Online Estate Agents....to use or not

googler

nonnatus wrote: »

...... dealt with just the one agent who knew me and my property properly. She conducted all the viewings herself.

She/they weren't truly an 'online' agent, then .... They must have been local to you - how else could they reasonably travel to your house for the viewings? I can't imagine, if you were selling in Cornwall, that a rep from an online agent based in Manchester would do your viewings ....

Charlton_King

Davesnave wrote: »

There is no Rightmove monopoly. Zoopla has become increasingly popular and Prime Location still exists, though its popularity is lower. Most agents have heir own sites, but these are only worth bothering with individually if someone is looking for niche property. e.g. smallholdings.

Would you like the government to place some kind of restriction on the big portals to give others a greater market share? How would having a multiplicity of sites to check for new property help the consumer?

Er... by the introduction of competition and consequent lowering of prices charged to estate agents and the onward transmission of this to consumers.

Personally, as a potential buyer I don't mind checking around a few
sites and certainly as a seller I'd welcome any reduction at all in the totally outrageous, semi cartel prices in operation among the high street estate agents... hence my interest in the online agents who, I suspect, will be grabbing market share hand over fist in the coming years.

Davesnave

Charlton_King wrote: »

Er... by the introduction of competition and consequent lowering of prices charged to estate agents and the onward transmission of this to consumers.

Personally, as a potential buyer I don't mind checking around a few sites and certainly as a seller I'd welcome any reduction at all in the totally outrageous, semi cartel prices in operation among the high street estate agents... hence my interest in the online agents who, I suspect, will be grabbing market share hand over fist in the coming years.

I see. So, it would be a bit like the situation with car insurance, where one has to go through quite a detailed search to achieve full market coverage.

I wonder how many people do. Martin has written a guide to make it easier. It still isn't 'easy.'

Indeed, some of us remember the days before almost total coverage via Rightmove and Zoopla, when unearthing a new property before others was something of a black art. Like you, I didn't mind; in fact I quite enjoyed the challenge, but I suspect I was in a minority. Most people aren't property nerds.

As a seller, I really don't want to make it harder for potential buyers to find my property. At present, I know that if my house goes on one or both of the big portals, it will be seen by virtually everyone who matters. I can already do this via an on-line agent, so getting a lower price for this service in exchange for more fragmented coverage wouldn't interest me.

That's just a personal view. See what others think.

RedfordML

Baroness_67 wrote: »

I'm looking to put my house on the market and am considering using an online agent, which is 10 times cheaper than high street agent, saving £1000s. Has anyone sold/bought via an online agent? What was your experience?

My brother did. Had it on a few weeks, first viewing (which they had to do) - offer came in. A little negotiation, got a great price.

I would def consider this method, we sold a few months before, high street agent which cost us considerably more, even though my brothers house sold for nearlly £150k more!!

If you are happy to do viewings and sign up with an online agent that uses Rightmove, surely the only way forward. With so much information at your finger tips, its much easier these days to get an understanding of property value.

gl

patman99

I guess that the EA business model will change to online over time.
It was only 30 years ago that EAs advertised properties with just a printed description.

If this forum had existed 30 years ago when a photo-journolist called Paul Smith became the first person in the UK to use a photograph to sell his dad's pub after it had been listed in Daltons for months without any interest, do you think there would have been a thread entitled 'Should I use a photo to sell my house?'.