Death of the estate agent?

AndrewSmith

MissMotivation wrote: »

The emphasis should have been on the "for nothing" part of the quote. Not many other professions would work and not get paid....which is what happens sometimes!

Try being a mortgage broker, with the added costs of regulation and compliance. Also we don't generally work and visit our clients only a stone's throw from our offices.

We have no control over the amount of commission we are paid by the lender, and still have to commit a lot of time expense and effort to every case whether it completes of not.

BobProperty

MissMotivation wrote: »

I think you have misunderstood what I was trying to say. Many self employed people have to look for the work but once they have found work they get paid for it. EA's by the very nature of their job do the work and sometimes even if they have done the work they may not get paid for it.

No I don't understand the point you are trying to make. You appear to be saying "I'm special" because you do all the work up front and then get paid at the end. "...and you think that's unusual?" (Bob Newhart IIRC)
OK some large jobs you might get a part payment but most of the examples I gave all get paid after the event, and only make money once the deal is done, work completed etc. You are no different.

AndrewSmith

In fact Bob I think that in general it is only retail or mail order where you actually pay up front.

Most other service related industries, even restaurants, are paid once the service or goods have been provided and used thus money outlayed.

All utilities etc also work on the basis of paying after the event.

MissMotivation

BobProperty wrote: »

No I don't understand the point you are trying to make. You appear to be saying "I'm special" because you do all the work up front and then get paid at the end. "...and you think that's unusual?" (Bob Newhart IIRC)
OK some large jobs you might get a part payment but most of the examples I gave all get paid after the event, and only make money once the deal is done, work completed etc. You are no different.

The difference is that sometimes we don't get paid at all! If you have taken this as meaning I think I am special then I apologise...I am no more special than the next person.....I was just pointing out a fact.

Thanks AndrewSmith...been trying to think of another profession that might not get paid even if they do the work.

movilogo

Can anyone tell how much average EAs earn? I know one guy who works in a big EA and moans that he himself can't afford a house of his own (in his early 30s)

BobProperty

MissMotivation wrote: »

The difference is that sometimes we don't get paid at all! If you have taken this as meaning I think I am special then I apologise...I am no more special than the next person.....I was just pointing out a fact.

Thanks AndrewSmith...been trying to think of another profession that might not get paid even if they do the work.

Sometimes I don't get paid either. If your marketing strategy involves "no sale no fee" then that is your choice. If I do free estimates that is my choice. You can change it if you want.

AndrewSmith

Back to the original point in question. Death of the estate agent? Get A Grip and take a reality check.

Out of the UK population of some 65,000,000 where approx 3/4 of those are adults do you really think that just because a few hundred people have chosen to DIY sell their houses or use these so called house selling sites that it will have any significant impact on the high street estate agents? Get Real.

Retail estate agency is growing in this country with the major brands opening new offices regularly and others opening franchise ventures all the time.

The average fees in estate agency 10 years ago were 2.5-3%. The national chain I worked for at the time were heavily targeting a minimum fee of 2.5% sole agency. Now this average figure is nearer 0.75%-1%.

Yes, house prices have increased but so has the cost of running an estate agency. Things such as advertising, web promotion, staff, fuel, liability insurance both public and employee, professional indemnity, tax, NI, utility and premises, telephones, accountancy etc.

An example, do you realise that a single page advertisement in the property section of the local paper in some areas can be as much as £1,000+VAT per week? Don't believe me? phone and ask your local paper yourself. It will shock you.

All these have to be paid for whether the agent receives commission or not. There is a vast amount involved in running a sucessful estate agency that the general public will never get to see, in the same way that you would not realise what is involved with the running of any business that you have no practical understanding or experience of.

Yes as with any trade or profession there are those who are less then professional, however they are the minority. Do not forget that the few hundred people who post about estate agents on this site are not a fair representation of the UK adult population. Also remember that good service is generally never reported, only the bad.

Estate agency is generally a thankless task where the impression of some is that the EA is earning massive amounts for doing nothing. Absolute tosh.

Back to the question. Death of the estate agent? Not likely.

SquatNow

Estate agents are the LEAST TRUSTED people in society. They are considered to be less trustworthy than politicians. (That may exclude Tony Blair though...)

MissMotivation

SquatNow wrote: »

Estate agents are the LEAST TRUSTED people in society. They are considered to be less trustworthy than politicians. (That may exclude Tony Blair though...)

My Mum used to say "if you can't say anything nice then don't say anything at all"

You could learn a lot from my Mum

MissMotivation

movilogo wrote: »

Can anyone tell how much average EAs earn? I know one guy who works in a big EA and moans that he himself can't afford a house of his own (in his early 30s)

The average basic salary for a Negotiator would be in the region of £12,000/£13,000 in my area, obviously there is the potential to earn commission on top of this and what you earn depends on how successful you are. You generally find that the least successful negotiators are the ones who do no work...don't sell any properties...moan about how little they get paid and disappear after a year.

Valuers and Managers get paid more than this but your basic salary will depend on your experience and how successful you have been in the past......commission is generally untapped so the more successful you are the more houses you list that actually sell the more you will earn!

I will never understand lazy EA's who sit on their !!! doing nothing.....they obviously don't need to earn