| Estate Agents (non QPR) 14:45 - Nov 13 with 6614 views | SuffolkHoop |
They don't always help much do they. |  | | |  |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 14:58 - Nov 13 with 3102 views | A40Bosh |
Up there with the traffic wardens for me
My old man told me when I was looking for my first house
Try and only get visits where the agent can't escort you and if you like what you see then ask the owner if they want to "talk turkey" and agree your price and present it to the agent as a done deal.
Did that twice and they DO NOT like that - when I bought this one the agent had the steaming hump with me and tried to stir sh it between me and the owner - fortunately the owner wanted out damn quick and ignored all the bull. |  |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:06 - Nov 13 with 3081 views | Drewster |
Despicable characters, without exception and up there with bankers and recruitment consultants to be the first to be lynched when the masses revolt.
Back in 2008 during the big crash, I was selling my then marital home prior to a divorce and all the mess that comes with that. I know for a fact the agent was telling people we were splitting up and to offer bottom dollar. It took months to sell, and one day the agency director came to see us and cry in his tea that times were hard, need to drop the price, etc. Stood there in his Boss suit with a great big Rolex on his wrist and a brand new 911 outside.
When we finally sold and the agency rang us to take part in a post sale survey to win some vouchers, poor bloke got both barrels from me.
I never won the vouchers.
Since then I have vowed never to deal with that company again, utter utter c@nts. |  | | |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:06 - Nov 13 with 3079 views | SuffolkHoop |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 14:58 - Nov 13 by A40Bosh |
Up there with the traffic wardens for me
My old man told me when I was looking for my first house
Try and only get visits where the agent can't escort you and if you like what you see then ask the owner if they want to "talk turkey" and agree your price and present it to the agent as a done deal.
Did that twice and they DO NOT like that - when I bought this one the agent had the steaming hump with me and tried to stir sh it between me and the owner - fortunately the owner wanted out damn quick and ignored all the bull. |
I sympathise!
So inflexible and elevated so far above their station. I feel like telling the estate agent to ask the owner whether Saturday morning is a good time for me to look round seen as they can't be arsed to send anyone. I'm sure the person selling the house doesn't have a problem with someone trying to buy it! | | | |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:21 - Nov 13 with 3040 views | Northernr |
I love my letting agents dearly.
When I moved down to London we found a place and shook hands with the landlady, I handed my notice in at my previous job and we got ready to move. Throughout the month notice period, and with us believing we had a moving in date set, the agent pushed other prospective tenants onto her who were willing to pay more than the price we'd agreed, including one three days before we were due to move in which,l if she'd gone with it, would have left us homeless with a van load of stuff three days later. Luckily she's a good sort and stuck to her word.
We've been in there ever since, on the same contract. Once a year they send us a PDF of the contract (48 sheets of it) with the dates changed. We have to print it off at our expense, sign every page, post it back to the agents recorded delivery at our expense, and for this we're charged £130 every year.
They also, around that time every year, ring the landlady telling her she could definitely charge us more, while ringing us a couple of times a week telling us we could get a better deal in another flat they have on their list.
There's also a clause in our tenancy saying I violate it if I disparage the company on social media/forums 
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:23 - Nov 13 with 3018 views | Mytch_QPR |
We're not all bad...
One thing I will say is that some people get the estate agent they deserve. I'm in my mid-forties and I often lose business to potential clients who say (not in so many words) 'we found you very helpful, experienced, not pushy etc etc but the 21 year old bloke in the shiny suit promised us a much better price for our house and he'll do it for a cheaper fee'
6-9 months later they finally get their sale at the price I told them (or less) and say they've had a huge amount of hassle in doing so.
I do realise, though, that we're generally regarded as low lifes - and I wish I had studied harder at skool or become a novelist / concert pianist, but one sometimes has to accept the hand one is dealt in life. I try to keep fees competitive and treat every client / customer with patience and respect so that I get repeat business and recommendations...
...and I don't have a Porsche or BMW. Or a Rolex. |  |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:25 - Nov 13 with 3004 views | Northernr |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:23 - Nov 13 by Mytch_QPR |
We're not all bad...
