What's wrong with the estate agencies??

sushmita

Hi all,

I don't know what's wrong with the estate agencies nowadays. In a moment when places to be rented don't go as quick as they used to, clients at least should be treated honestly if not like gold. Apparently it's not my case. I'm looking for a place for living on my own, I went to see an apartment this week, there were people very interested and I thought the place was gone, but I asked to be called back if someone changed their mind. The day after I saw the ad refreshed, and I asked if the place was still available and they said it was and asked me if I was still interested (?). I obviously said yes and the agent would call me back after discussing details with the landlord. I'm still waiting since Wednesday.
At the same time I had another appointment for another apt with another agency. The agent didn't show up, neither gave me a call. I then called her, no answer, I left a msg in her answering machine. No calls back. I recalled her, this time hiding my number and she replied this time, improvising some sort of excuse and said she didn't have my number with her. Very professional I have to say! Well, definitely if I was a landlord I wouldn't like putting my property in their hands for sure. So, if landlords read this, yes we're interested in renting your place, please help us!
And if you have suggestions of good agencies please let me know, unfortunately most apartments to let are dealt with agencies

eman66

Found more or less the same attitude, but in a buying situation. I don't understand it. Only thing I can think of is that in the very changed circumstances in which they now find themselves, they are finding it difficult to cope. They have conducted their business in a certain way for so long (they could pick and chose who they dealt with) that they don't know any other way.

Despite this, I know some who are fearful and becoming ever more resigned to the fact that they will be going out of business. They know what's coming. I have been in contact with 6 estate agents over the past two months. Only one has been any way inventive or persistent in trying to sell me a house. The others were apathetic. Strange.

meglome

I responded to several ads on daft and didn't get any replies to some of them at all. I asked a few questions and even the ones that replied most of them didn't answer my queries. Given the market conditions it's really unbelievable.

Victor

Lots of ad.s are staying up indefinitely, even when properties have been let. This may be part of the problem.

sushmita

This is not really true, because ads can be refreshed (once a day). Therefore I just check the ads of the same day or the day before. And I know that the places haven't been taken yet

brendanuk

phoned up one today, said they would phone me back in 20mins. 2 hours later nothing. only answering machines and no answers untill 5pm.

Said they were busy, right yes! Every estates i have seen is deserted. Hope the worst offenders go broke and let the good ones prosper

bladebrew

im having the exact same problems,me and the g/f are living in a 1 bed apartment which is costing the same as 2 beds in the area,its a nice apartment but we could have more space for what we pay,

a few weeks ago we viewed an apartment up on daft for €950,the ea insisted we could get it for €900 so we viewed it and said we would pay 900,he eventually rang back and said the landlord would not drop from 950,so we gave up,
about 2 weeks later it dropped to 900 on daft so we rang for another viewing,the ea rang the landlord back and he decided he didnt want a couple living there:eek:,only a single person!!!

and just today the g/f rang someone else for a viewing of a 2 bed around the corner,he only shows places until 5:30,he asked the g/f could she view it at lunchtime,she said no she wouldnt have time,we suggested saturday morning he said no,she told him i finish at 4 so he offered to show it to just me at 4:30 on thursday which is pointless as it will be the two of us making the decision,he then asked do we have any days off during the week?! when the g/f said no she works mon-fri the same as me he just went quiet!

this must be a growing problem,we offered both of these people €900 a month in a difficult time and they basically refused!!!

sorry bout the long post:o

Bubblefett

I went into Terrie Dunne the other day to set up a viewing for an apartment and before I'd even said what my price range was i was interrogated on all my personal details- including what i was working as, where and if it was a steady job. I understand why they need to know these but i hadn't even said what apartment i wanted to see!! After it all she said there was already someone interested in the place and she was waiting to hear back from them and she's call me to let me know. Needless to say no call and the place stayed on daft for 3 weeks after!!
After that I decided I wasn't renting through them

bladebrew

bubblefett wrote: »

I went into Terrie Dunne the other day to set up a viewing for an apartment and before I'd even said what my price range was i was interrogated on all my personal details- including what i was working as, where and if it was a steady job. I understand why they need to know these but i hadn't even said what apartment i wanted to see!! After it all she said there was already someone interested in the place and she was waiting to hear back from them and she's call me to let me know. Needless to say no call and the place stayed on daft for 3 weeks after!!
After that I decided I wasn't renting through them

yeah they love doing that! one place was asking a heap of questions about where i work and the next place demands i view it before 5:30:)

one place apologised and said sorry we took a deposit on that apartment today,a month later its still on daft!!

another ea would never answer calls from the g/f`s mobile so she rang from the company phone and she answered straight away,then when she realised who it was she said i cant talk im driving!!

