There has been an emerging trend in the property industry of new online estate agents who profess to be able to sell your property in record time. Trading standards has warned that all is not as it seems when it comes to these quick sell companies.
As the leading independent estate agent in Virginia Water and the surrounding areas, we recognise that trust is important in our industry and like to make our readers and clients aware of the risks and pitfalls of using such companies vs. a traditional agency.
Know the difference
There are a number of different types of agencies available to you when you come to sell your property.
The traditional estate agency generally has a high street premises and you can pop in to speak to the team for advice and updates on your transaction, should you need to.
Hybrid agencies claim to offer the same service as a traditional agent but are based online and tend not to have a central office which accommodates the agency staff.
There are also simple online agencies that will provide you a website upon which to list your property but offer few of the services the previously mentioned agency types do.
Then you have quick sale firms that will either buy your property or find a third party buyer very quickly, paying cash and usually at a discount from the full market value.
While this isn’t an exhaustive list of the types of agencies out there, it’s important to know which one you are dealing with.
Don’t lose out on your sale
Did you know that using a quick sale firm to complete your property transaction could end up costing you tens of thousands of pounds? These agencies purport to sell your home quickly; however, some companies agree to buy a house and reduce the price at the very last minute.
The Home Owners Alliance has found that:
“Fee structures are not always made clear to the customer. Some companies make false property valuations”
Some of these companies have been reported to have lowered the sale price of a property without the permission of the vendor. Such practices are illegal and carry up to two years in prison and an unlimited fine.
We are not saying that the quick sell service is wrong. In fact, as long as you know what you are signing up for you may find it a good way to sell your property, especially if you are on a time limit and finance is of no concern. It’s important to know exactly what you are dealing with so make sure you do your research and read the small print.
Watchdog on alert
Trading Standards is currently monitoring a number of estate agents offering a quick sale service in which they are undervaluing homes, leaving people out of pocket on their house sale.
One report detailed a specialist quick sale company had dropped the asking price of a property by £20,000 which would have left the vendor short of the figure they needed in order to complete on their new property.
Traditional agencies
There are a number of differences between online agencies and traditional agencies, and we may be somewhat biased but in our experience an increasing number of people who have tried online portals return to our more traditional methods for selling their property.
If you are looking to gain a quick sale, traditional estate agents may sometimes advise selling by auction. Auctions give buyers and sellers the chance to purchase and sell instantly.
On instruction, a traditional agency will invest in the marketing, social media campaign, photography and floor planning of your property and so it is in their best interest to get the best price for their client. Recouping their initial marketing investment and making the most of their commission rate is the ultimate goal for the agent. This means that they strive for the highest possible price, benefiting the vendor.
One of the most important aspects of traditional estate agency is the high levels of service; online agencies really can’t compete in this area. Excellent service promotes repeat business and the building of excellent reputations. That’s why we’re in the business of building relationships. We believe that if you have a great experience, you’ll be back to us when you decide to sell your property – and we’ve been at it for 150 years.
Get in Touch
If you are thinking of moving to the area, make sure you take a look at our amazing catalogue of properties for sale in Virginia Water and the surrounding areas.
If you’d like to speak to someone about properties to let in Virginia Water, a member of our expert team would be happy to help. You can call us on 01344 843000 or email us. You can also follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
