Estate Agents / Auctioneer feedback

782378

Hi,

I am looking to put my house in Ongar up for sale in the comming weeks.

Does anybody have any feedback good or bad in relation to local Auctioneers /Estate Agents in area?

oblivious

We sold our place with Wlison moor with in the area, they are good but their may point is keeping the price to keep a head of the market and get punters in to view the house

We had 13 viewing or so over six month untill we sold so just hang in there. There are buyers around but there are just alot less of them these days.

PauloMN

We sold just over a year ago in D15 and used The Property Shop. Was happy with them overall, thought they did a good job of filtering people out so that those who viewed were in the main actually interested in buying.

What I would advise is thinking hard about your price, be realistic if you want to sell and understand the price should reflect the market rather than what you reckon the house is worth.

Also I would take the photographs yourself - I did this for my own. This is not to say that The Property Shop (or any other agent) wouldn't take decent pics, but I've seen some that would put me right off other houses. You can take them yourself when it's a bright, sunny day, and you can prepare the rooms yourself. An estate agent obviously will take the shots regardless of the weather, and obviously isn't going to do your tidying for you! Amazing the difference some good shots of a clean, tidy house with sun streaming in the windows can make versus an untidy, dull one. This is even more important in areas like D15 where you will be up against a whole pile of similar houses.

Lastly, bargain with the fee. They all seem to be percentage based, usually between 1% and 1.5%. The market is depressed at the moment so I personally would not pay over 1% for the services of an estate agent. Work with your agent, it is in both your interests. Keep the place spotless for viewings, garden etc. tidy and keep in contact with the agent every few days and after viewings. I guarantee if you have a spotless house at a reasonable price, the agent will be willing to do you a deal on the fee as for them, selling a clean well-priced house is easier than having some rented dump on their books for years.

oblivious

PauloMN wrote: »

I guarantee if you have a spotless house at a reasonable price, the agent will be willing to do you a deal on the fee as for them, selling a clean well-priced house is easier than having some rented dump on their books for years.

+1

Very important, a number of houses have not sold in the D15 are impart due to been rent or untidy and buyers not been able to see past it. Make it look as near as possible to a show hose with neutral colours if possible and with the bare amount of your own personal belongings/clutter around

In short declutter like mad!

Diddler1977

We used Wilson Moore to sell recently. You can pay a small amount to have them hire a professional photographer to take 360 degree videos of your house - well worth it in my opinion if you feel photos won't do your house justice.

House should be spotless when photos are being taken. I've seen numerous houses up on Daft with unmade beds, 3 large bins at the front wall of the house, a calendar with a nude lady on it, in the kitchen (I swear!) and horrendous colour schemes.

Mow the lawn, make the beds, clear down the kitchen counters (even put the kettle and toaster away for the photos). Paint any crazy colours a neutral cream.

I know space can be at a premium for storage in houses and apartments these days.
When my house was being viewed I stored my vacuum cleaner and dirty clothes basket in my car - store any other things that buyers may trip over - even bulky kids toys.

Good luck!

PS. I invited 5 agents in to give their opinion on price and tell me how they would go about marketing and selling the house.
I found Tim from DNG to be very good too - think it would be worth giving him a call.
Sherry Fitz have very high commission and I think they are only interested in big price houses.

782378

Thanks for all the feedback and tips!

The decluttering started last week and I painted all the rooms in the house a neutral colour already.

Really like the idea of taking your own pictures for the Estate Agent, that had never occured to me.

I have arranged to meet 3 different Estate Agents over the the comming days and will see how it goes from there. They are all quoting 1% comission so will see who comes across the best.

Diddler1977

782378 wrote: »

Thanks for all the feedback and tips!

The decluttering started last week and I painted all the rooms in the house a neutral colour already.

Really like the idea of taking your own pictures for the Estate Agent, that had never occured to me.

I have arranged to meet 3 different Estate Agents over the the comming days and will see how it goes from there. They are all quoting 1% comission so will see who comes across the best.

Which agents as a matter of interest?

Also, will you be billed for advertising costs on top of the 1% fee?

PauloMN

782378 wrote: »

Thanks for all the feedback and tips!

The decluttering started last week and I painted all the rooms in the house a neutral colour already.

Really like the idea of taking your own pictures for the Estate Agent, that had never occured to me.

I have arranged to meet 3 different Estate Agents over the the comming days and will see how it goes from there. They are all quoting 1% comission so will see who comes across the best.

Times have changed, I had three in who were quoting 1%, 1.25% and 1.5%!! And that was only 18 months ago.

As for advertising costs, they should be included in the overall cost if you go ahead with the sale. If you decide to pull out of the sale, I think the general situation with most agents is that you cover the costs of advertising that they will have spent.

amdublin

Unless you are an extremely talented photographer I think it is worth hiring a professional to do them.

You want to get the balance of the price right - low enough to get interest and to actually sell..... but don't be bullied by your estate agency to drop your price too much.

The difference between 1% commission on a €250k to €220k is just €300 to the agent but is €30k to you!!!
:eek: