Estate Agent Talk
Why don’t the public trust estate agents?
Perception is a funny thing. It’s often pretty far removed from reality. The Cambridge Dictionary definition of the word is this: Perception – a belief or opinion, often held by many people and based on how things seem. Note that it says ‘seem’ and not ‘how things really are’. The general perception of estate agents…
And now it hits the fan!
Way back in October 2015 when an in-out referendum was intended to mend rifts in the Conservative Party and the shortest serving England manager had seen out a full calendar year, the Deregulation Act took effect for all new tenancies in England. With fundamental changes to both the way in which repairs were handled and the…
Should estate agents’ professional standards rise to that of the kebab shop?
Last week, the Property Ombudsman published their latest report on complaints against the estate agency profession. Despite transactions not having increased in the last twelve months, customer complaints that have been upheld are up a whopping 32%. Compensation levied in favour of the consumer stands at over £800,000. A record by far. Standards are slipping….
Adios PR – I’m becoming an Estate Agent!
My friends and clients who work in estate agency all do very nicely by the look of things. Nice cars, smartly dressed, exotic holidays and often with a mini (or midi in some cases) property portfolio to keep them company during the slower months. I want some of that. I’ve had enough of the world…
3 of the most essential types of apps for estate agents and property managers
In 2016, we can officially say that most of the digital growth has completely switched from desktop to mobile use. Consequently, the mobile app market is becoming big business and keeps going from strength to strength: according to data released in an infographic by the University of Alabama, the app market will soon generate $77…
Christopher Walkey
When is the best time to sell my home?
‘When is the best time to sell my home?’ The obvious answer is to sell at the top of the market, however in practise, this is almost impossible to know and can come with many other factors to consider. The most popular time to sell a property tends to have always been in mid-spring or…
Enness Private
An Innocent Way of Doing Things Even for an Estate Agent
Last Friday I jumped in the car at 4.30am and drove up to north west London to visit Fruit Towers the fantastic HQ of innocent drinks. I grew up on the mean streets of NW10 just down the road from innocent so I felt like the not so prodigal son coming home. When I say…
Building on green belt land is now “inevitable”, says Aston Mead
Leading land agent Aston Mead says that campaigners in favour of maintaining the green belt need to accept that some of it will have to be built on, if a solution is to be found for the UK housing crisis. The company’s comments come after the release of a report from the Campaign to Protect…
Christopher Walkey
Cheap Fees in Estate Agency
My good lady wife loves shopping online. In fact, Amazon, they rang her last week to check she was Ok as she hadn’t ordered anything for three days (only kidding .. they rang after two days). She ordered some Gin glasses (not from Amazon) from the internet – you know the ones that look like…
Christopher Watkin
How to increase the value of your garden
A well-designed and maintained garden makes a property stand out and will definitely increase its price. Landscaping is a great way to turn your garden into a magnificent and very special place. Here are some great tips on how to increase the value of your garden and thus improve the state of your house. Take…
Alex Evans
The real cost of expanding or diversifying your agency
The motto ‘speculate to accumulate’ is true – growing or diversifying to capitalise on market conditions is a great way of increasing profits and building a more secure business model. The whole idea of growth, however, is to increase profitability and not see any new income wiped out by set up costs and bigger overheads….
ARPM
Ewe must be joking? – Add some Apple thinking to your agency’s efforts
I attended a seminar a couple of years back which featured Steve Wozniak , the co-founder and original brains behind Apple. He came across genuine, down to earth, and incredibly clever but I was bored by the end of his talk – so much so that I vividly recall wondering why Gangsta rappers don’t attract…
Why Purplebricks wont change the face of UK Estate Agency
If you are an estate agent, most of you are starting to become aware of the creeping menace of the online/hybrid threat that is Purplebricks and their bedfellows, EasyProperty, Yopa and alike. Things are changing in UK Estate agency, in fact things have changed in all aspects of life .. and nobody can deny that…
Christopher Watkin
Redundancies – and why we must fight another brain drain from the industry
Redundancies are almost always a shock and very sad for the people concerned. At the same time redundancies do create new and positive opportunities for both job-seekers and prospective employers. Only months ago, I was writing about skill shortages throughout the estate agency and letting agency sector. It was increasingly difficult for employers to entice…
Falling house prices forecast: what do they mean for London property?
In wake of the Brexit vote, many experts have been publishing market reports and forecasts for the year ahead, with the likes of Knight Frank, Countrywide and Halifax, all indicating a fall in house prices. Lower prices tend to breed uncertainty among buyers, however, they can in fact be an excellent opportunity to access greater…
Enness Private