Bubblefett

bladebrew wrote: »

yeah they love doing that! one place was asking a heap of questions about where i work and the next place demands i view it before 5:30:)

one place apologised and said sorry we took a deposit on that apartment today,a month later its still on daft!!

another ea would never answer calls from the g/f`s mobile so she rang from the company phone and she answered straight away,then when she realised who it was she said i cant talk im driving!!

They're unbelievable!!! The best EA i went to was a remax one in Dun Laoghaire but it looks like they've closed down which sucks, they were so nice and helpful

meglome

For the first time someone came back to me pretty quickly, within two hours. Looking at the place tomorrow. I've been looking for 3 weeks so it doesn't bode well in general.

Senna

The house next door to me is still on daft.ie (for sale) even though it went sale agreed last summer and completed before xmas. It was even up-dated (propertybee) a few months back.

Kipperhell

All illustrating how useless daft figures are at gauging the property market.

It is the same with builders and tradesmen in general too. I recently had an electrician simply not come back/hear from him again and had to get another guy to finish. I hadn't paid the first guy a penny and he spent 3 days working on the place. How people turn down business like this I don't get and to make a loss is even worse

meglome

I asked about pictures on an apartment since there are none up and this is the lovely reply I received this morning. "There will be pictures of this apartment when I am ready." Should I name and shame?

What does amaze me is how many places have no pictures or very poor pictures.

pawrick

yep have come across places on Daft which are gone but are still being updated - seems like some estate agents have staff just updating and not invloved in the sales and their not kept up to date with what's gone.

Also had all the usual problems - worst case was sent references + agreed to pay deposit the day after viewing and everything was fine, rang them up after faxing the remaining docs over and looking for the account for the deposit etc and they told me the place was gone! (had spoken to them the day before and i have excellent references + was just me and a girl moving in).

The 5:30 finish time is a joke also - they should be working to suit the customers especially now.

I have advertised on daft myself a good bit in the past renting out places and I never acted the way agents have treated me.

I really hate estate agents in general.

sushmita

Well, speaking about pictures of ads on Daft I didn’t mention that when I saw the place with the lovely agent who’s still not calling me back, I realized that it was completely different from the one I saw on the pictures. First of all there's carpet (while the pictures show wooden floors), there's no television (while it's shown in the pictures). Also in the bedroom there's a chest of drawers, while in the real one there's only a wardrobe. In the ad it also says that there's cable tv, while like I was saying there's no tv at all and it says that there's central heating, while the heating is electric.
I complained with the agent and he said that those were pictures of another apartment in the building that is gone.
I don't think it's fair though, as the aparment is completely different. Besides, the pictures help us to give an idea of what the place looks like and if there's something that we don't like on a first stage, we don't bother contacting the agency for fixing an appointment. Otherwise I don't understand what's the point in including the pictures. So I complained with Daft as well and they said that they had warned the agency. Despite that and after two days, the same pictures are still there.
Yesterday I saw another place. The one I had to see with the agent who didn’t show up, I put my pride apart and decided to call her once again. When I saw it, I said to the agent that some descriptions were not matching with the ad. There's no central heating, no television, no house alarm and no dishwasher. About the dishwasher he was even teasing me and said that I can use my hands.
Beside that, the apartment has been described as stunning, therefore I was expecting a certain standard. While the apartment was very smelly, like windows have never been opened for ages, the bed was very old (not even my granny sleeps on a bed like that), the furnitures are falling apart, in the kitchen the oven, the microwave and the kitchen in general quite dirty.
This might be personal, some people maybe don't mind that too much. But in relation to certain facilities not being there at all, I think this is quite serious as the ad itself is not fair.
Sorry for long message

sushmita

And following all your complaints I wonder:
- how do agents make money then
- and do landlords never complain with them?

