Should we change Estate Agents?

[Tblock1800]

Hi guys, our 2 bed apartment is currently on the market and has been for nearly 2 months now with an independent Estate agent. It’s a lovely property (our 1st home) in Surrey very close to shops, Surgery, chemist etc, but also has beautiful views of the common so the summer is lovely sitting out on the balcony. It’s still in excellent condition as was a new build when we bought it 7 years ago. Rooms are both double bedrooms and has lots of space. It’s certainly priced appropriately for the market and type of property it is.

The issue is our estate agents has only managed to get us 2 viewers in nearly 2 months. 2 viewers pulled out which isn’t their fault, but am i being unreasonable into thinking we should have a bit more interest?

I spoke to a larger firm today Cubit and West about potentially taking them on when our contract with our current estate agents is up which is next month and they believe we should be getting more interest for our property. Obviously they are going to big our place up because they want commission, but they have sold similar properties like ours recently.

We are looking at upgrading to a 3 bedroom house, as we have a 3 year old and 8 month old now and need the room and garden etc.

would you expect your estate agents to get you more viewings than just 2 people in 2 months? I just think a bigger firm might have a bit more clout, contacts and more input at selling it rather than relying completely on right move

Rightmove obviously does, but still think possibly people might even look at websites of big estate agents as well

I never have. Did you?

This.

Some Eas are impossible to get hold of and a lot of them are understaffed and it puts people off. Different market, but I have had trouble getting rental viewings up to 10 days in advance this year.

I hear you OP. My flat has been on the market for six months. No offers. Turns out the EA WAYYY overpriced it, so I'm reducing it and reducing it. Problem is, these reductions are now on RM and buyers are now asking, what's wrong with it? So I'll be re-listing with another agency soon.

I think EAs are still living in a time when we had super-low interest rates and pre-Truss muck-up. It's just not like that now, and buyers are choosy. Or moving to much cheaper areas. (I'm in London)

I think the problem is more that agents are living in a time where vendors use price largely as a way to choose which agent to instruct.

the agent who gives accurate marketing price advice won’t get instructed all that much

People don’t walk into EAs so often these days @Tblock1800 , or view lots of separate EA websites, they are far more likely to find properties to view by browsing Rightmove where it’s all there in one place.

My son's just bought. All research done by Rightmove and a couple of other websites, but Rightmove mainly including daily update emails. Requests to view sent via Rightmove. Only at that point did he note the agents name. At this point, they would call him/email.

He made 2 offers on 2 properties. Second one accepted.

Never set foot in an EAs office nor looked in a window.

What was also interesting is, once they knew he was looking, none ever sent him details of other properties they have on the market. Although one did encourage him to view another at the same time.

I've never looked on an estate agents website for anything, large or small and we have bought and sold a number of times.

If the rightmove listing is good in terms of description, floorplan, the photos are good and the local area is nice then it'll be a question of time or price.

I agree with all the PP, it needs to be on rightmove and/or zoopla, if people are moving to a new area they're not going to know the local agents to even go browsing their websites. People are time poor these days and expect everything at the click of a button.

What you should do is drop the price, lovely. It is a buyers market right now.

Virtually noone looks on agent's websites or visits their offices to find a place.
You sound absolutely convinced a bigger agent will make a difference but if the listing is already good (are you really, really sure?) and the price is the same, I think it is incredibly unlikely they will magic up some buyers who hadn't previously been aware of your flat.

OP, are the Rightmove pics showhome quality? And I mean spotless, spared down and clean, selling a fantasy lifestyle for two young professionals or young couple with a baby, no clutter , toys or any sign anyone actually lives there in your pics!!

You've got a few seconds to catch someones eye as they doom scroll through 100's of 2 beds and in Surrey there's a lot of towns and commuter neighbourhoods to choose from!

Especially if its an identikit Surrey new build, it needs to stand out. I always put in my postcode , price range and take a look how it stands up to the competition.

Agents contract out a lot of their photo's these days and these guys will just turn up and take pics the best they can, its even worse when its an agent taking the pics, some are truly awful at showing the place at its best, considering how important it is.

With rightmove and zoopla, you don't need agents to drive viewing it happens without trying as along as it's a fair price, well presented photos. Almost everyone starts their search on rightmove.
It's just a perception that larger fancy office they charge more fees will do more for you.
Flats can take a while to sell, less in demand and you can sometimes buy a small terrace freehold house for the same amount.

Pretend to be a buyer. Hide your number, make a new email address. Ring the agents to ask about your flat, and submit a request through rightmove. Or get a friend to. Find out how hard your agent your agent is actually working for you.

If all the comparable properties are priced the same, then on the one hand that’s great. But on the other: why should someone buy yours?

Flats can be a nightmare to sell. People worry about cladding, insurance, freeholders, management fees, parking, etc etc. Get as many of those closed off in the agents blurb as you can.

