Are Estate Agents Really Necessary?

[Danzo]

Bless you DRHouse. I think that there is enough work for all of us out there and despite the fact that our business is essentially "For Sale by Owner" I am constantly referring Property Sellers to good local reputable Estate Agents, especially where their professional expertise is required but there is a certain joy when we see a Homeowner actually sell their property themselves and for that reason we press on.
God bless
Danzo

[JamesM]

I couldnt agree with you more GRC, private house sales are not for everyone. When the market is tough, like now, they really earn their bread. I think that the scale of their commissions in the boom times are extreme though - 2% of a £500,000 is a lot of money when everyone's buying. 2% of nothing is not a lot when its quiet though.

[donnaphipps49]

Having somebody else deal with the details definitely saves time and avoid a lot of headaches. But watching cash that’s rightfully yours end up in some stranger’s bank account is really a pain!

[IFA]

Hey Donna,

Thanks for almost speaking out in support of estate agents there, but I have issue with your second sentence in which you state ".....cash that's rightfully yours...".

So the professional services of a good estate agent are worthless then? How about the professional services of the conveyancers that you are promoting on the weblink in your post's signature, are they worth paying for or is that cash also "rightfully" the property vendor's too? Where's the difference?

Take a look at the weblink for the "for sale by owner" website that the original poster of this thread is promoting at the bottom of their post.

What do you mean it doesn't work? Really?

So presumably the business has failed then, yet traditional estate agents continue to dominate the market even though they seemingly don't deserve to be paid for the services that they provide?

Doesn't seem to be quite right to me, perhaps they have more worth than you give credit for.

You also complain that the money will ".....end up in some stranger's bank account....", if you have a good estate agent that takes the time to get to know you, to empathise and relate to your circumstances and then genuinely cares about achieving a sale for you then they shouldn't be considered merely "some stranger", they should instead be thought of as a central figure in the process of enabling you to move house as quickly and smoothly as possible.

Is the conveyacer that works on your behalf to ensure that the legal aspects of buying and selling property is fully investigated also merely "some stranger", or are they more important than that?

I agree that there are some estate agents around that do not act professionally, but not all are the same, and most do deserve to be paid for their services.

[propertydiamond]

It really depends on your experience and knowledge of buying and selling property. For most people agents can provide support and are a good source of information.