By the way, I called the agentwhonevercallsmeback this morning and he hasn't come back to me. Because I want to move on August 14th is too far away he says, but he said the same thing last week and he'll probably say it again next week. I mean, if you see that nobody's taking this bloody apartment, just give it to me. August 14th is just 2 weeks and 2 days away in the end! He said he'll call the landlord (like he said to me last week), I'm sure that the landlord will agree. I think the agent still lives in 2005 when things were quite different

freedom of info

meglome wrote: »

I asked about pictures on an apartment since there are none up and this is the lovely reply I received this morning. "There will be pictures of this apartment when I am ready." Should I name and shame?

What does amaze me is how many places have no pictures or very poor pictures.

No pictures= dump

D3PO

freedom of info wrote: »

No pictures= dump

not always true I know one technophobe who has a great place to rent but didnt know how to put digital photos onto his computer. Lovely apartment aswell.

Im sure there are others out there, however the majority without photos probably are dumps but not all of em.

amdublin

Hey, did anyone see the first post in the Metro letters section today??

Wonder did the OP send it in to the Metro or are they scoping Boards for some topics?

Ste.phen

I guess the latter

Stinkerbelle

I replied to an ad on Daft last week, EA replied quick enough and said she would be getting the keys early this week. So I email her again yesterday, very polite and professional.....she then mailed me back and just said "I will show you the house on August 4th WHEN I HAVE THE KEYS"...just like that, caps and everything.

Put me in such a bad mood that I wanted to march down to their office and tell them exactly what I thought of their fabulous professional behaviour.

In her first email she said there was no central heating and that the current tenants use oil filed mobile radiators, I told her I wasn't interested then and she quickly changed her tune to electric storage heating. I asked were there photos and it turns out she hasn't even seen the property yet is advertising it as amazing.

UGH...I hate them, haven't been exposed to EA antics in 3 years and can tell they're still as amazing as ever so am looking forward to another bunch of smashing stories to tell down the pub. I'm sure I'll have plenty after this search.

Downtime

pawrick wrote: »

The 5:30 finish time is a joke also - they should be working to suit the customers especially now.

Many agents work well past 5.30pm and at weekends and end up getting calls at 9pm at night and on Sundays. They have a life too you know. Some people think they are their personal assistants.

Nasty_Girl

Downtime wrote: »

Many agents work well past 5.30pm and at weekends and end up getting calls at 9pm at night and on Sundays. They have a life too you know. Some people think they are their personal assistants.

Do you really mean "many" or do you mean one or two?
I've never come across any that gave a **** about anything but themselves.

I've had some wonderful landlords alright, but estate agents naaaahhh!

The sooner more of these money grabbing souless types go out of business the better,
They've been ripping people off and treating them like dirt for far too long.

Downtime

I know of several.

It sounds like you have vast experience with estate agents.

Some people deserve what they get, others maybe not.

pawrick

Downtime wrote: »

Many agents work well past 5.30pm and at weekends and end up getting calls at 9pm at night and on Sundays. They have a life too you know. Some people think they are their personal assistants.

I haven't met any in Dublin who work past 5:30 - that's not saying they all stop at 5:30 just the vast majority.

receiving calls at 9pm and Sundays - simple answer turn off their work phone and divert calls to voicemail - maybe just maybe then return the call when working or even god forbide have a message directing the person to call again during working hours! maybe too simple a solution?

I can only call it how I see it and I have had no good experiences with agents so far.

Downtime

pawrick wrote: »

I haven't met any in Dublin who work past 5:30 - that's not saying they all stop at 5:30 just the vast majority.

receiving calls at 9pm and Sundays - simple answer turn off their work phone and divert calls to voicemail - maybe just maybe then return the call when working or even god forbide have a message directing the person to call again during working hours! maybe too simple a solution?

I can only call it how I see it and I have had no good experiences with agents so far.

Simple solution all right assuming separate work phone. :rolleyes:

bladebrew

Downtime wrote: »

Many agents work well past 5.30pm and at weekends and end up getting calls at 9pm at night and on Sundays. They have a life too you know. Some people think they are their personal assistants.

ah but the fellah im on about near the start of the thread is taking the piss,he accepts calls anytime,but will only view the apartment 9-5:30 mon-fri,and my g/f only finishes at 5:30,we suggested 5:45 and he said no:mad: i dont even know if he is an agent,i assume a landlord would be a bit more flexible!

oflahero

bladebrew wrote: »

ah but the fellah im on about near the start of the thread is taking the piss,he accepts calls anytime,but will only view the apartment 9-5:30 mon-fri,and my g/f only finishes at 5:30,we suggested 5:45 and he said no:mad: i dont even know if he is an agent,i assume a landlord would be a bit more flexible!

