How long should an Estate Agent tie-in period be?

peterhjohnson

Had 3 agents look at my house.

Agent 1 wants an 8 week tie-in period + 2 weeks notice so effectively 10 weeks
Agent 2 wants 6 weeks
Agent 3 wants 2 weeks for the first 2 weeks and will accept an instant notice to terminate immediately after that initial 2 weeks. He says that he's supposed to ask for 10 weeks but doesn't hold with it! He feels that if the relationship between us were to break down, a quick, clean break is best.

All three agents are confident they can sell - and fast. I prefer Agent #1, dislike #2 intensely and #3 is Ok

Comments?

eddddy

peterhjohnson wrote: »

Agent 1 wants an 8 week tie-in period + 2 weeks notice so effectively 10 weeks

Is that what the EA's contract says? If so, it's dangerously close to breaking the Property Ombudsman's Code of Practice:

Duration and Termination

5s Your contract must allow for the required notice of termination to be given before the end of the term, such that termination by the client can occur at the expiry of the minimum term.

[url]Link: https://www.tpos.co.uk/images/Codes_2019_a5/TPOE27-8_Code_of_Practice_for_Residential_Estate_Agents_A5_-_Effective_1_June_2019.pdf[/url]

But to answer your main question, I guess the shorter the minimum period, the better. If you're happy with the EA, you can let the contract carry on for as long as you want.

Maybe tell agent 1 what agents 2 and 3 have offered, and ask them to reduce to 6 or 8 weeks (including notice).

G_M

How long should an Estate Agent tie-in period be?

If you are an estate agent, 16 weeks.


If you are a punter, 6 weeks.

HHarry

My 2p's worth.......

1. Don't go for the Agent you like, go for the one who is gong to sell your house. I made that mistake with my Mums house last year. Get an idea by looking for sold houses in your area on Rightmove to see who's closed the most deals.

2. I asked for a 5 week contract to try and get sold by Christmas. They were quite happy, and did get it sold.

Davesnave

HHarry wrote: »

1. Don't go for the Agent you like, go for the one who is going to sell your house.

I second this.
Check who sells well in your area. I know in mine there are two that stand out above the rest. Their ads are competent, they price correctly and get sales over the line.


Then there are the others, who get business by pricing optimistically and using the slow drop technique.

Finally, there's a purple coloured agency that's just cost a friend a year of her life and a fee for not selling the property. That's a very long tie-in!

Mutton_Geoff

I'd also be looking closely at other terms like the insidious "sole selling rights" as well. But otherwise 6 weeks is fine, it gives even the best agent a good shot at it.