Online agency HouseSimple has become a completely No Sale No Fee agency - and is thought to be the only online operator not to offer any upfront payment option at all.
The agency says that with immediate effect it is moving away from the pay upfront model favoured by other online estate agents; sellers will now only pay a fixed fee of £995 including VAT, with no conveyancing tie-ins, on completion of a sale.
The agency claims that this fee compares favourably with the one per cent to two per cent commission it says is typically charged by high street agents on sale of a property.
For over two years HouseSimple has already offered customers a No Sale No Fee payment option, but until now this was in addition to an upfront payment option.
A statement from the agency today says its service continues to include a visit from a representative which it calls a Local Property Expert, plus professional photography, floorplans and valuation guidance.
HouseSimple says it will also still manage the negotiations and sales progression through to completion.
“Every single person in our organisation has a laser beam focus on selling properties. We also want to provide real clarity of proposition for our customers and believe the best way to do this is to offer one simple proposition; a No Sale No Fee service. This ensures we are completely aligned with our vendors’ objectives” says Sam Mitchell, the chief executive of HouseSimple.
“We also want to provide exceptional value to our customers, which is why we’ll be offering this service for just £995. It’s time for the online agents to show they are great at selling properties and we strongly feel that the pay upfront model doesn’t align businesses with their customers’ goals.
“We are excited about this change to the service we offer, as well as committed to supporting the customer all the way through their selling journey, beyond just listing their property, all the way through sales progression to a successful completion.”
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This has to be applauded
Good news. It confirms up front fixed fee offerings are STILL ineffective and not a good choice for most people selling homes.
Selling a home isn’t like selling a car. Paying for an ad on the biggest websites and expecting the rest to sort itself out is simply naive.
This story is another piece of good news for conventional full service agents, reinforcing the fact that you can’t commoditise personal service.
Offering choice to the consumer is not a justification of any business model. No sale no fee from a local professional with their name above the door (and therefore a personal reputation on the line) will almost always be the best bet.
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