Ea Seeking More Property

[Muswell Hillbilly]

I like to be as bearish as the next person, so I'm puzzled by a circular that came through the door from a local EA, which reads as follows:

'Although still early in the new year we have already been contacted by a number of applicants, in all price ranges, keen to purchase. Due to the lack of properties currently on the market Stonebridge & Co [London N6] are offering a reduced Sole Agency fee of 1.5% plus VAT, until the end of February 2005.'

I thought all EAs had too much property on their books that they can't get shot of, so how come this one's advertising for more? What do people reckon?

[Realistbear]

Names, ve vant zeir names!

[zzg113]

I like to be as bearish as the next person, so I'm puzzled by a circular that came through the door from a local EA, which reads as follows:

'Although still early in the new year we have already been contacted by a number of applicants, in all price ranges, keen to purchase. Due to the lack of properties currently on the market Stonebridge & Co [London N6] are offering a reduced Sole Agency fee of 1.5% plus VAT, until the end of February 2005.'

I thought all EAs had too much property on their books that they can't get shot of, so how come this one's advertising for more? What do people reckon?

MH, I have had the rationale behind this explained to me as follows: EA's are currently experiencing ZERO sales. Now, an EA who makes 0 sales in a month does not eat or get to pay his mortgage, so will be made homeless in very short order. Therefore they take a scattergun approach: their thinking is "maybe if we get as MUCH property on our books as possible, SOMEONE will take a liking to SOMETHING and we will get a sale and be able to buy food again".

This is known as the "Throw enough mud at a wall, and some of it will stick" method of property marketing. And no, this is not a joke either; this is really why they are doing it. The extra advertising costs for EA's from having acres of unsold property on their books is negligible.

[88Crash]

MH, I have had the rationale behind this explained to me as follows: EA's are currently experiencing ZERO sales. Now, an EA who makes 0 sales in a month does not eat or get to pay his mortgage, so will be made homeless in very short order. Therefore they take a scattergun approach: their thinking is "maybe if we get as MUCH property on our books as possible, SOMEONE will take a liking to SOMETHING and we will get a sale and be able to buy food again".

This is known as the "Throw enough mud at a wall, and some of it will stick" method of property marketing. And no, this is not a joke either; this is really why they are doing it.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

This mail drop is probably BS, but I think you need to make one allowance for estate agents

I don't like EA's but guess what my sister in law does for a living?

- YES she's one of them and in fairness to her, I'd say the following

Most of us at some time in our lives will us lie, cheat or deceive (might even be for a justified/honorable motive)

When we do this, we still know it is WRONG

Because EA's do this on a daily basis, they don't realise they are doing it, hence they don't think that they are doing wrong

[leemo]

Agree with zzg113.. the EA must be DESPERATE for business. If business were brisk why cut their margins?

And the stuff about no supply and too much demand, - what bonkers Hometrack is reporting the exact opposite.

[oracle]

this EA seems to be blessed with a lot of imaginary friends,or maybe he has been on the magic mushrooms!!

is it an industry wide phenomenon??...do they install hallucinogen dispensing air-conditioning systems into estate agents offices??,they tell us all crap,pigs fly etc...and the people that go in are also exposed to it and buy crappy products at inflated prices.

..or is it a virus of some kind,some kind of psychological disease that can be transmitted through tv,radio and by contact with paper????

alice in wonderland here we come!!!....far out man!!!!

...better go easy on the spliffs,it's all starting to make sense!!!!!!

[Realistbear]

MH, I have had the rationale behind this explained to me as follows: EA's are currently experiencing ZERO sales. Now, an EA who makes 0 sales in a month does not eat or get to pay his mortgage, so will be made homeless in very short order. Therefore they take a scattergun approach: their thinking is "maybe if we get as MUCH property on our books as possible, SOMEONE will take a liking to SOMETHING and we will get a sale and be able to buy food again".

This is known as the "Throw enough mud at a wall, and some of it will stick" method of property marketing. And no, this is not a joke either; this is really why they are doing it. The extra advertising costs for EA's from having acres of unsold property on their books is negligible.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

zzg113. Great analysis and probably dead on. According to this article:

"London shows no signs of life"

http://www.housefund.co.uk/news/2005/01/lo...ns-of-life.html

The London market was dead a couple of days ago. The sudden increase in demand is either delusional or misguided hype. Nothing is going to save the most inflated property market in world history from crashing. The momentum to the downside is too great and its still accelerating. The heightened level of propaganda is very telling that things are going from bad to hideous.

[tiff]

I have also had one through the post...different EA of course, but agree with ZZG, the greater the number of houses for sale, the better the chance of at least something selling and hence money on the table!

The reason they put in the leaflet was that there is a high demand for houses ATM, I must be missing something and probably need to get out more!

Haven't seen anything much (and there is quite a lot of it) shifft for a good three months.

[HenryWeston]

i spotted a EA with a handful of leaflets earlier, he's obviously been told to get out and find some customers, and as i walked past my 2 local EA's there wasnt any customers in them... oh dear....

[VacantPossession]

I like to be as bearish as the next person, so I'm puzzled by a circular that came through the door from a local EA, which reads as follows:

'Although still early in the new year we have already been contacted by a number of applicants, in all price ranges, keen to purchase.  Due to the lack of properties currently on the market Stonebridge & Co [London N6] are offering a reduced Sole Agency fee of 1.5% plus VAT, until the end of February 2005.'

I thought all EAs had too much property on their books that they can't get shot of, so how come this one's advertising for more?  What do people reckon?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Pure double bluff. Creating illusion of success....cryptic message to buyers as much as sellers.......doesn't matter to the EA if he has a million houses on the books, selling just one is what he wants. The bit that gives it away is the reduced fee. If he was doing SO well, why does he need to drop commission?

