Outspoken online estate agency eMoov claims 36 per cent of home owners would try to sell their property for a higher price than their estate agent recommended - and four per cent would ask for less.
Some 56 per cent of the 2,000 people surveyed by the agency say they would market at the price recommended by the agent with four per cent saying they may actually market at a lower price.
The agency says that as a result of the third of vendors wanting even more, there is a risk they could see their homes failing to find a buyer for months because they have listed their properties well above their true value.
But eMoov's chief executive Russell Quirk says that over-valuing is not restricted to vendors.
The agent is driven by a percentage fee so they will overprice a property to try their luck, win the business and increase their profit margins he claims.
Understandably the seller opts for the agent that claims they can get the highest price, as we are all motivated, to some extent, by money. Then as regular as clockwork the agent will ring them a few weeks down the line and advise' on a lower asking price in order to sell says Quirk.
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Comments
Don't wish to state the obvious - however a % fee means you get a % of whatever price the property subsequently sells at.. Therefore your statement "Agents driven by % fees causes overvaluing" makes no sense surprisingly!!!
Stop Press.. Sellers have opinion about their propertys valueHas this come from the Research Department of the Completely Obvious
Guest (P) is absolutely right, but Im not sure what point the article is really trying to make except that of another Online Agent yet again trying to put down traditional estate agents, other than that it tells us nothing new nor does it add anything of value to an informed debate about the property market. Rupert is also correct that ultimately the sellers decision as to what they want to market the house for, but if they are serious and genuine about selling, then they would be well advised to take the advice of an experienced estate agent in the local market who can back up their advice with comparable evidence. To deliberately overprice a property to simply secure the listing in the hope of managing the price down later is dishonest. Rupert is also correct that a property is only worth what a buyer is prepared to pay for it, however, a good experienced local agent will be able to predict how much with a reasonable amount of accuracy how much that is likely to be.
Agreed - vendors can be greedy and yes it's frustrating when they switch and price drop at the same time but the point I am arguing is that if a vendor wants to come on the market for a higher than expected figure, do you refuse them or take them on and work with them and the market to find the level at which the property will sell...I'd still take on the property with advice that they have to be flexible, nothing law breaking or bad practice about taking on a property at the vendors preferred price, after all who are we to say what the final sale price will definitely be especially in the fast paced London market.
Rupert- Your town must have been full of incredibly poor agents, because we get proved right time and time again. The worst part is when a vendor is advised on price, puts it on for more (against the agents advice) and then switches to a different agent BEFORE dropping the price. Vendors have too much pride and are often incredibly greedy.
Unless you live in the south east or a few other hot-spots around the UK, asking prices are not all that frequently achieved.
It's the vendors house not the estate agents, therefore it's up to the vendor what they want to sell for not the online agent & not the high street agent. It's worth what the buyer is willing to pay and more fool you if this property was to sell for asking price. Why do local agents think they know what every property will sell for, I used to be one and my agency along with every other in my 'patch' used to get proved wrong time and time again.
Where to even begin with this bulls**t:
Firstly, if a fee of 1.5% was to be charged, overvaluing a 300,000 house by say, 15,000 would only earn the agent an extra 225 if the asking price was achieved. Not really worth all the other hassles that come with over-valuing a property, such as disappointing your vendors, bad reputation and lack of viewings/offers.
Secondly, when a vendor places their home with an on-line agent, it is often because they believe they can achieve a higher asking price than their high street agent quoted them. What tends to happen when someone opts for an online only agent is that the property is sat on the market for months, and inevitably will end up back in the hands of a local agent at the sensible price first suggested (as I have seen many times in the past 2 years or so).
Point and case: House Network have just added a property in a neighborhood in my town. the adjoining property sold last year for 205,000 (both 3 bed semis with small garden and garage). Why then has the vendor decided (because with online agents, it is the vendor who decides) to market the house at 225,000
Because online agents are not there to offer guidance and opinion based on years of local knowledge, they are there to take your money upfront so you can advertise an over-priced home on rightmove.