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Purple bricks vs high street estate agents

Property market predictions There’s optimism around the property market at the moment, with Rightmove saying the average time to agree a sale was just 52 days in November, compared to 67 days a year earlier.

Experts are split on whether this will last, however, with some believing the market (and house price growth) could slow down once the government’s coronavirus financial support schemes and the stamp duty cut come to an end.

Rightmove forecasts that house prices will rise by 4% in 2021.
It predicts a lull in the second quarter of the year once the stamp duty cut ends, but says this won’t be ‘make or break’.

Zoopla predicts annual house price growth will reach 5% in February, before slowing to 1% by the end of 2021.

Halifax says house prices will fall by between 2% and 5% this year.
The estate agents Savills and Hamptons both believe house prices will stay the same in 2021.
Chestertons predicts a 1.5% increase and Knight Frank a 1% rise.

The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) predicts house prices could fall by 5%.

Read more: https://www.which.co.uk/news/2021/01/how-will-the-coronavirus-affect-house-prices/ - Which?
 
i have done some reading and they may not fall , the demand for houses is massive !! flats here seem not to be selling so well . People have loads of money as they have not be able to go to the seychells :D and they are spending it on home improvements and houses [ according to tradesmen i have met ]

I think the demand for houses HAS been massive, but demand has dropped. And not so much seems to be coming on to the market.
I think this stamp duty holiday was a big driver in last years price surge, but when that goes and things get a lot tighter financially for many folks, the housing market will fall.

By how much is the big question !!!!

Edit... just seen your post above mine, interesting !!!
 
Purple Bricks, and their recommended conveyancers very nearly caused our chain to collapse (we didn't use them, it was further up the chain)
 
Purple Bricks sold a place up the road from us
Looked them up out of interest.
Good photos and description - PB or vendor ?
It's the vendor. That's the point of PB, it's cheap because the vendor does the donkey work. You take your own photos and write your own blurb.

That said, what skills do the EAs have in copy? None, mostly. The ones I have dealt with are basically shop workers, you come in and ask for a 3 bed semi at up to £x and they give you the details. How hard can it be? As an example, when I got the keys to my place the EA said "Ooh, it's *you* with that one, is it? That's a lovely house, I love that back garden. It' so quiet and peaceful, it's just like being in the countryside. I did the details on that house, I sat in that conservatory looking at the garden and I didn't want to leave."
"Well yes, it is nice in the garden. That's why I bought it."
Now did these observations find their way into the description? Any mention of the big garage that makes a lovely workshop or that could be converted to an office? Open fields to the rear, rather than the back of someone else's house? No, not a dicky bird. Just a standard copy and paste description that must have taken 10 minutes to prepare. For that the vendors paid, what? £2k? Good work.
 
I can’t see how prices can do anything but fall significantly over the next 12-18 months. There will be vested interests that talk the market up but the economic fundamentals are pointing to a sharp correction. The government have got nowhere to go with interest rates this time either as they did in previous downturns.
 
Estate agents offer a pretty generic service really.
I’d probably personally go with the cheapest that gets you on Rightmove.

Sad to hear some estate agents are using the current high demand to force mortgage brokers upon prospective purchasers.

They probably won’t be so feisty when the inevitable downturn comes.
 
The Estate Agent's role is slowly changing...offering a personal service PB et al cannot offer...but I've been told by an insider that an Estate Agents main bread and butter is lettings. Without lettings, our nation's favourite high street vendor (not) would be on their knees....
 
Sad to hear some estate agents are using the current high demand to force mortgage brokers upon prospective purchasers.

They aren't, but if people fall for it due to having not enough wit.....................

They probably won’t be so feisty when the inevitable downturn comes.

That is a LONG way off for most types of property in most areas.
 
mmm the problem is that is there are 20 people are after a property and they wont let you see it then what choice do you have but to play their game . I have written to the chief exec of this high street chain outlining my concerns and quoting the many reviews like this . that show they will not accept a mortgage in principle unless arranged by them

Avoid! Wanted to see a house had a decision in principle the house was £100,000 less than my decision in principle amount me and my wife are both key workers, however the branch manager would refuse us a viewing because we refused to make an appointment with the mortgage guy “...” they would rather lose a sale so they can make a measly £500 referral for the mortgage if arranged to them, the whole outfit is run by cowboys by far the worst so called estate agents I have ever come across. Literally made me sick the way I was spoken to, who on earth recruits these so called “professionals” my dog has better manners.

and another

Useless service. Deliberately ignoring my calls simply because I was not interested in taking a mortgage out with them and was only interested in the house. Ignored my calls 10 times but surprisingly answered straight away on my friend's phone. Do not use ........ as they are only interested in your money.

this is just one of many like this

just for balance . this chain has at least 2 brands all under the same company . looking at a similar estate agents under this umbrella you get pages of positive reviews , not one says they were forced to take a mortgage so i think there is certainly a problem with the guys i dealt with
 
That is a LONG way off for most types of property in most areas.

