A high street agent’s online offering has already extended its territory and could go national to compete head to head with other online agents, the firm says.
Howard Cundey, with eight branches in Sussex, Surrey and Kent, says it now offers customers four ways of selling their property: through a traditional local branch; a ‘regional’ centre, which offers a no-sale no-fee hybrid model; the modern method of auction (IAM Sold); and its new Howard Cundey LIVE.
Vendors have the option of switching between the different services for both sales and lettings.
Howard Cundey LIVE has drawn vendors from outside the firm’s traditional area in the eight weeks since launch, said a spokeperson.
He added: “The national sales team are free and able to conduct viewings across the country and are also considering the concept of franchising the brand.”
The online arm of Howard Cundey – founded in 1968 – was developed by co-founders Dan Berrisford and Tim Foulkes specifically to complement the existing high street branches.
The fee is paid upfront, costing £599 including VAT.
Extras include floor plans at £80, photography at £100, a package of five viewings at £125, and sales progression at £150 on the basis that vendors must use Howard Cundey’s conveyancing service.
Good to see Howard Cundey offering a progression service.
As we saw from the RightMove statistics at our recent webinar with them, charging for such a service is definitely a great value-add.
Now if only Dan and Tim could be convinced to use our awesome (and let’s face it, award-winning!) service then that’d be a match made in heaven!
Peter
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>Extras include floor plans at £80, photography at £100, a package of five viewings at £125, and sales progression at £150
Now that’s the right way to structure pricing rather than as a percentage of the asset being sold. One that relates to the service level.
It’s scandalous that traditional agents charge a percentage of the asset. 4 times more for more million pound house than a £250K one when the level of service is not four times as much.
Add on a £400 insurance package for no sale and your money back and you are offering the consumer flexibility and pretty much everything they get from a traditional agent but at a better price. Sell from as little as £600.
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Please explain this insurance for a non sale.
i have never heard of this before.
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>i have never heard of this before.
it was just an idea but thinking about it a little more it’s probably not feasible unless a surveyor is involved in the valuation phase. The valuations you get from Estate Agents are typically not as thorough as ones from a surveyor in my experience. In fact, in the past, I’ve actually been told that issues aren’t a problem by Estate Agents only to have them flagged up by a surveyor.
Over the years I’ve developed the feeling that Estate Agents will tell you anything just to get you on their books.
One agent laughed when I asked him if the garage roof would be a problem with the survey. “Why would it be, it’s not part of the house”. Sure enough it was flagged up by the surveyor.
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“It’s scandalous that traditional agents charge a percentage of the asset. 4 times more for more million pound house than a £250K one when the level of service is not four times as much.”
Surely it is equally scandalous that a vendor of a two bedroomed retirement property in BH14 is paying exactly the same amount of money – SALE OR NO SALE – as a vendor of a six bedroomed mansionette being advertised in the same postcode at a price of £2.85 million?
That’s 17.27 times more expensive a property. Why should the poor, presumably aged, vendor of the flat be penalised in such a scandalous way, as you put it?
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I sold a house 100 miles away the other day…i paid them to do it so I can say I Am a national agent.
Also u offer a few and then load it on after they have called u? Trading standards need to get involved in miselling/ advertising
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I have a real problem with the “must use our conveyancing” concept.
Mostly the referral fee hidden in the solicitors fee is not declared until the client reads the small print, and this practise if stamped out, to the point where the referral fee had to be very clear like an APR for instance, would probably put a lot of agents out of business.
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Morning,
The customer has a real choice with a transparent fee structure.
We charge for sales progression as we have a dedicated sales progression team. However, if they use our chosen solicitors we will not charge anything because we have a stringent service level agreement with them so our customers experience a fast and effective service.
Our customers do not have to use our recommended services but we provide them with real choice.
#Fourwaysofselling
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Were extremely proud to be working with Tim, Dan and Amy using Reapits latest technology (http://showcase.reapit.com/digital/) in order to provide their clients the full 24/7 service.
Congratulations guys and we will see you soon,
Mark @ Reapit
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So what happens if you have 6 viewings then?! And floorplans an extra cost? Surely they only take 15 minutes to do?
Is this a bit like taking the Ryanair approach?
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