Don't fall for this estate agency trick!!!

A client whose heart was broken after missing out on two dream homes due to estate agent overvaluing

Last week I was on an appointment discussing a marketing plan with a young family in Binfield when they mentioned they had a valuation from another estate agent just a few days prior and felt that the price was too optimistic.

This happens regularly in the industry, where companies put enormous pressure on their staff to list homes and a sure fire way to ‘win’ the business is to go big on the price, lock you into a 4 month contract and slowly work your price down.

Ovie and I are fortunate enough to own our own business so we don’t have to worry about senior management applying pressure for results and can give advice with no agenda but it got me thinking about a client I previously had.

This particular client called me in floods of tears having missed out on her third dream home in Binfield, a few months prior she viewed a house she liked but still needed to sell hers.

She took the estate agents advice on price on her own home and the home went onto the marketing portals and just sat there. Viewings were few and far between and eventually she lost the dream home.

She stayed on the market incase another home came up which it unduly did, but she missed out again.

She called me and we met up and assessed her home, I advised her that her home was priced at a point which didn’t account for maximum exposure, she was waiting for 1 buyer to come along instead of having buyers competing for her home that she needed to secure her dream home.

We listed her home on the portals, along with drone videos and a bespoke social media campaign at a slightly lower price which maximised exposure. This led to 6 viewings on the first weekend and 3 offers and we agreed a sale over the asking price.

Luckily, 2 weeks later, we were instructed by a client for another dream home for her and her family and showed her round before it went online, she offered an acceptable offer.

It’s easy to get sucked in by a headline price, but it’s key to be as objective as you can and look for comparable evidence to ensure the prices being quoted are realistic and appropriate for your desired timescales.

If you have any questions or just want some honest advice with no agenda, please do get in touch.

Matt & Ovie

Warfield and Binfield