And yes, consider dropping your price. A property is only worth what someone will pay for it.

I did use agents websites in a recent search purely because some of them allowed you to filter properties with different criteria to RightMove which allowed us to narrow down properties given we had quite a wide search area and these particular features were non-negotiable. Though once I’d found something I was straight on RM to find it as their listings were always so much easier to look at than any agent’s website.

Is there an equivalent for flats e.g. an agent who allows you to search by length of lease or service charge amount or something like that? In which case, yes, that could be worth getting on to.

Thanks for the input guys, but i’m still convinced a bigger estate agent will get us the traction we need. I think they have more people on their database who are looking for homes like ours who they can call immediately when we go live with them. Cubit and West also offer a open house day straight away which i asked about to our current agents and it was never done. They almost dismissed it as not being something EA’s do anymore which is false. Unfortunately our current EA are like a 2 man band and originally we thought by going with a much smaller firm, we would get a more hands on approach rather than a big EA just seeing it as another sale. I have had Cubit and West over to see our property and they think the price is fine. So everyone saying it’s the price, It isn’t overpriced. A flat in our small block sold for exactly the same price as we have it now earlier on in the year and i would say their apartment doesn’t have the views we have. I’m going to go with my gut, serve the notice to my current EA as they still have a month left and if we don’t see during that period, we will go with one of the big boys. I will give you all an update in the future on the progress but i believe we will get more viewings with a bigger EA. Just my opinion.

So did i. I always check the big websites because their properties go live usually a day before it hits Right move so potentially you can get ahead by showing your interest quickly. People do still look at Estate agents websites

I have had Cubit and West over to see our property and they think the price is fine

Of course they'd say that!

It's part of the sales pitch. If they were to come in and say "ah, actually it is rather overpriced, nothing that your agent is doing wrong, just priced too high." then you're far less likely to switch.

An 'open house' works best when you've got a house, normally needing loads of work, that you know is going to attract loads of interest, or a property where you've pitched the price artificially low. It is not likely to have any impact for a modern flat that has already been on the market a while.

Whether an agent has 1 office or 101 matters nothing today, there aren't any special group of buyers saying to themselves "I'm only buying a property that's on with Cubitt & West."

In my opinion you've fallen for the sales spiel, but I hope it works out for you.

It’s your prerogative @Tblock1800 to switch to a bigger EA. I don’t personally believe it will help but at least you will know you tried everything (plus I could be wrong of course).

I doubt that changing EA will make any difference. I went for the cheapest as the house would be on Rightmove whatever agent I used.

I think that price is everything. If the market is slow, people want a bargain. Lower your asking price. You will probably be able to negotiate a good price on a purchase. I took a ridiculously low offer and made a low offer. My new house has one the same opposite for sale at £32,000 more than I paid, which is 10 per cent more. It will sell for that price as several have sold at that price nearby recently.

Where I am flats are just not shifting, and those looking for flats are wary of leasehold properties with high service charges. Flat sellers who need to move have had to drop to less than similar properties went for last year.

Serious buyers register with agents in the areas they are interested in and sign up for Rightmove alerts.

The only advantage of changing agents will be that your property will be sent out as new by Rightmove so that it might catch the attention of a buyer. Try & make sure the listing looks as different as possible to the previous one if you can.

It will be interesting to get an update when you do switch agents/get an offer op because I'm another that assumes the price isn't competitive.

I'm in a similar position, if I sell I need to maximise the price I get because the next rung up the ladder is a huge jump in price and I'm not very mortgageable with a small child still in nursery for a while.

Good luck, hope it works out for you.

Good luck!

The market is really slow. First people were waiting to see how a new govt bedded in, and now they're waiting for the budget; and flats were a struggle to sell anyway + the difficulty of finding affordable mortgages.
You could try going for a shared agmnt where it's on with both agents. Costs more though and the market really is a bit dire.

Thanks guys, switching agents and going with Cubit and West. I get people saying i have fallen for the sales pitch etc, but end of the day our current EA are not delivering the goods. If i was just going to rely on Right move only and not have a more proactive EA, then i might as well just go and sell it on purple bricks for half the price and do the viewings myself. I pay them for a service and would expect a little more than just sitting on their ass waiting for Right move calls. Cubit and West for arguments sake had another apartment for sale very similar Spec and price as ours in the same area, but a different complex. My current current EA also have a apartment for sale in that same complex as Cubit and west. Cubit and west sold that apartment 2 weeks ago whilst my current EA still has the same place for sale. Could be pot luck possibly, but it Tells me all i need to know. Will keep you all updated on it :)

Guys, have put my notice in so in 2 weeks will officially be moving EA'S. Just out of interest and i'm certainly not expecting it. what if we get a viewing/offer in the 2 week notice period with my current EA? OR is it a case once your notice is in, your EA kind of pulls the plug completely