No decision yet on whether acquired agency chain will quit OnTheMarket

Countrywide has yet to make a decision on whether its newly-acquired Welsh estate agency chain - John Francis - is to pull its 21 offices from OnTheMarket.

It was announced at the end of last week that the John Francis chain, which has 21 branches handling sales and lettings and covering Swansea and South Wales, would be acquired by Countrywide, which is already strong in Wales with its Taylors and Beresford Adams brands. 

However, John Francis is a member of OnTheMarket. 

Over the weekend Countrywide confirmed to Estate Agent Today that withdrawing the agency from OTM was one option but a spokeswoman for the Countrywide group said: "As part of our acquisition strategy we always look at what is best for our new customers. Once we have understood this we will then make strategic decisions."

In recent weeks John Curtis, a two-office high-end agency in Hertfordshire, has left OnTheMarket. John Curtis was taken over by Countrywide’s Hamptons brand early this year and - some six months after the acquisition - made the move back to Zoopla. 

Both OnTheMarket, which celebrates its first anniversary in late January, and Zoopla - which next reports its agency total in early December - will be anxious to count the John Francis branch total in its tally of member agents.

Countrywide also announced the takeover of the Clive Watkin Partnership, 15 estate agency and letting branches plus a land and new homes division operating across Liverpool and the Wirral, plus Sutton Kersh, which has six offices across Liverpool.