Feeling Sorry For Estate Agents?

[Lone_Twin]

Ok so maybe not the owners but what about the plebs that do the donkey work?

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I had a friend who worked in Foxtons central offices in Chiswick. Arranging viewings, mortgage appointments etc....

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From what he told me I strongly suspect that the practices uncovered by the BBC doc mentioned in another thread are the tip of a HUGE iceberg.

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I now work close to that office in West london and see a lot of EAs in their shiny suits and massive ties on the tube on my way to work and in the sandwich shop at lunch.

I have overheard them talking and they sound spooked, most of them are young (21-23) straight out of university (becuase a degree means bugger all these days so you end up cold calling for the devil).

The very idea that prices might fall, or the market crash has got them shaking. These vapour jobs will be the first to go when the recession comes.

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Despite their annoying ways I feel sorry for these kids (I'm not much older), they were sold a job where making sales was easy in an ever inflating market.

I don't know what prospect these people will have in a declining economy. What skills can they take to another job? They can't even negotiate properly. They've never had to.

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ST

[scott666]

They are certainly not kids and like the city employees will be the first to be laid off, hence London to crash first. Easy money, easy life and first on the scrapheap when the sh*t hits the fan. It will be a great lesson for them and they are young enough to go out and retrain for a more productive job. As they sow so shall they reap.

[thedebtisreal]

Ok so maybe not the owners but what about the plebs that do the donkey work?

.

I had a friend who worked in Foxtons central offices in Chiswick. Arranging viewings, mortgage appointments etc....

.

From what he told me I strongly suspect that the practices uncovered by the BBC doc mentioned in another thread are the tip of a HUGE iceberg.

.

I now work close to that office in West london and see a lot of EAs in their shiny suits and massive ties on the tube on my way to work and in the sandwich shop at lunch.

I have overheard them talking and they sound spooked, most of them are young (21-23) straight out of university (becuase a degree means bugger all these days so you end up cold calling for the devil).

The very idea that prices might fall, or the market crash has got them shaking. These vapour jobs will be the first to go when the recession comes.

.

Despite their annoying ways I feel sorry for these kids (I'm not much older), they were sold a job where making sales was easy in an ever inflating market.

I don't know what prospect these people will have in a declining economy. What skills can they take to another job? They can't even negotiate properly. They've never had to.

.

ST

Don't feel sorry for them. Things will get harder, but they'll be wiser, they'll be tougher. Some will fall by the wayside, others will learn to work hard and view the world in more realistic terms. They'll learn how to talk the market down. They will be more empathetic for those whose jobs have been hard for a time now. Who knows? Maybe they'll be freed up to do something more worthwhile with their life.

To quote the simpsons. The chinese use the same word for crisis as oppurtunity. Crisurtunity.

[OzzMosiz]

Despite their annoying ways I feel sorry for these kids (I'm not much older), they were sold a job where making sales was easy in an ever inflating market.

I don't know what prospect these people will have in a declining economy. What skills can they take to another job? They can't even negotiate properly. They've never had to.

.

ST

Sales Advisor @ McDonalds?

[contractor]

should I feel sorry for them?

Nope. I did try, honestly.

fsck'em. Karma at its best

[Leonard Hatred]

I sometimes feel sorry for them, given that my mum was one until the branch closed down(!) and they were made redundant in 1997.

[pootle]

I don't feel sorry when a war criminal goes to jail even though he was "just following orders". Complicity!

[Guest Popalot]

Sorry Super Ted, but I have had a lot of dealings with Foxtons rental people. Some are cute and vulnerable to the ceremonial one firing per week culture, but most are arrogant, lip-curling wasters who would be second hand car salesmen if they were not at Foctons. Greed and or the mini drives them, wither of which is a shameful start to a graduate life.

[no room at the inn]

For me as well if someone came to me for a job and i have seen on there CV that they where once working for Foxtons. I file it right away in the BIN!

[Lone_Twin]

One reason I am interested is that I used to work in sales too, in Recruitment.

