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New online estate agents
Comments
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Purplebricks - £849. Emoov - £795.0
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we have no USP and have no visions of grandeur or immediate rush to generate profit or medium-term desire to make massive profit. There are no financial pressures to ensure it is a success but we are willing to give it a go, test the market and see if we can make it work.
All the more reason not to hire you, then. You're not looking to treat it as a business.0 -
Where did I say we would not be treating it as a business?0
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We have recently put our house on the market with Doorsteps, which charge as little as £99. This is great but there has been an obvious downside
In 2 months the interest in our property has been poor and so we are now moving to a high street estate agent and already the interest has picked up.
The problem with any new agent is that they are not really able to easily build a big buyer base. Doorsteps have 2 properties of similar nature anywhere near where we live, so it is not as if they can generate a mass of buyers looking for a property in the area and they do not locally engage in the market.
I knew this was a possibility beforehand but at £99 it is low risk, so if I were to sell another property I would probably do the same again, but that's just me. I always like to go for the cheaper option when possible.
And also, I resent having to use a high street agent as I do not think they justify their fee so I would rather see a move towards cheaper options....0 -
The problem with any new agent is that they are not really able to easily build a big buyer base.
They're not interested in building a buyer database. They already have their money, it makes no difference whether they have a list of buyers or not.
For £99 I cannot grasp how it can be a profitable business. My uneducated guess is that they're offering a low entry price in order to build the number of listings up quickly and then hope they can sell the company on to somebody who doesn't look too closely at the figures.0 -
They're not interested in building a buyer database. They already have their money, it makes no difference whether they have a list of buyers or not.
For £99 I cannot grasp how it can be a profitable business. My uneducated guess is that they're offering a low entry price in order to build the number of listings up quickly and then hope they can sell the company on to somebody who doesn't look too closely at the figures.
What?!
What good is an estate agent if it cant attract buyers? That would be literally as useful as an underwater hairdryer...
If it is known widespread that online agents cant sell, then people wont use them...
One of the most absurd comments I have heard....0 -
Upfront fee. They get paid whether they sell or not. Short term large profit for little work - then sell on the business. Made sense to me. Many people will just sign up with a mega cheap one saying exactly the same thing as you did, usually without caring much about reviews. £99 x however many people sign up. That's probably a lot of dosh over say 6 months or a year...What?!
What good is an estate agent if it cant attract buyers? That would be literally as useful as an underwater hairdryer...
If it is known widespread that online agents cant sell, then people wont use them...
One of the most absurd comments I have heard....2024 wins: *must start comping again!*0 -
That is because you have not understood the market these companies are in. People like Doorsteps are not trying to be estate agents and 'sell' properties, they are a cheap listing service enabling the owner to sell their own home themselves.One of the most absurd comments I have heard....
They are offering a different type of service, with a different pricing structure.0 -
Upfront fee. They get paid whether they sell or not. Short term large profit for little work - then sell on the business. Made sense to me. Many people will just sign up with a mega cheap one saying exactly the same thing as you did, usually without caring much about reviews. £99 x however many people sign up. That's probably a lot of dosh over say 6 months or a year...
Are you deliberately missing the point? 'Many people will just sign up'... That is just not true, hence the lack of interest in our property. If loads of people would then why does the agency only have 2 flats within a 10 mile radius or so on their books? This is whereas a high street agent that charges 1800% of the online agent has a whole range of them.0
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