19th Feb 2025 (5 weeks ago)
Polite, friendly staff. Named agent who was our person on the case - always returned calls promptly if they were busy when I called. Good, efficient service.
They have a dedicated person to help push things through with solicitors which really helped, and they have local solicitors with whom they have a good relationship that
you can use and that helps speed things along.
In general:
I learnt that these days, estate agents come having done an internet search to determine the value of your home - that seems to remain even when unknown extra features are divulged, so don't suppose your loft conversion or your solar panels are making your property vastly better than others.
Thanks to the market changes, I sold for way lower than the initial valuation but as friends of mine advised me - the value of a house is dependent on what people are prepared to pay for it. If houses like yours are ten-a-penny you won't be able to keep a high asking price; if the market crashes or interest rates go up, people don't make the offers you dream of. I also think that an agent calculates the commission they will receive on the first (for example) 300k, if they say to you you'll get near 400K, that's just a bonus for them; when the house doesn't sell for months and months they start pushing you to accept lower offers because they are still advertising the house and showing people round, but they are not getting their money yet.
I found it odd that it was quite clear they did not want me showing people round or even being there (they said if I was in when they appeared with a viewer they would give me time to leave!), and as it was an empty property with a neighbour's car in the garage I was asked 'when is that going' as if it was their house. They looked put-out when I said 'when the house is sold'.
They did give good advice on how to present the house - it being vacant it was important to leave some furniture to give an idea of space - people will wonder if their sofa or bed would fit in a room for example.
They know the area and the market and help guide you through (even if there is a hint of sometimes forgetting whose house it is) and I would recommend them.... Read more