One thing I will say is that some people get the estate agent they deserve. I'm in my mid-forties and I often lose business to potential clients who say (not in so many words) 'we found you very helpful, experienced, not pushy etc etc but the 21 year old bloke in the shiny suit promised us a much better price for our house and he'll do it for a cheaper fee'
6-9 months later they finally get their sale at the price I told them (or less) and say they've had a huge amount of hassle in doing so.
I do realise, though, that we're generally regarded as low lifes - and I wish I had studied harder at skool or become a novelist / concert pianist, but one sometimes has to accept the hand one is dealt in life. I try to keep fees competitive and treat every client / customer with patience and respect so that I get repeat business and recommendations...
...and I don't have a Porsche or BMW. Or a Rolex. |
Mate if you're London based I'm coming to you next time I move. Whereabouts in town? | | | |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:27 - Nov 13 with 2990 views | Konk |
One of my favourite contributors on this site is an estate agent, so be gentle with your prejudice.
I’ve had mixed experiences — some absolute plums, but also a few good un’s.
The Tottenham season-ticket holder who showed me round a flat in Kentish Town an hour after Sol Campbell signed for Arsenal was brilliant — he called Campbell a cu nt about nine times before we’d even got in the place and then he just parked himself on the sofa and spent ten minutes shouting to me about how much he hated Campbell, whilst I had a nose around the other rooms. I liked him. Passionate. Angry. Bitter.
The chap who organised the purchase of my one-and-only flat to date, was really helpful and I actually trusted him. He was Spurs too.
The bloke who showed me a four bedroom house for £2,000 pm when I was after a two bedroom flat for half that, and explained that damp/mould wasn’t a problem because you could paint over it, was a bit of a div. And the bloke who asked me if I still wanted room dimensions after he’d rung to tell me a rental had already gone, was also a bit of a whelk.
Hello A40Bosh, by the way! |  |
| Fulham FC: It's the taking part that counts |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:27 - Nov 13 with 2981 views | SimonJames |
Plenty of them undervaluing properties in an attempt to sell them to their developer mates and cop some of the profits.  |  |
| 100% of people who drink water will die. |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:29 - Nov 13 with 2973 views | bosh67 |
When I moved here 10 years ago the estate agent was a girl I used to go to school. Apart from wow how are you she had forgotten the key so I looked through the front window and said I'll take it. She then went great and walked off. Last I ever saw of her. Still haven't got the key! |  |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:29 - Nov 13 with 2972 views | Mytch_QPR |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:25 - Nov 13 by Northernr |
Mate if you're London based I'm coming to you next time I move. Whereabouts in town? |
Sorry Clive, I work in leafy Surrey (sales, not lettings). I do agree that the London mob are all a bit shifty - they remind me of those pr*cks from The Apprentice.
Keeping a good rapport direct with your landlord / lady is definitely a good move - most of the sensible ones can smell the bull from the agent - it's when people get greedy that the trouble starts. The bubble will burst again (London prices are just unbelievable even to someone like me who is in the business) - and probably before the next election. | |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:29 - Nov 13 with 2970 views | stowmarketrange |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 14:58 - Nov 13 by A40Bosh |
Up there with the traffic wardens for me
My old man told me when I was looking for my first house
Try and only get visits where the agent can't escort you and if you like what you see then ask the owner if they want to "talk turkey" and agree your price and present it to the agent as a done deal.
Did that twice and they DO NOT like that - when I bought this one the agent had the steaming hump with me and tried to stir sh it between me and the owner - fortunately the owner wanted out damn quick and ignored all the bull. |
When we sold our house in 95 our buyer said he wouldn't deal with the estate agent and wanted to exclude him from the sale so I agreed to go along with it.
The agent found out and still charged us his fee anyway.
There are so many other ways to sell your house now that you don't always have to pay their extortionate fees anymore. |  | | |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:32 - Nov 13 with 2958 views | Northernr |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:29 - Nov 13 by Mytch_QPR |
Sorry Clive, I work in leafy Surrey (sales, not lettings). I do agree that the London mob are all a bit shifty - they remind me of those pr*cks from The Apprentice.
Keeping a good rapport direct with your landlord / lady is definitely a good move - most of the sensible ones can smell the bull from the agent - it's when people get greedy that the trouble starts. The bubble will burst again (London prices are just unbelievable even to someone like me who is in the business) - and probably before the next election. |
Well I am looking to buy now, got my deposit saved up and everything, but having watched Neil SI go through his purchase recently - the most straightforward sale of a house ever which turned into nine months of administrative hell - I just don't have the energy to get started with it! I doubt I can afford Surrey anyway 
And yes, Apprentice candidate is about right. We had shiny suit man 1.1.
