An open love letter to ‘my’ estate agent ex

This is a true story. The name has been changed but the rest is described exactly as it happened.

On Friday afternoon while I was being treated to a day out by a client (I might send him a separate love letter) my wife answered the door to a stranger.

At least he felt like a stranger. His name was Nicholas and he was the estate agent that had sold us our home in East Sussex just over 16 months ago.

He was in the area and ‘doing valuations’.

I thought I’d send him an open letter by way of response. Here it is.

Dear Nicholas,

I know we only had a brief but intense, two month relationship but I felt compelled to send you this letter.

When we first met I was comforted by your integrity and ‘non pushy’ nature.

The fact that you represented your client well sat well with us because it showed you cared.

You handled the negotiations swiftly and with the minimum amount of fuss. We got the property we wanted, the vendor got the price they wanted, and you earned your commission.

Our love started waning on the day of completion.

I rang up your office on the big day to be told that you had left for ‘a rival agent down the road’.

It felt a little like a Dear John letter without the courtesy of the letter.

I picked up the keys to our new home when all the legal stuff and payments had gone through. I’ve been presented with Big Macs more enthusiastically. No theatre, nothing memorable, just a mental note to self ‘we won’t use this lot in the future’.

That wasn’t your fault as you weren’t there.

As we live in a small town we bumped into each other occasionally. But I felt a change in you.

The hellos were hurried, like a man who needed to get back to his car because he only had five minutes left on his parking ticket.

Then…….silence. Nothing. Tumbleweed.

Now this wouldn’t have been a problem at all. Life and love is fluid.

But, and it’s a bigger but than Kim Kardashian’s, when you ‘popped’ round out of the blue we felt a little used. All smiles and ‘how you settling in?’ Sixteen months after the event!!

We still think you are a decent chap, pretty good at your job but do we feel nothing more than another notch on your commission chart.

It could have been so different. You could have made us feel special and by doing that when it does come time for us to sell we would have had you top of the list of agents to work with.

Yours sincerely,

Jerry & Family.

The key point here is that Nicholas didn’t maintain the relationship.

He did his job, got the sale and moved on.

No problem but really clever PR would have been to keep things ticking over lightly.

Home buyers become home sellers and EVERYONE shares their estate agent experiences with others.

Jim Bowen on Bullseye used to tell deflated looking people who had lost out on the star prize ‘And here’s what you could’ve won’. I’ve a slight variation of this for my old mucker Nicholas.

“Here’s what you should have done.” Or at least considered.

When you left the agency we bought from, you could have let us know. Even informally.

After the sale, perhaps two weeks later, a courtesy call asking how we’re settling in etc.

An agent I work with sends one year, two year and five year birthday cards to people who have bought from them. You could start thinking like this.

Before popping round it would have been more of a courtesy to call in advance – We live in a cold calling area – not that I give a monkeys about that.

And finally having popped around you only give a verbal valuation – wouldn’t it have been better to send it in writing with some marketing material showing off how great your new agency is?

As my wise old Irish Uncle Tighe used to say about the art of successful relationships ‘Taking your wife to Paris for a weekend once every ten years is f’all compared to ‘small’ little acts of love and care done every day.’

PR is essentially how the public views your agency – all of the above is good PR.

Thanks for reading and here’s to your next instruction.

Jerry

PS: Have you downloaded our 10 Minute Guide to Powerful Property PR? Just like love – it’s FREE! Head over to www.propertyprexpert.co.uk to grab yours.

PPS: I haven’t sent him this letter because that’d be just plain weird.

 

Alex Evans

You May Also Enjoy

Breaking News

UK house prices growing by 2.5% according to Halifax

Nathan Emerson, CEO of Propertymark: “This slight dip in house prices will likely have been influenced as a direct consequence to the current state of the global economy. There will always be a need for people to move house regardless of international trading relations; however, many aspiring or current homeowners will no doubt be discouraged…
Read More
Breaking News

UK house prices dip slightly in May, but market remains steady

Average property price now £296,648 compared to £297,798 last month Annual rate of growth slows to +2.5% from +3.2% in April Overall house prices have remained stable so far this year Northern Ireland continues to lead annual price growth in the UK Amanda Bryden, Head of Mortgages, Halifax, said: “Average UK house prices fell by…
Read More
Breaking News

Estate Agent Content

Do you think that your estate agency / property business requires content? Is content marketing still a thing in 2025? Are you concerned if anyone will read your words? Is it worth investing in estate agent content? Businesses with blogs generate 67% more leads than those without. As competition for attention online increases it remains…
Read More
Breaking News

The cost of voids rises by £200 for England’s landlords

The latest analysis by Dwelly, one of the UK’s leading lettings acquisition and success planning experts, has found that landlords have been hit with a 26% increase in the cost of void periods in the past year, equivalent to lost income of almost £200. Dwelly analysed average void period data from March 2024 and March…
Read More
Breaking News

Breaking Property News 5/06/25

Daily bite-sized proptech and property news in partnership with Proptech-X. Demand Rises for Housing and Infrastructure Projects Rising demand for housing, infrastructure and energy projects across Wales has driven continued growth at Lichfields’ Cardiff office, which this year marks 25 years in the capital. The team of 17 planning professionals is one of the largest…
Read More
Breaking News

Construction continues to enjoy a season in the sun

Underlying performance is on the rise during Q.2 2025 Today, Glenigan, one of the construction industry’s leading insight experts, releases the June 2025 edition of its Construction Index. The Index focuses on the three months to the end of May 2025, covering all underlying projects, with a total value of £100m or less (unless otherwise…
Read More