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*ducks waiting thrown bricks

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To be fair I'm not much the sales type, I don't have sufficient arrogance. (Though the OH might disagree)

In Oct last year I moved out of agency side recruitment and now work in HR.

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When I moved out of sales and took a nearly 50% pay cut, all my agency mates told me I was mad,

the market was booming, blah blah blah. (same kind of stuff STRs must hear )

But I was convinced the market would take a downturn precipitated by a recession caused by a HPC.

Why be in a job you don't like when the money isnt good (most of my income was on commision).

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Now I stumbled into recruitment after flunking out of Uni for personal reasons, but theres a few grey cells swilling around the old swede and some latent IT skills to bring to the party so I have been able to make quite a go of it and though I am not back to my old earning power I believe this is a more sustainable option than "sales for life". (esp in the event of a recession).

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But even if I say so myself it required a fair amount of balls and a very supportive GF to do it.

Lower my own salary by choice, move into cheaper (rented) accomodation, put off prospects of buying a house almost indefinately.

.

I'm not sure I can condemn someone for not being able to do that.

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ST

[goonboy]

I What skills can they take to another job?

Ah well, guess they should have gotten some real skills in a job that's actually productive.

Still, they're young, in a few years time the economy may have recovered sufficiently to support their ilk and they'll get another job...

[TheSiren]

Ah well, guess they should have gotten some real skills in a job that's actually productive.

Still, they're young, in a few years time the economy may have recovered sufficiently to support their ilk and they'll get another job...

In anycase it wont matter as they can claim the social seeing as other menial jobs have been taken by the eastern europeans!!!

[steve99]

Ok so maybe not the owners but what about the plebs that do the donkey work?

.

I had a friend who worked in Foxtons central offices in Chiswick. Arranging viewings, mortgage appointments etc....

.

From what he told me I strongly suspect that the practices uncovered by the BBC doc mentioned in another thread are the tip of a HUGE iceberg.

.

I now work close to that office in West london and see a lot of EAs in their shiny suits and massive ties on the tube on my way to work and in the sandwich shop at lunch.

I have overheard them talking and they sound spooked, most of them are young (21-23) straight out of university (becuase a degree means bugger all these days so you end up cold calling for the devil).

The very idea that prices might fall, or the market crash has got them shaking. These vapour jobs will be the first to go when the recession comes.

.

Despite their annoying ways I feel sorry for these kids (I'm not much older), they were sold a job where making sales was easy in an ever inflating market.

I don't know what prospect these people will have in a declining economy. What skills can they take to another job? They can't even negotiate properly. They've never had to.

.

ST

Think Foxtons require new recruits to have a degree, why? what sort of a fool goes to university, gets a degree in anything just to end up as an EA parasite?, loosing their jobs/comissions should be a smack on the ring for them and a reminder to go out and find a proper job before its too late.

[Benedict]

Sorry Super Ted, but I have had a lot of dealings with Foxtons rental people. Some are cute and vulnerable to the ceremonial one firing per week culture, but most are arrogant, lip-curling wasters who would be second hand car salesmen if they were not at Foctons. Greed and or the mini drives them, wither of which is a shameful start to a graduate life.

Two powerful dynamics!

Is it just me or are all male estate agents really short, particularly from Foxtons? Is that intentional? Do they make the houses look bigger or something?

[Fancypants]

Let me just say that I have some tenuous connections with the less savoury elements of London's population. I recently learnt of someone's (inveterately criminal) brother "turning his life around" after his fifth spell in prison... how did he achieve this? Why, by setting up his own estate agency, of course.

[thedebtisreal]

Two powerful dynamics!

Is it just me or are all male estate agents really short, particularly from Foxtons? Is that intentional? Do they make the houses look bigger or something?

You are so right!

[Lone_Twin]

Think Foxtons require new recruits to have a degree, why? what sort of a fool goes to university, gets a degree in anything just to end up as an EA parasite?, loosing their jobs/comissions should be a smack on the ring for them and a reminder to go out and find a proper job before its too late.

One drives the other.

