doing enough to get people to come and view
c) that they should be advising people that since we are very keen to move (we need to relocate as DH is starting a new job nearly 2 hours' drive away) that the price is very negotiable.
d) and they gave us crap advice in the first place?

Breathe and think of curry

We could all bring needles and thread to curry and make voodoo dolls if that would help

YANBU
Wish I had a solution, IMO they are all the same....but hope you feel better for venting

Yes that would be very handy I think.
They still haven't sent me back the copy of the agreement DH needs to sign, the dormant bastards.

Mmmmm curry... only 3 sleeps to go

YANBU - I never believe ANYTHING they tell me now, I just guess as to whats going on. THye will be getting 1% plus VAT from us IF we ever move which will be about £3000 and they did absolutly jack shit for it.

who are they - give initials?

Same here, slightlystressed - think I am in the wrong job!

Whoami - yes a good old rant is always helpful!

They are all great at their jobs when the housing market is booming and they're getting easy commission, but ask them to actually do a bit of selling and you have no chance. IME, the majority are useless...

who is it?

yanbu, of course, with very large knobs on

M&H they do have an office in the city near where you live so you may have heard of them.

Sorry that was to SPB!

If I ever move again, which is unlikely given all the stress we've gone through this time round, I will try and sell it myself.

Do you think "being able to bullshit till your blue in the face" is on the job description?

use someone else.

tell them why.

I agree with you - we are selling and our EA who are highly regarded and came recommended to us have been useless.
Agree with Bex, they are fine processing the sale, but no good at actually selling or trying to find a purchaser.

Disclaimer - I know ALL EA's arn't big fat liars - just the ones Ive met.

Have any of you thought of this/

Sarah Beeny's answer

It has grown and grown over the past few months and seems to have all you need to do it yourself.

I hate estate agents with a passion, even though I am in lettings.

Never again will I use an agent to buy or sell. I will do it all myself.

Yes I am sure that there must be some decent ones out there. The ones I have spoken to in the city we have been moving to have been very helpful.
I really wish I advertised it myself now, would save over £3000! We've already had to pay a bloody £200 registration fee that we won't get back!

I doubt this will get better, I would move now because it'll gall you no end when somebody walks in off the street having seen the board and buys it and you have to pay them £4k knowing they've done nothing right.

bouncingturtle why have you had to pay a registration fee?

I thought it was illegal to be charged for listing the property?

Surely there is a no sale no fee agreement?

I have never heard of an agent charging for this service before.

Tell them to get stuffed and get on to Tepilo, or advertise on Tepilo anyway? Check your agency agreement first though to make sure you are not on sole agency still.

YANBU

YANBU

I hate estate agents and letting agents.

Have bought/sold/rented/let and never found an agent I am happy with!

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!

Suggest that you are thinking of taking your business elsewhere and keep on their case!

Good luck!

I would like to come back in my next life as Sarah Beeny (of course minus the permanent pregnancy )

I think EA's get away with being shit because they know that psychologically, for you, it's harder to switch to a new EA and 'start over' than it is to put up with poor service and keep your fingers crossed that your house sells in the meantime.

We are still sole agency with them, the house has only been on the market about 6 weeks.

It is part of the T&C that there is a non refundable fee to pay at the beginning, beginning to think now i should have questioned that more - but they are part of a very large chain so of course stupid me didn't

We are doing the conveyancing through them as well as we get the HIP for free - if we leave now we will have to pay for the HIP as well.

I think that I am just going to light a fire under them as I don't want to go through the hassle of finding another (probably equally useless EA) and that Tepilo looks like a nice idea.

I hate them so much I am tempted to use the c word to describe them