Ea's Listing Increase In Sold Stc?

[2 Wolves]

Hi all, I've been an avid follower for 18 months+, but something I've seen today has spurred me on to post for the first time;

I've been monitoring my local area on RM for some time and in my daily search (W.London M25 border) there have been 67 properties added for sale in the past 24hrs, of which 37 are already listed as Sold STC! Most of these Sold STC properties don't have photos attached and have fairly vague descriptions (no floor plans or room dimensions) and the vast majority are listed by 2 of the big national EA's. Nothing much seems to have been selling in the past few weeks, so this would be quite a remarkable turnaround if it were true. Something tells me everything's not quite as it seems though... Does anyone know if this sort of practice is common in

EA circles, possibly to drum up interest from potential vendors, or to add weight to their 'buy now, or you'll miss out' argument when speaking to potential buyers?

(Great site by the way, very helpful and informative for a potential FTB - someday!)

[fallingbuzzard]

It happens. Sometimes its because a junior managed to delete a load of SSTC properties from Rightmove. They are then subsequently re-entered with minimal information.

Hi all, I've been an avid follower for 18 months+, but something I've seen today has spurred me on to post for the first time;

I've been monitoring my local area on RM for some time and in my daily search (W.London M25 border) there have been 67 properties added for sale in the past 24hrs, of which 37 are already listed as Sold STC! Most of these Sold STC properties don't have photos attached and have fairly vague descriptions (no floor plans or room dimensions) and the vast majority are listed by 2 of the big national EA's. Nothing much seems to have been selling in the past few weeks, so this would be quite a remarkable turnaround if it were true. Something tells me everything's not quite as it seems though... Does anyone know if this sort of practice is common in

EA circles, possibly to drum up interest from potential vendors, or to add weight to their 'buy now, or you'll miss out' argument when speaking to potential buyers?

(Great site by the way, very helpful and informative for a potential FTB - someday!)

[Steve Smith]

Hi all, I've been an avid follower for 18 months+, but something I've seen today has spurred me on to post for the first time;

I've been monitoring my local area on RM for some time and in my daily search (W.London M25 border) there have been 67 properties added for sale in the past 24hrs, of which 37 are already listed as Sold STC! Most of these Sold STC properties don't have photos attached and have fairly vague descriptions (no floor plans or room dimensions) and the vast majority are listed by 2 of the big national EA's. Nothing much seems to have been selling in the past few weeks, so this would be quite a remarkable turnaround if it were true. Something tells me everything's not quite as it seems though... Does anyone know if this sort of practice is common in

EA circles, possibly to drum up interest from potential vendors, or to add weight to their 'buy now, or you'll miss out' argument when speaking to potential buyers?

(Great site by the way, very helpful and informative for a potential FTB - someday!)

Three estate agents remain in this small town in north Shropshire. They appear to be having a Sold (STC) sign war - there are actually no houses in the town that are For Sale. Of course land registry sales tell a different story - not a lot between three agents! Is it possible something similar is happening in your area?

[mrpleasant]

It's something I started seeing in the spring of this year in a number of areas I watch (to give me a wider view of the market). Having had a couple of conversations with EAs in the past couple of years in which I've been encouraged to view properties already under offer, I suspect agents are now attempting to use simple human psychology to boost selling prices - if you are 'proceedable', make a higher offer. What actually constitues 'SSTC' is anyone's guess. One recent update in RM: "Status changed from Available to SOLD, viewing advised." ......

[The Masked Tulip]

Yesterday when I looked on RMI saw that a considerable amount of property had gone SSTC - even a house whose sellers told me, just a fortnight ago, that they had not had a single viewing in over a year just went SSTC.

I will keep an eye out for how many actually complete in the coming weeks.

I treat it all with a huge pinch of salt.

[Chris G]

I think estate agents would need to be very careful in doing this. Trading Standards could catch them out as it amounts to false advertising, but I do imagine estate agents would stretch the truth a bit here and there, wouldn't they?!