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The more grads there are the less a degree is worth. Therefore even to get a job as "an EA parasite" you have to have one.

Driving up the numbers who go to Uni.

Imagine the kinds of jobs (young) people who don't go to Uni are doing.

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ST

[Greenstuff]

Is it just me or are all male estate agents really short, particularly from Foxtons? Is that intentional? Do they make the houses look bigger or something?

Made my day that comment, thanks

[Johnny Cash]

Despite their annoying ways I feel sorry for these kids

I dont.

I overheard snippets of a conversation in a pub a couple of weeks ago which, I assume, was someone telling someone else what it was like to sell houses.

"you've gotta ask yourself, can you block any emotion cos you've got to be a b@5t2rd to sell houses"............."this job is basically about shafting people. I shit on people for a living and go home and dont lose a second's sleep over it"............."basically you're just dealing with mugs and tossers all day but they pay your wages so who gives a f@*k?"

Just confirmed to me that I did the right thing getting out of toilet UK back in May.

Edited August 20, 2007 by Johnny Cash

[Timm]

Think Foxtons require new recruits to have a degree. Why?

They are in debt and likely to work harder to avoid getting the sack.

Edited August 20, 2007 by Timm

[Lone_Twin]

I dont.

I overheard snippets of a conversation in a pub a couple of weeks ago which, I assume, was someone telling someone else what it was like to sell houses.

"you've gotta ask yourself, can you block any emotion cos you've got to be a b@5t2rd to sell houses"............."this job is basically about shafting people. I shit on people for a living and go home and dont lose a second's sleep over it"............."basically you're just dealing with mugs and tossers all day but they pay your wages so who gives a f@*k?"

Just confirmed to me that I did the right thing getting out of toilet UK back in May.

Hmmmm, well that is why I got out of recruitment.

I didnt like being pressured to make "sales" by forcing what were actualy peoples career choices

which could really change their lives (I was recruiting very senior people in a volatile industry not temps etc...)

.

Some of the practices I saw would make EAs blush.

.

I for one didnt sleep very well on it (though I can truthfully say I never over-stepped "the line").

But as in my previous post, these are stupid, brash, illeducated (even if they are graduates) young people for whom money is their god.

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Thankfully I have always been an Atheist.

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ST

[Guest Winnie]

Hmmmm, well that is why I got out of recruitment.

I didnt like being pressured to make "sales" by forcing what were actualy peoples career choices

which could really change their lives (I was recruiting very senior people in a volatile industry not temps etc...)

.

Some of the practices I saw would make EAs blush.

.

I for one didnt sleep very well on it (though I can truthfully say I never over-stepped "the line").

But as in my previous post, these are stupid, brash, illeducated (even if they are graduates) young people for whom money is their god.

.

Thankfully I have always been an Atheist.

.

ST

Good move, I like your style. Braveheart.

[Xurbia]

As a general rule people with jobs suffixed 'broker' or 'agent' seem to be nobs. The recruitment agents, financial brokers and estate agents all have sales to make and have no scruples whatsoever. This wouldn't be so bad if they didn't talk in b011ocks jargon. If someone talks jargon to someone outside the industry you are dealing with a nob.

Estate agents are not professionals. They are bound by very few legal obligations. If they adopted the American licensing then it would be different. The agents have had their day in the sun and now it's over. Hopefully the wideboys of the industry will go back to bingo calling or cleaning out toilets. Financial brokers are the same deal. During the 90s they used to scam you for pensions and cream off a couple of grand as commission. Once again money for nothing. Recruitment agents are just the same.

If there is another line of business where being rude, taking crap photos, wearing cheap suits and telling lies are required there will be alternative employment.

[markinspain]

If there is another line of business where being rude, talking crap , wearing cheap suits and telling lies are required there will be alternative employment.

Politician perhaps?

[Xurbia]

Politician perhaps?

I think even an estate agent is generally over-qualified to become a Labour MP. Perhaps if they worked on their lying there's a possibility. Then again I'm not convinced your average agent is capable of bringing misery to the masses for 10 years in a row!