This is especially rich considering that EAs carry the bulk of the '2 *professionals* required for this stunning 2-bed yadda yadda' ads; and so-called 'professionals' are the one group who cannot consider viewings between 9 & 5:30.

voxpop

bubblefett wrote: »

After it all she said there was already someone interested in the place and she was waiting to hear back from them and she's call me to let me know.

Thats a pretty standard line from all EA when viewing - there is always someone else interested :pac:

TBH most EA that Ive delt with in the past few months were willing to show houses after 6 or on Sat.
Ive more come across landlords that are still living in cloud cuckoo land - one guy wanted us to move in straight away - tried explaining that we needed to give a months notice and he wasnt having any of it. This same guy wouldnt remove an old 21" crt - saying he didnt have any space for it and wouldnt like to throw it out and when we pointed out some wires sticking out of the wall in the bathroom - he just said dont worry they are not live!. This guy wanted 1550 a month - so we are not talking about a crappy dump.
The house was still for rent 3 months after we viewed it.

RedPlanet

sushmita wrote: »

I realized that it was completely different from the one I saw on the pictures. First of all there's carpet (while the pictures show wooden floors), there's no television (while it's shown in the pictures). Also in the bedroom there's a chest of drawers, while in the real one there's only a wardrobe. In the ad it also says that there's cable tv, while like I was saying there's no tv at all and it says that there's central heating, while the heating is electric. I complained with the agent and he said that those were pictures of another apartment in the building that is gone

I think you should take that complaint to DAFT.
It's unethical. It's called bait-and-switch, and it's probably against Daft's policies. Maybe you can get that estate agent barred from using that service.

sushmita

Yes, I complained with Daft and they warned the agency. Within two days they got the pictures removed. Same for the other one, the agency removed the ad.
Continuing my soap this Wednesday I had another appointment with the bad agency; unfortunately it was them again dealing with another apartment, same estate, that I wanted to see. The agent asked me to be there at 5.30, I said that I could have been there 10 minutes later, depending on the bus. He absolutely wanted me to be there at 5.30 sharp. I left my office early and I was there on time. The agent arrived at 6.15 :mad: and without warning me and anybody else. There were other 4 people waiting. I said I was still interested in the first apt same estate, he asked if I could give him the money straight away. What? Without any receipt, anything written down? So I said that I wanted to have some paper, I don't give money away easy peasy. He said he would email a form, which he didn't do in the end. Afraid of loosing this apt and with the time of my moving out approaching, I fixed an appointment with another agency for another apt. The girl arrived even early at the appointment, she was very professional and showed the apt in every detail. I loved it very much, this morning I sent my references, after 5 minutes she called me back, this afternoon I gave them my deposit.
In the meantime Mr nice agent called me back still asking me of my email address (which I gave him on Wednesday) and still asking for the money on Friday afternoon before the bank holiday, that means transferring money towards no receipt, nothing on my hands. I didn't say I was taking another apartment as I hadn't given the deposit yet, but I'll tell him on Tuesday. Exactly after two weeks I was chasing him for that apt, while I saw and then took another one in less than 24 hours :cool:

Kimia

I hate estate agents. You would not believe the trouble we had with ours (thankfully we are in the apartment now and they pretty much leave us alone).

During the time that we were just signing things/wrapping everything up, I had a missed call from the EA at bout 5.30 saying please call me back asap. So I called her back asap (I was in a work meeting until bout 6.30) so I called her back on her mobile the minute I left my meeting.

She was a complete b*tch and said 'Actually this is my personal time, I don't appreciate getting calls after work hours'.

I was appalled. Some customer service eh! If I spoke to a client like that I'd be fired!

sushmita

Well this morning I had another appointment with another (3rd) agency for viewing another apt. Yes, it's true that I paid the deposit for one yesterday, but as I had already fixed and appointment with them, and because I don't have the keys of my new apt yet I thought why not? In case something goes wrong, if I like this, I have somewhere to move in.
Well, I woke up and drove all the way to get there... while the agent didn't show up. Both his mobiles were disconnected, sent a txt, no reply.

I really don't know what to say.

For sure on Tuesday morning I'm going to send an email to him and cc all the staff of the agency. That's far too much