Can anyone recommend an estate agent?

BeachBum · Post by **BeachBum** » 08 Dec 2008, 22:01

Anyone recommend someone? A Porty based one? or perhaps one from town?

Its for selling a two bed flat in central Porty.

Edit: No am no moving away from Porty yet

Epykat · Post by **Epykat** » 08 Dec 2008, 23:16

Have used Warners three times now. No complaints.

Porty · Post by **Porty** » 09 Dec 2008, 00:02

I used to be a local estate agent in Porty and in my opinion you should definitely use one of the local firms for a 2 bed flat. There's 3 potentials on the high street- I would invite at least 2 of them to bid take it from there. All 3 are solicitors too so provide a full package .

BeachBum · Post by **BeachBum** » 09 Dec 2008, 08:12

Epykat wrote:Have used Warners three times now. No complaints.

Cheers

Grunk · Post by **Grunk** » 09 Dec 2008, 14:59

Or you could save money, and just get a solicitor to do the conveyancing.

Estate agents/property solicitors charge an absolute fortune(1 - 3%) for sticking a picture up in their window, while you still have to do all the work of actually selling the flat. Just get a schedule made up and list the property in the ESPC.

Porty · Post by **Porty** » 09 Dec 2008, 15:04

Don't think you will be allowed to advertise in the ESPC unless the solicitor is charging an estate agency fee but I may be wrong and one can negotiate them down to zero.

I reckon "going it alone" in this market, for a 2 bedroomed flat in porty, would probably work as well as getting an agent. I assumed that when asking the original question , employing an agent had already been decided.

Grunk · Post by **Grunk** » 09 Dec 2008, 15:31

You can but it costs a bit more, but still way less than the estate agent will charge you for not doing anything.

Perhaps I've just had a bad experience. But my Solicitor/agent didn't actually do anything.
They took a few photos, most of which I changed, and stuck a picture up in their shop front (although I never checked so there may not have been a picture there).
After that I did the showings/selling of the flat. Then they charged me 2% for the privilege.

I would have been happier if they had done what I think an estate agent should do, which is find you a buyer and arrange the price you want for a property.

Porty · Post by **Porty** » 09 Dec 2008, 16:02

Grunk wrote: Then they charged me 2% for the privilege.

I would have been happier if they had done what I think an estate agent should do, which is find you a buyer and arrange the price you want for a property.

They charged you what!!! That is outrageous.

I've long said that solicitors don't sell properties, they just advertise them. It goes brilliantly when the market is buoyant but as soon as it "cools" it is sit and hope. Not got a clue many of them.

Grunk · Post by **Grunk** » 09 Dec 2008, 17:12

It always seemed to me that the property market in Edinburgh (and maybe Scotland) was a bit shifty.

Almost like it was in the grip of a cartel of solicitors, who charged a lot for doing very little. But people would continue paying their inflated prices as there wasn't a particularly well advertised alternative.

Valuations on properties also seemed a bit odd since the surveyor would go into the property with the knowledge of the bid, then 9 times out of 10 they would just agree.