Online Estate Agents Vs. High Street Agents

We’ve all heard of the online estate agent. For a low low fee you can sell your property, using all the usual portals such as Rightmove and Zoopla. So what’s the catch?

Unlike a traditional high street agent such as Walton & Allen, the fee payable is charged to you whether the property sells or not. This is bad news if your property struggles to sell and you would prefer to switch to another estate agent – You’ll be paying two fees!

A recent Daily Mail article stated online agents only manage to sell 57% of their listings, whereas a traditional high street agent usually sells over 84% of their stock. This means selling your home through an online agent could be a huge gamble – There are savings to be made, but only if the sale goes through.

The traditional high street estate agent

So what do you get for your money with a traditional high street estate agent?

Online agencies do tend to ask you to do everything yourself through their online portal. This means you manage your viewings and carry them out personally. You also manage your own offers and negotiate on them.

A traditional agent will use their local knowledge to ensure you are getting the absolute best price for your property. Experience is also key. Knowing how to negotiate offers will ensure you do not lose interested buyers.

Walton & Allen estate agents also vet potential buyers to ensure they can afford to make an offer and they are really in a position to buy. By managing all your own viewings it may bring time wasters to your home.

With or without the commission?

The term ‘selling without commission’ is slightly ambiguous. Technically, any fee paid to an estate agent is commission. The higher fee associated with a high street agent reflects the amount of work the staff put in to sell your property in the shortest amount of time and for the best price possible. It is also argued that a ‘no sale, no fee’ structure means our staff will work much harder to sell your home.

What next?

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