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:33 - Nov 13 with 2950 views | SuffolkHoop |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:32 - Nov 13 by Northernr |
Well I am looking to buy now, got my deposit saved up and everything, but having watched Neil SI go through his purchase recently - the most straightforward sale of a house ever which turned into nine months of administrative hell - I just don't have the energy to get started with it! I doubt I can afford Surrey anyway
And yes, Apprentice candidate is about right. We had shiny suit man 1.1.
This post has been edited by an administrator |
You and me both mate - utter ballache! | | | |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:40 - Nov 13 with 2911 views | Mytch_QPR |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:29 - Nov 13 by stowmarketrange |
When we sold our house in 95 our buyer said he wouldn't deal with the estate agent and wanted to exclude him from the sale so I agreed to go along with it.
The agent found out and still charged us his fee anyway.
There are so many other ways to sell your house now that you don't always have to pay their extortionate fees anymore. |
There are a lot of online agents emerging and they are driving down the fees - although they don't provide a full service (doing key viewings etc) and some have had some poor reviews because they are stretching themselves to cover more properties with fewer staff.
Most experienced estate agents will actually tell you that they prefer a tougher market - the young guns and internet agents pack up because they can't make a profit and the 'traditional' agent in the High Street who is prepared to put a shift in to get a house sold (with a proper service from start to completion) earns a reasonable fee at the end.
Also - and I speak from experience here - there are a lot of cheats and slimy winkers out there (I'm talking about the public this time) - if you sell your house privately you are going to have to deal with them direct and hold your nerve / tongue. | |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:43 - Nov 13 with 2892 views | Mytch_QPR |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:32 - Nov 13 by Northernr |
Well I am looking to buy now, got my deposit saved up and everything, but having watched Neil SI go through his purchase recently - the most straightforward sale of a house ever which turned into nine months of administrative hell - I just don't have the energy to get started with it! I doubt I can afford Surrey anyway
And yes, Apprentice candidate is about right. We had shiny suit man 1.1.
This post has been edited by an administrator |
In terms of the administrative hell, that'll be solicitors for you. Now that's a different subject altogether... | |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:46 - Nov 13 with 2878 views | Konk |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:29 - Nov 13 by Mytch_QPR |
Sorry Clive, I work in leafy Surrey (sales, not lettings). I do agree that the London mob are all a bit shifty - they remind me of those pr*cks from The Apprentice.
Keeping a good rapport direct with your landlord / lady is definitely a good move - most of the sensible ones can smell the bull from the agent - it's when people get greedy that the trouble starts. The bubble will burst again (London prices are just unbelievable even to someone like me who is in the business) - and probably before the next election. |
On the bubble front, a mate of mine recently sold their two bedroom workers cottage, terraced job with a tiny garden to a couple of 30-something lawyers for £600k — and it’s on the middle of a massive not especially lovely estate in Holloway. When lawyers can’t aim higher than that, you know things are fu cked.
We bought a 2 bed flat in 2008 and even though it’s in a bang average, socially/economically mixed area just inside Zone 3, we’d probably make £175k profit if we sold it today; how is that sustainable? A 3 bed terrace down my street is £600-650k; who can afford that unless you’ve made a bundle selling your flat somewhere more expensive?
I don’t really want to leave London, but we’ll definitely do it in 3-4 years; my wife’s from the West Midlands and we could be virtually mortgage free if we traded our 2 bed flat in for a 4 double bed Victorian place in somewhere like Worcester. I just can’t justify spun king £600k+ to live in somewhere which still has its share of social problems, sh it schools etc. It’s mental. Gawd knows where people doing minimum wage jobs are gonna be bussed in from in 20 year’s time. | |
| Fulham FC: It's the taking part that counts |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:47 - Nov 13 with 2870 views | stowmarketrange |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:40 - Nov 13 by Mytch_QPR |
There are a lot of online agents emerging and they are driving down the fees - although they don't provide a full service (doing key viewings etc) and some have had some poor reviews because they are stretching themselves to cover more properties with fewer staff.
