Estate Agency Closures

vigesimal

Tassotti wrote: »

To be honest, I hope all of you who have scathed at EAs lose your jobs as well.

That's evil, but so have you been (I'm not an EA by the way)

Tass

By your own standards, you have just been evil too.

You act like you are panicking about the way the market is going? A buy to letter perhaps?

baby_boomer

Meanwhile. back on topic.............

HankMcSpank wrote: »

It's probably a bit much to hope Foxtons will fold, but I just hope these lean times make them go back to looking more like an estate agents shop (instead of a wine bar)..

FT - Foxton's likely to be "reviewed"

"Foxtons, the estate agents, and BC Partners, its private equity owner, are considering appointing NM Rothschild, the investment bank, to review the business amid the credit squeeze and the downturn in the property market.....

.......Foxtons, founded by Jon Hunt in 1981, has not closed any of its branches in the UK [yet], and the buoyant lettings business is making up for some of the slack....."

_____

Given that BC partners bought the business last year, funded by 75% debt - which they have been unable to pass on, they aren't likely to be squeamish about implementing any hard-nosed recommendations.

Anyone fancy a green and yellow mini going cheap?

Branch closures have not been ruled out.

dubsey

We drove through our local high street a few days ago and noticed two EA offices within a few doors of each other had closed. One (UK Direct Property Services) now has on it's website that they are internet based only. The other (Grey Fox) has this on it's website

http://www.greyfox.co.uk/Contact.aspx

morg_monster

morg_monster wrote: »

In Balham (SW London) none are closing, in fact I'm pretty sure that an old furniture shop that closed down a month ago near us is being refurbished to an EA, making a near consecutive run of about 8 or 10, only interrupted by a Ladbroke's and a Nandos. Foxtons are over the other side of the road, with one of their flagship big glass-front stores.
quote]

I wrote this in May on page 3 of this thread, just wanted to update - the furniture shop DID turn into an EA. Also, a huge shiny Foxtons-type branch of Morgan Randall EA has opened opposite foxtons. Finally an old branch of Winkworths which has been empty since 2006 when they opened a huge branch on Lavender Hill now has another EA moving in. That is 3 new EAs in Balham since May!!! Craziness. I'm sure most of their business must be in lettings at the moment.

Sadly not seen any Foxtons employees crying in their Minis yet.

baby_boomer

This is Money

Blenheim Bishop gives up on property sales, as opposed to lets, and closes its Mayfair offices......

"[Founder] Mr Vandermolen said: 'I couldn't make it work. Income from new homes was 75% down on the previous year and my view of that market is not good long-term.' ........Household names like Kinleigh, Folkard and Hayward are shutting formerly busy London offices....."

Over at Savills there will be job losses in the sales division as they expect 25% house price falls by the end of 2009.

Telegraph - Savills' consultancy & management divisions help it shrug off the UK property slump which brought a 45% fall in residential property transactions

fatpig_2

The only good Estate Agent is one with a P45

baby_boomer

Telegraph - Rightmove predicts more estate agents will go bust

"....the company [also] warned it would not see an end to the downturn in the near future. Mr Williams said he expected more price reductions over the last months of this year and into next before the market turned...."

Dan:_4

fatpig wrote: »

The only good Estate Agent is one with a P45

These sort of posts really annoy me.

Bf109

Dan: wrote: »

These sort of posts really annoy me.

I thought it quite amusing.

Anyway, The Halifax EA has gone the way of the white-washed-windows in the past week here in Spelthorne.

Davesnave

Dan: wrote: »

These sort of posts really annoy me.

Agreed. Try replacing the words 'estate agent' with the name of an alternative trade/profession; or why not go the whole hog and change it it 'Muslim,' 'Jew,' or whatever. There's certainly a lot of hate there somewhere, and there's enough of that in the nation as a whole.

I wonder who the people who post like this use when they sell their house. No doubt they get the vicar to put up a postcard on the church notice board.