HOW TO APPPOINT THE BEST ESTATE AGENT FOR YOU AND YOUR PROPERTY
When you sell your property, it’s vital that you find the estate agent that is best suited to you and your home.
Firstly, select a shortlist of estate agents…
When it comes to choosing the best estate agent for your circumstances, it helps if you can shortlist your options down to two. If you use my tips below to help you draw up a shortlist of two, you can then organise for the agents to visit and carry out a market appraisal.
Ask family, friends and neighbours as it is always good to have a personal recommendation.
Compare local estate agents based on the facts: which estate agent has the majority of properties for sale in your locality? How quickly do they sell property? Which agent has agreed the highest number of sales in the last 12 months? You can use the ‘Find Agent’ button on Rightmove to compare available and under offer stock levels for estate agents in your locality.
Make sure the agent has experience of selling property like yours. Check there are properties similar to yours on their website.
Look at the photographs produced by the agent. Are they good quality? After all, a picture is worth a thousand words!
Look at the estate agent’s website. Which website do you like best and which is easiest to navigate your way around?
What is their viewing policy? Check they will accompany potential buyers when you are not available.
Once you have your shortlist of two agents from carrying out the above checks; book appointments for them to visit your home and provide a marketing appraisal. When the estate agents visit, it is a good opportunity for you to ask them some further questions to help find the right one to sell your home. You should ask:
How quickly do they sell homes on their books? How many sales have they agreed within the last 12 months?
What is their reasoning behind the value they’ve given your property?
How long were they with you at the appointment? Were they thorough in the information they provided you with?
Will details of your property be shared with their colleagues? It’s good if more than one person in the office can talk enthusiastically and with knowledge about your property. Will they get the sales negotiators to visit? If the valuer is the only person to see the property, it is not much use as, at the end of the day, they are rarely in the office taking calls and speaking to potential buyers!
What hours are they contactable? A surprising number of agents are only contactable between 9am and 5pm during the week and until lunchtime on Saturdays, which means they are less accessible to potential buyers.
What is the full process from point of instruction to sale completion? Do they have dedicated departments to assist along the way?
Don’t be fooled by the valuations you are given. Agents know that one of the main reasons people pick them is the valuation they give. Estate agents take two general approaches:
Some agents give deliberately optimistic valuations, to make you think you can get a higher price with them, and then try and talk you down when the level of interest is low.
Some agents insist they are giving a realistic price and tell you not to be fooled by falsely high valuations.
The agent should come armed with evidence of local sold prices to support their valuation. It’s always advisable to take the advice of the estate agent, but it’s worth noting that, within reason, it is you and not the agent who decides what price to put the property on at.
How will they market your property?
One of the most important factors that will influence which estate agent you choose is how they plan to market your property. You need to understand what their plans are and be comfortable with their approach. Ask them:
Which portals are they using? It is the big property portals you need to be listed on; the main one being Rightmove.
Are they able to gain press coverage in local newspapers and magazines? If you are selling a higher end property, will they be able to feature it in any national newspapers or magazines?
Will your property feature in their high street window?
How many buyers does the agent have on their database that are looking for your type of property?
Will your property be listed on social media?
Final thoughts when choosing an estate agent…
Make sure you get along with your estate agent and that you trust them. They will be the first point of contact for any potential buyers, so you need to make sure that they will represent you and your property well.
We have had the pleasure of servicing a variety of clients...
GSC Grays were recommended to me and in the years which I have worked with them, I have found their approach excellent. They take a long term view and provide exactly the right balance between pushing things on whilst keeping me informed – I am delighted to have them on board.
C.C
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Excellent HomeBuyer Report service. Survey completed promptly and initial comments delivered by telephone within twenty-four hours with comprehensive written report received by post shortly after. Clear, concise documentation, which includes advice on rectifying defects and issues that legal advisors may wish to investigate, all professionally presented in a bound booklet enabling a timely informed decision to be achieved in respect of the purchase of the property. Thoroughly recommended.
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GSC Grays have always provided a professional and friendly letting service for me. Their regular updates and communication have meant total peace of mind that my properties are being managed with the up most of care. I would definitely recommend GSC Grays to other landlords.
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When your largest cost in selling/purchasing a new house is the estate agent fees it is a rather large cost to accept, especially with things like Rightmove been involved. However, once my sale was agreed and it was passed over to Catherine in the sales progression team I do believe the fee was easier to stomach as her role in the sale/purchase was worth its weight in gold, and without it, there is no doubt in my mind that things would have not got done in the timescales we and our seller wanted. I really do appreciate all of Catherine’s advice and help in keeping the whole process moving.
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Thank you so much to the Barnard Castle Branch and the Sales Progression team for all your help with the purchase of our new home. We are absolutely delighted with the property and were really impressed by the service and experience we had at GSC Grays.
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Thank you to everyone at GSC Grays for your friendly professionalism over the past two years and especially in more recent weeks. I greatly appreciated all you do and would have no hesitation in recommending you to anyone!
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GSC Grays were recommended to me and in the years in which I have worked with them, I have found their approach excellent. They take a long term view and provide exactly the right balance between pushing things on whilst keeping me informed – I am delighted to have them on board.
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Theakston Land has worked with Calum and his team for many years. That work has included a detailed analysis of costs to maximise value. The development appraisal work undertaken with GCS Grays means that I am confident we are getting the best possible price. They make a positive contribution at all levels and help to drive forward long term and complex development projects.
S Marlow Theakston Land
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