How much fibbing can estate agents do to generate interest?

[WhoWhereWhatWhy]

I saw a house at the weekend which I’m really interested in buying. It’s been on the market for about 4-6 months, was reduced in price over two months ago.

I said how much I liked at at the viewing, and that I’d like to come back with my husband. The seller was at home at the time, and the seller and the agent were talking about leaving the gate open as there was a viewing just after mine. I thought no more of it. The seller is a developer, who has lived at the property with his family for the last few years after completion.

Im going back in a few days time to view with my husband, and have been emailing the agent about a time that suits. He’s offered a time (which suits me) and has said that there is a viewing about 15 minutes after mine would end.

Is this coincidence, that each of the viewings I’ve been to/am going to has another viewing scheduled to immediately after?! I know it could be, but is it more likely to be that the agent wants me to feel that there is some competition for the property? Or is that against a code of practice?

I think they would be unlikely to care frankly even if there was one. It's not like it's a professional standard.

If they need to sell a property, it's been on for months, personally, I reckon they'll do anything they can as long as it's not actively illegal.

Depending on the moral standards of the individual EA. And how pushy and immoral the actual seller is.

For a group who rarely do any actual work, ours got a starting salary of 35k without the sales benefits, so went up to £50k pretty fast, and a car. The admins who fielded the zillion phone calls with angry customers and did all the paperwork got half their basic and no bonuses at all. I am sure you earn £1mil though so probably not much in your world, no, just mere mortals.

In my experience, EAs will say anything they think you want to hear. Fact check absolutely everything, espcially anything with legal implications. I even had one EA lie about which direction a garden was facing.

Update: I waited in the car outside and the agent left five minutes after I did. Hmmm. Of course, the later viewing could have been cancelled by the prospective buyer …