Some regional estate agents could go to the wall next year, a leading restructuring expert has warned.
He said property agents, along with accountants and law firms, were at risk.
Mark Firmin, based in KPMG’s Leeds office, said that some professional services firms, many in the legal sector, have been hanging on, waiting for things to get better. Some firms had cut back to the bone.
He said: “I think we’ll see some failures in 2013 in the accountancy, legal and [property] agent sectors. If businesses are burying their heads in the sand, then it’s looking at death by a thousand cuts.”
Firmin also said businesses across most sectors would have flat margins next year.
He went on: “A lot of people are asking, are we going to be a Japan and have a lost decade. It’s not inconceivable.”
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Comments
Well... the usual lifeforms gather at the scene...
* The complete eejit - the majority of posters here who think it's a right larf to wish ill on working folk. Notice that not ONE AGENT wishes the same fate befall on you, eejits - lesson to be learnt there methinks...
* 'THE TRUTH' - who doesn't understand the delicious irony of his/her own name... If this country is so much of "a dump" - how's about you leave it?
* 'Realising Reality' - another perfect example of failure to recognise delicious irony... who believes he has all the answers. Wonderful thing, belief. That's all I'll say on the matter.
Mr Firmin predicts that SOME companies will fail next year - and of those, SOME of them MAY be Estate Agents.
Well - with a prediction as wooly as that, he just MIGHT be right.
He must be very proud of his extensive knowlwedge of 'maybes'.
The rest of the lifeforms above - words fail me. I simply hope you are happy with your lot.
Why would you go to Clacton for Jeans? Try Lakeside next time.
At the property peak I went to buy a pair of jeans at a place called Clacton in Essex . I counted 18 estate agents on the high street .. Not one jean shop.. With a few less estate agents you might actually be able to buy other stuff on the high street... As for the economy if houses were being bought and sold to people that want to live in them and not landlords then they woul get the plastering done and the electrics and windows and all the other stuff.. Landlords are greedy and selfish and do not spend money on maintaining properties
Properties getting cheaper would be great for the average man on the street. It really is that simple
@Charity Man,
You make a good point, there is no room for 'passengers' in ours or any other industry, I assume the same applies in whatever it is you do, certainly many, many EA branches are not providing an acceptable level of service to the consumer, whether it is 50% is anyone's guess, we shall agree yours is very much a guess as well?
You appear to believe that RM is something that everyone should have a right to have access to, it was established by EAs for EAs sometime ago, it's become a huge business as EAs spend many thousands per office subscribing to it, do you think that they should be forced to accept private adverts?
I would be interested to know your views on what mediums for marketing your property you believe you don't have already, the public has as much ability to access all the tools EAs use for promoting their property already and you have always had access to it all, why do you want what EAs use? and can we assume that you believe the £6,000 average fee a firm like the one I work for charges is simply to post an advert on RM or do you think there is more to it?
Also, you will find that the property mis descriptions act doesn't stop you selling direct either.
I look forward to hearing from you with your thoughts
Predict enough you will be right, state the obvious, all very funny that idiots like FTB feel compelled to say "look at me I am right", nope mate no where near it.
I predict next year there will be a war somewhere, there will be a budget, someone will be born, someone will die, I must get one right, then I can come on here and say "told you so".
It's all about supply and demand, as Estate Agents never tire of telling us (when it suits their interests).
Estate Agents provide a dubious service as it is (allow private ads on Rightmove and 50% will be wiped out overnight....), and in the current economic climate we simply can't afford to carry passengers - which is what most EAs are.
Abolish the Estate Agency Act and we can all sell our own houses thank you very much. We'll give you a call if we need you.....
Nope. Nobody agrees with you. Nobody wants to debate with you. Get back to playing World of Warcraft and stop bothering us.
Oh dear,
With a huge wet guff, a big yawn and a scratch of the knackers @Realising Reality wakes up and starts from scratch (again) with his cunning plan
On the subject, this chap is right, thousands of businesses will go pop next year, some will of course be EAs, especially ones that don't have a decent lettings book that have enjoyed a property boom that never gets talked about?!
Jonnie
With estate agents feeling the 'pinch' and some beginning to fail or close, now is the time to review and improve the way houses are bought and sold through estate agents in the UK.
Are they doing anything about this, or is this just another failed attempt at SELF-regulation?
The ball IS at their feet right now. Will they miss the opportunity, yet again, to score a first for the British housing market by getting things working more efficiently that they currently are?
Does anyone agree?
@FTB you're in denial - and to make matters worse ( for you) you missed the bottom - fact is it's turned and now you and other like you will be chasing it up ;))
@stonehenge
18 pubs a week are closing - don't see a lot of headlines about that.
Its all over the PubToday website.
Well, if any of those EAs are like the ones I've had dealings with lately, it's no surprise that they'd go to the wall.
No returned calls, 21 year olds trying to tell me why I'm a fool not to spend 1/4 million on a 3-bed semi, every property catching a bid as soon as I call about it no matter how long its been on the market..... what sort of business model are these people running?
Long long long long way for house prices to fall yet.
"waiting for things to get better". They won't ever in this dump of a country. So get real and grow some.Give me one reason why "things" will get better.
did someone mention japan?
thats two of us who are bang on then
Just read the other comments.
A C says most have cut back - agreed - in my neck of the woods they have also cut back on the fees they charge so maybe they will go to the wall sooner. They are doing about 40% of the turnover they had in the good times and now they have cut their fee income by reducing these by about another 60%.
I think some of these are doorhandles (thanks Firminfailure for this lovely comment)
Anyone know what happened to house prices during Japan's 'lost decade'?
Its being so cheerfull keeps him going.
Never yet met a happy accountant.
18 pubs a week are closing - don't see a lot of headlines about that.
I predict that Mark Firmin will be one of the "failures in the Accountacy sector" in 2013 - what a complete door handle!!
Newsflash
Some badly run accountants may go to the wall next year!!!!
HOW IS THIS NEWS??????????
A nobody has said that estate agents might closed, jeez EAT your standards are getting lower every day.
I've got a story - EAT does some proper journalism and provides actual stories of relevance and interest - oh wait, nobody will believe that.
I hope plenty go to the wall, especially our competitors, who offer a poor service compared to us.
He has a point though.
Most (but not all) of the agents I know have just cut back on their expenditure and persuaded their staff to work longer and harder.
Their income has reduced massively, but so have their costs.
Staff all understand that "Life's like that, and that's the way it is" and know that they are probably better off where they are rather than jumping ship.
It really depends in the end on debt levels.
If the agency has debt, then they will be in trouble. If it is just a cash flow issue, then it is a matter of careful planning and how good you are at robbing Peter to pay Paul.
Merry Christmas