How does the UK Consumer really feel about Estate Agents?

With the Office of Fair Trading telling us that outdated rules on the selling and buying of property in the UK are holding back online alternatives to high street estate agents, the consumer has to pay attention, especially when you consider that the same recent study found that estate agency fees could be costing consumers up to £570 million a year!

Couple that with the survey of Trading standards in 2008 that found that one in four estate agents was failing to comply with regulations, and the recent scandal of legal firms paying fees to estate agents to pick up conveyancing work, and we’ve all got to hope that the OFT puts forward measures to improve competition for high street estate agents.

Funnily enough, although we all complain about the lack of service and the high fees charged, the Office of Fair Trading reports that “most consumers say they are happy with the service they receive from estate agents” in the United Kingdom although 27% say they have considered using ‘alternative’ methods of selling.

RightMove embellish this sentiment saying that “the vast majority of vendors with a property to sell in the UK use an estate agent to market their property” and then they list all the benefits to using one, but what is the reality for the UK consumer and how can paying perceived ‘excessive’ fees benefit us when there are alternatives?

Russell Quirk, Owner of www.eMoov.co.uk , an online estate agency, is the former boss of a five branch high street estate agency in Essex.  Russell firmly doubts that we’ll see the demise of the high street estate agent but goes on to say that we will see a metamorphosis of that industry through the actions of the consumer.  Some believe that this will include consumers negotiating high street estate agency fees upfront.

Online Property expert, Sarah Beeny of www.tepilo.com ,told us that she thought the OFT’s report highlighted some interesting points “some of which need to be addressed further, and it will be interesting to see what impact the findings have over the next few years.  Reducing costs, improving online presence and exploring new ideas seems to be generally supported but above all, keeping the customer at the front of all future plans which is great for all homeowners/tenants out there.”  To read more on Sarah’s opinions of the OFT’s report click here.  http://tinyurl.com/yf4yvkl

Not everyone is happy with the OFT’s feedback though.  The Editorial Director of Estate Agent Today was scathing about what she calls ‘estate agency bashers’ and decried property columnist Anna Tyzack for her announcement that the ‘anti-estate agent’ movement is growing.  At the same time Simon Heffer of the Telegraph wrote “It is important to have something to be happy about, and news of the possible end of estate agents is just such a thing.”

One of the benefits of using an estate agent is of course, the For Sale board!   According to boards firm Agency Express, the For Sale board gives a true indication of sales activity in the UK and apparently far more For Sale boards converted to Sold and more new For Sale boards were erected in February compared with January 2010 say the firm.

Apparently the number of houses sold in February rocketed by 136%, going by new Sold boards figures, which is more than double those recorded in January!  Agency Express cited London, the North East and the North West as the hotspots for house sales so far this year which is, in turn verified by our House Price Index.

In short, whilst the high street Estate Agent is feeling defensive, it seems that there is room for everyone in a market that the Office of Fair Trading would like to see expanded upon.

Perhaps, as we predicted in our second issue, we will be buying our houses from Tesco at www.isold.com in the near future.