Most experienced estate agents will actually tell you that they prefer a tougher market - the young guns and internet agents pack up because they can't make a profit and the 'traditional' agent in the High Street who is prepared to put a shift in to get a house sold (with a proper service from start to completion) earns a reasonable fee at the end.
Also - and I speak from experience here - there are a lot of cheats and slimy winkers out there (I'm talking about the public this time) - if you sell your house privately you are going to have to deal with them direct and hold your nerve / tongue. |
We did have to deal with the w#nker who bought it.He came up with all sorts of excuses why he couldn't pay the full price at the time.
He ended up being £7500 short and he was supposed to pay it back in 3 instalments,but we ended up taking him to court for the majority of it.
And him and his family turned up at 7.30 am on the morning of our moving day to make sure we didn't take anything that we hadn't told him about.An absolute c#nt of the highest order,but we got all our money in the end. | | | |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:51 - Nov 13 with 2850 views | A40Bosh |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:27 - Nov 13 by Konk |
One of my favourite contributors on this site is an estate agent, so be gentle with your prejudice.
I’ve had mixed experiences — some absolute plums, but also a few good un’s.
The Tottenham season-ticket holder who showed me round a flat in Kentish Town an hour after Sol Campbell signed for Arsenal was brilliant — he called Campbell a cu nt about nine times before we’d even got in the place and then he just parked himself on the sofa and spent ten minutes shouting to me about how much he hated Campbell, whilst I had a nose around the other rooms. I liked him. Passionate. Angry. Bitter.
The chap who organised the purchase of my one-and-only flat to date, was really helpful and I actually trusted him. He was Spurs too.
The bloke who showed me a four bedroom house for £2,000 pm when I was after a two bedroom flat for half that, and explained that damp/mould wasn’t a problem because you could paint over it, was a bit of a div. And the bloke who asked me if I still wanted room dimensions after he’d rung to tell me a rental had already gone, was also a bit of a whelk.
Hello A40Bosh, by the way! |
Hello Mate,
Sorry I did not stay to greet you lot back in the OCA at full time after the 4-0! Our mutual friend knows I won't hide or get the hump as I proved as I went straight in to the Chancellors after the previous hiding!
This time it got to half time, my knee was aching, I was hungry and the thought of getting back to the OCA in time for the second half with a Thai dinner and a few more pints of Doombar was more appealing than staying for the second half as things were only going to go one way - So I legged it.
At full time I knew that if I waited for you lot to get back and I had any more to drink then I would be very messy come home time and I had to be up early to gig up in Yorkshire the next day. | |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:53 - Nov 13 with 2835 views | Drewster |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:46 - Nov 13 by Konk |
On the bubble front, a mate of mine recently sold their two bedroom workers cottage, terraced job with a tiny garden to a couple of 30-something lawyers for £600k — and it’s on the middle of a massive not especially lovely estate in Holloway. When lawyers can’t aim higher than that, you know things are fu cked.
We bought a 2 bed flat in 2008 and even though it’s in a bang average, socially/economically mixed area just inside Zone 3, we’d probably make £175k profit if we sold it today; how is that sustainable? A 3 bed terrace down my street is £600-650k; who can afford that unless you’ve made a bundle selling your flat somewhere more expensive?
I don’t really want to leave London, but we’ll definitely do it in 3-4 years; my wife’s from the West Midlands and we could be virtually mortgage free if we traded our 2 bed flat in for a 4 double bed Victorian place in somewhere like Worcester. I just can’t justify spun king £600k+ to live in somewhere which still has its share of social problems, sh it schools etc. It’s mental. Gawd knows where people doing minimum wage jobs are gonna be bussed in from in 20 year’s time. |
Mate, my girlfriend lives in rented in the Richmond/sheen/ kew area and it's eye watering the rents and value of houses there. Mid terrace 3 bedders with parking in the road (lucky if it's the same road you live in) and a permit to do so are going for £1m+.
I'm in my late 40's and have come to the acceptance now that I'll never be able to get my own house. I'm on a decent salary and reckon it'll take me min 10 years just to save the deposit for a fairly modest 3 bed in Reading let alone London.
Madness, don't know how people can do it unless you have big chunks of cash already. | | | |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:56 - Nov 13 with 2821 views | Mytch_QPR |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:46 - Nov 13 by Konk |
On the bubble front, a mate of mine recently sold their two bedroom workers cottage, terraced job with a tiny garden to a couple of 30-something lawyers for £600k — and it’s on the middle of a massive not especially lovely estate in Holloway. When lawyers can’t aim higher than that, you know things are fu cked.
