What to Actually Check Before You Sign With Any Estate Agent
Most people read the fee on an estate agent's contract and skip the rest. The part worth reading is usually further down: the tie-in period, the bit that decides how easily you can leave if the service turns out to be poor.
What a tie-in period actually is.
It is the minimum length of time you are contracted to stay with an agent, whether you are happy with them or not. Some agents have none. Others run to six months or more. The Property Ombudsman requires agents to state this clearly, along with how you actually end the agreement, but "clearly stated" and "easy to find" are not always the same thing.
Questions worth asking before you sign with anyone, including us:
- If you are unhappy, how soon can you actually leave?
- Is there a withdrawal charge for ending the agreement early?
- When do fees become payable, on completion, or sooner?
- If you switch agents, could you still owe a fee to the old one for a buyer they originally introduced?
- Is all of this written in plain English, or does it need translating?
None of these are awkward questions to ask a decent agent. If asking them makes someone defensive, that tells you something on its own.
What we do.
We do not tie you into a lengthy contract. If you are not satisfied with our service, you walk away without penalty, no notice period to argue over. Our fee is 1.5% plus VAT, and it is no sale, no fee, so you only pay if the property actually sells. We would rather earn your business every month than rely on a contract to keep it.
If you are talking to more than one agent before deciding, it is worth putting these same questions to all of them. The answers tend to tell you more than the sales pitch does.