Interested as to why you are so sure.
If it is a long way off then when the correction comes, it will likely be longer and deeper.

If we do really want to level up - geographically, intra-generational etc then the correction can’t come quick enough.
Sadly the reduction in stamp duty has benefitted sellers only and not first time buyers for whom the policy was predominantly aimed (at least that’s how it was sold!)
 
I bought a house last year and did the vast majority of my searching through Rightmove. I have to say that I was put off the ones being sold through PurpleBricks because it was always a faff to get in touch with anyone or get any info on the house. I had to go and register with their site, and then at some point someone would call me back, but they wouldn't know anything about the property... I seem to recall the process of setting up a viewing was faffy as well. Any of the properties being sold through an estate agent, someone would call me very quickly and know specifics about the property.
 
The trouble with mortgage brokers is the commission. Many years ago, I was after a mortgage, and my local building society offered their 'independent' broker who would search 'whole of market'. He came up with some decent deals. Then I searched the web myself, and found one outstanding deal, far better than any of his, and it was not on his list. After enquiring why, it turns out that 'whole of market' actually means 'only the deals I get commission on'.
I am still on the deal I found, which is base rate +0.74%. That is for the interest only bit, the endowment paid out about 7 years ago, but has been invested ever since, always at a rate higher than I am paying for the interest only portion. The repayment bit finishes next year, when I will pay off the interest only part as well.
 
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There is also, of course, the agent problem as usually defined in corporate governance - are the agent’s interests aligned with the principal’s?

The ‘trad’ high st agent gets paid only if they sell your house. The DIY agent (don’t call ‘em online, every agent is online) gets paid whether or not they sell - so where does the marketing budget go? Is it attracting vendors or buyers? Once you’ve paid up, does it matter at all if you sell? They’re sucking down VC cash, most not anywhere near a profit - so cheap fees, grab market share, take a fat buyout and let SoftBank or axel springer or whoever book a loss in a few years, giggling from your Home Counties Manor House.

Of course there’s plenty of ways that the trad agent can shit the bed - perverse incentives to staff (eg. stupid bonuses/over reliance on referral fees from conveyancers, brokers, removals, whatever), and that a large increase in your sale price makes as good as no difference to their fee, conflicts if acting for both buyer & seller, and plenty more - but most of the time, their incentives are much more closely aligned to your interests. Find a good one (easier said than done) and you will, for sure, get a better result. As ever, forget about the fee. What matters is - was the return better?

For the cynics - I’m an accidental agent. Above is still true tho.
 
If we do really want to level up - geographically, intra-generational etc then the correction can’t come quick enough.
Sadly the reduction in stamp duty has benefitted sellers only and not first time buyers for whom the policy was predominantly aimed (at least that’s how it was sold!)
No chance of levelling up. Not a prayer. Too many vested interests. As for "sold on the benefits to FTB" , well to quote someone famous "he would say that, wouldn't he?"
 
Big fan of high street agents normally

Really!!?? I'm shocked, I thought estate agents were only liked by the mothers and even that's a stretch of the imagination.

With regard to the mortgage querying, in the past whenever I have rang an estate agent to book a viewing which inevitably leads to the questions about whether I have a house to sell and if I require a mortgage I always tell them I have no house to sell (whether I do or not) and I always tell them I'm a cash buyer (whether I have the money or not), afterall I only want to view the property.
I have told a few of them to mind their own business as well or that's it's none of their business.
 
I think the market will “calm down”, especially as potential buyers lose the “ carrot” of the stamp duty saving.

Doing some reading around, the general opinion seems to be that the market will fall this year.

We have sold our house and are presently trying to decide if we should buy now, or go in to rented for 6 months, in the expectation that prices fall.

I'm surprised to hear that the general consensus is that the housing market will fall this year. Can you remember any particular links or sources?
 


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