We bought a 2 bed flat in 2008 and even though it’s in a bang average, socially/economically mixed area just inside Zone 3, we’d probably make £175k profit if we sold it today; how is that sustainable? A 3 bed terrace down my street is £600-650k; who can afford that unless you’ve made a bundle selling your flat somewhere more expensive?
I don’t really want to leave London, but we’ll definitely do it in 3-4 years; my wife’s from the West Midlands and we could be virtually mortgage free if we traded our 2 bed flat in for a 4 double bed Victorian place in somewhere like Worcester. I just can’t justify spun king £600k+ to live in somewhere which still has its share of social problems, sh it schools etc. It’s mental. Gawd knows where people doing minimum wage jobs are gonna be bussed in from in 20 year’s time. |
Hi Konk,
It'll be Nth Wales for me at some stage - walking the dog up the mountains and having a garden like Tom & Barbara in 'The Good Life'.
You only have to look at the disparity between wage inflation and house prices to know that it's going to run out of steam.
What annoys me is how the Tories keep telling us we have a strong economy with a base rate at 0.5%!!!!
No incentive for savers or financial prudence, just based around increased borrowing. | |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 16:01 - Nov 13 with 2797 views | A40Bosh |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:53 - Nov 13 by Drewster |
Mate, my girlfriend lives in rented in the Richmond/sheen/ kew area and it's eye watering the rents and value of houses there. Mid terrace 3 bedders with parking in the road (lucky if it's the same road you live in) and a permit to do so are going for £1m+.
I'm in my late 40's and have come to the acceptance now that I'll never be able to get my own house. I'm on a decent salary and reckon it'll take me min 10 years just to save the deposit for a fairly modest 3 bed in Reading let alone London.
Madness, don't know how people can do it unless you have big chunks of cash already. |
Madness,
I will show you recent examples of MADNESS.
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-36378936.html
http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-55874921.html
3 Bed homes in the less glamorous parts of Ruislip and I am left speechless that anyone on an average wage can get a mortgage that will get them anywhere near even the lower priced end.
The first one has to be a joke. | |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 16:03 - Nov 13 with 2788 views | Mytch_QPR |
| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 15:47 - Nov 13 by stowmarketrange |
We did have to deal with the w#nker who bought it.He came up with all sorts of excuses why he couldn't pay the full price at the time.
He ended up being £7500 short and he was supposed to pay it back in 3 instalments,but we ended up taking him to court for the majority of it.
And him and his family turned up at 7.30 am on the morning of our moving day to make sure we didn't take anything that we hadn't told him about.An absolute c#nt of the highest order,but we got all our money in the end. |
Part of our fee covers dealings with c#nts.
The really strange thing about this business is that you can earn a really large fee and deal with straightforward people who just do what they say they are going to with no major stress - then you get the one bedroom flat at the bottom of a chain of seven places with both buyer and seller trying to give the swerve to each other!
Marvellous. | |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 16:04 - Nov 13 with 2783 views | freddieeddie |
Just sold my place via an online estate agency. Can't speak highly enough of 99% of what they done for me. They charged £495 all in and the service was fantastic. Only downside which let them down was they charged a sneaky £100 at the end to take off of market and not allow anymore viewings etc. Apart from that and the boss supporting Chelsea, first class service. |  |
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 16:04 - Nov 13 with 2782 views | stowmarketrange |
With a deposit of £95,000 the repayments are £4,500 a month.God help anybody who is trying to buy down there for the first time.
And looking at the pictures of the house it seems like the sort of place the Del Trotter has decorated.I'd hope that they'd be taking the clock with them. [Post edited 13 Nov 2015 16:09]
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| Estate Agents (non QPR) on 16:09 - Nov 13 with 2764 views | NW10Hoop |
When we were buying our gaff in NW10, the estate agent didn't show up to either of the viewings. We ended up being showed around by the owner, I think she was relieved to show it to someone who wasn't gonna turn it into a load of bedsits with bunk beds, or some grand designs ponce who was gonna rip the gaff to pieces. After spending 50+ years in the house raising her family she wanted another family to move in.... The flakiness of the estate agent seemed to work in our favour. |  | | |
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