THE PROPERTY BLOG

If you asked the majority of estate agents the question; “What is the role of an estate agent?”, they would reel off a list of tasks that they undertake to assist in the sale or purchase of a property. Probably along the lines of:

• Valuing properties ready for sale
• Market properties to maximise the selling price
• Conducting accompanied viewings
• Finding suitable buyers for the property
• Negotiating the maximum selling price for the property
• Liaising with solicitors
• Administering the whole sales process and ensuring that it is completed in an appropriate timescale

All the above are things a good agent should be doing but there is something that is far more important.

So The Vendor Lost Money?

Before Professional Properties had even started in residential sales, I was asked by an estate agency trainer; “When you bought your last house, did you pay the asking price?”

“No” I said, I paid £5000 under the asking price.

“Would you have paid the asking price?” he asked.

“I probably would have done, yes” I said.

“So, the agent selling the property lost the vendor £5000 then?” he said.

“I suppose they did” I answered.

“Would you have paid £5000 over the asking price if it was necessary to seal the deal to buy that property?’ has said again.

It was a property that my wife and I had set our hearts on so… “Yes, I probably would?”

“So, in fact, the agent lost the vendor £10000 then” said the trainer.

I had to agree!

Negotiation Is Key

An estate agent’s key skill is negotiation. You may have seen the job title ‘sales negotiator’ in any dealings you may have had with a previous agent. The agent I dealt with when I bought my property was, indeed, a sales negotiator. They weren’t very good were they?!

The English Collins dictionary defines Negotiations as ‘formal discussions between people who have different aims or intentions during which they try to reach an agreement’. In this case, the sale price of the property.

However, that doesn’t necessarily mean that a sale price agreed by both parties should be the final sale price. The agent is acting on behalf of the vendor and should be trying to maximise the sale price at all times.

All offers put forward by a potential buyer MUST be communicated to the vendor and should be discussed in detail as to the response.

If you wish to discuss any aspect of selling your property, please contact our team on 01332 300130