No, this is a desperate flyer.

VacantPossession

[Tonyb69]

Our landlord went multi-agency in October and since then, every couple of weeks, we get one annoying EA putting letters (no wasted postage costs here!!!!) through the door offering to sell the property to one of his many waiting buyers.

With lines like "I'm sure you can't belive how persistant we are", you know this guy hasn't sold a house for a while.

Next time one of these fantastic offerings comes through the door I'll post it here.

[Cityfool]

I like to be as bearish as the next person, so I'm puzzled by a circular that came through the door from a local EA, which reads as follows:

'Although still early in the new year we have already been contacted by a number of applicants, in all price ranges, keen to purchase.  Due to the lack of properties currently on the market Stonebridge & Co [London N6] are offering a reduced Sole Agency fee of 1.5% plus VAT, until the end of February 2005.'

I thought all EAs had too much property on their books that they can't get shot of, so how come this one's advertising for more?  What do people reckon?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Another reason they take on new property is so that they can try and put it on at a slighlty more sensible price without having to have the "but you said my flat was worth £300K 6 months ago but now you are telling that because you haven't managed to sell it in that time I will have to take £250K" conversation

[zzg113]

Probably shouldn't have told them it was worth £300k in the first place then (although if they'd done that they probably wouldn't have got the instruction). But what's the point of having an overpriced instruction that won't sell? I suppose you could let it languish long enough on the market to soften up the vendor so that they agree to a sensible price so by overvaluing initially you get an instruction that you other wise wouldn't have got, but the vendor will probably be so naffed off with you that they take their business elsewhere anyway.

So best not to overvalue in the first place: it's much less aggro all round.

[Van]

I think ZZG is spot on. The carpet bombing approach is the next logical step for desperate EAs. Can't shift the current stock? Let's get some new stock in and see if any buyers bite.

As with all grand designs, their individual actions only conspire to further depress the market and bring about the inevitable situation of increased vendor competition while buyers "wait and see".

[europbaron]

If 1.5%+VAT is a reduced fee, what the heck do they normally get away with charging?

[zzg113]

1.5% is actually pretty cheap, by international standards, compared to 8/9% in France, 7% in the US, and an equally high % in Italy.

[europbaron]

1.5% is actually pretty cheap, by international standards, compared to 8/9% in France, 7% in the US, and an equally high % in Italy.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I got 0.8% from an initial discounted offer of 1.25%. I did offer some bonuses, but to earn more than the 1.25% original price, the EA would have had to sell for above his already high valuation with completion inside 12 weeks of going on market.

Beat the EAs down - the more mud they need the cheaper you'll be able to get them.

[batman]

Hmm...

http://www.estateagencynews.co.uk/news/cur...news-0205a.html

[Tonyb69]

Got back home this evening and had a nice DVD and "call me urgently" card from Yourmove, not the EA as mentioned in my earlier post. That is now 2 EA's chasing our landlords property, which is already multi agency.

PS the DVD is Moving Made Easier. Think I might flog it on e-bay with a £10 starting price, stand a better chance than anyone selling this house for £215K

[DonnieDarker]

I think ZZG is spot on. The carpet bombing approach is the next logical step for desperate EAs. Can't shift the current stock? Let's get some new stock in and see if any buyers bite.

As with all grand designs, their individual actions only conspire to further depress the market and bring about the inevitable situation of increased vendor competition while buyers "wait and see".

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

BINGO.

I know that area as it is close to where I am looking and I can tell you that there is a lot of shite on the market that they cant shift because a) its shote and the vendors are in denial.

They are just trying to coax out better and more sensibly priced property and I think its a sensible ploy given what I have seen in North London.

[Tonyb69]

Previously posted on 1 Feb about EA leaving details.

Got home today and another EA card though the door. "Please call me regarding your property". Thats the 3rd EA chasing a house that is already on the books of 2 others.

If this carries on much longer I'm going to start charging the landlord an admin fee.

We keep an eye on the local area and there has been very few sales over the last 6 months and a few we have noticed going back on the market I presume due to chains failing.

[Guest pioneer31]

Previously posted on 1 Feb about EA leaving details.

Got home today and another EA card though the door. "Please call me regarding your property". Thats the 3rd EA chasing a house that is already on the books of 2 others.

If this carries on much longer I'm going to start charging the landlord an admin fee.

We keep an eye on the local area and there has been very few sales over the last 6 months and a few we have noticed going back on the market I presume due to chains failing.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

would you feed the hand that bites you?

[sneaky_snookems]

Yeah a local EA in my town has posters all over the windows "Property needed urgently!! Buyers in all price ranges and all locations are waiting" To be honest ive not seen a sole in their in the last few months.

Totally weird why they are trying to take on more. The same houses have been in the windows for months now.

[Justice]

EA’s seeking more property !

What’s all the fuss about, EA’s need to downsize so are looking for smaller premises to work from.

[Tonyb69]

Another card through the door yesterday (09/02/05) "Please call I can sell your house" written on the back.

Tonight another EA letter, reads:-

Dear Sir/Madam,

I recently passed your property and noticed, with interest, that you are currently displaying a for sale board outside your home.

We are currently experienceing a huge interest within your area and have a number of quality buyers waiting for a quality home like yours.

blah blah blah.

Yours ......

We've seen the landlord once when he gave us the keys 16 months ago, so what are the chance of these guys tracking him down.

Also, house prices fell in Chelmsford during the final quarter (land registry) -3.7%, with volumes down from - 1250 Q4 2003 to 721 Q4 2004 (40% fall). Where are all these quality buyers coming from because they weren't around at the end of last year.