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Reputation
The Estate Agent Magazine Helping sellers & landlords choose the right estate agent Tips on ‘Pricing it Right’
MEET Greg Barnes
How View Agents can help you find an estate agent What are the qualities of a
successful estate agent?
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Estate agent interview
Preparing your home for sale/letting
The role of a seller
Get an insight into the thoughts and views of a successful estate agent
Every home is unique Check out some tips in getting your home ready for viewings
Get some tips of what your role is as a home seller or landlord
Reputation The Estate Agent Magazine - 2022
“All rights reserved” ©
PRICING IT RIGHT
Do your own research Use a property portal and try and find some comparable properties on the market or recently sold/ let. However, this is ONLY a guide, as market conditions vary and no two homes are identical. You will also need to take into account that the ‘asking price’ is not the ‘sold/let price’.
Pro Tip Call in an expert This is the best option. Agents sell/let homes for a living. An experienced local estate agent will be able to guide you on a price range & should back that up with comparable sales/lettings.
Priced too high? You may not attract as many buyers/tenant viewings and may stay on the market longer, this may lead to potential buyers/tenants thinking there’s something wrong. On rare occasions, you might find a buyer or tenant who really wants it. You also have more room to negotiate.
Priced too low? You may sell/let it faster but your goal would be to get as much as you can. Look for a happy medium. There is a misconception that if you receive an asking price offer early on, that you’ve priced it too low. In many cases, it simply means you priced it right. Remember, the right estate has the skills to negotiate the highest price for your home. If you require help choosing an estate agent, you can use our free concierge service, contact us at valuations@viewagents.com and we’ll help you choose an estate agent
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Contents 2
Pricing it right
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Meet Greg Barnes
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Preparing your home
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Role of a seller
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Area Spotlight
10 Choosing an estate agent
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Meet Greg BARNES
Preparing your home for sale/letting
From the CEO We are excited to bring you this edition of View Agents Reputation Magazine. We hope we can offer home sellers and landlords some additional information in helping them select their next estate agent.
Domenic Versace CEO View Agents
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Human VS Technology. Prop Tech expert, Simon Whale, delivers a very insightful perspective on how technology is shaping the real estate industry
The Role of a Seller
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What is View Agents? For home sellers & landlords We help sellers and landlords search and choose an estate agent to sell, let or manage their home. Visit viewagents.com For estate agents View Agents is a reputation management platform specifically for estate agents. Helping estate agents Collect, Manage & Promote reviews & reputation. Our goal is to help agents grow their business and improve their online reputation.
CHOOSING the right estate agent
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..we work hard on engagement and communication to ensure we deliver..
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Breckon & Breckon (Letting & Management) Twining House, 294 Banbury Rd
MEET GREG BARNES
Summertown, OX2 7ED breckon.co.uk 01865 201111 How did you get into real estate? Do you remember your first day? Having started my career at 16 in banking, I took the bus home past a large agency branch which looked pretty impressive at night with the team still there on the phones and I thought ‘I’d like to be in there’….not quite sure why as it was pretty late in comparison to my working hours, so I applied and that was the beginning. A year later I was sat in that very branch!
What is the best thing about being an estate agent?
SUMMERTOWN
OXFORD Keen cyclist, although the word keen may be exaggerated having not ridden for some months. Rugby fan. Greg Barnes
The relationships; both client and staff. Seeing teams develop and being part of a client’s property journey and being able to advise and create long term relationships.
What attributes makes a good estate agent? Being able to listen and have a genuine interest in people – everyone is on a different journey.
What are some great questions a seller and a landlord should ask you on a listing presentation? Why you? How will you promote my property? Are you a PropertyMark agent? How are you set up to deal with managed properties?
Managing Director (Letting & Management) greg@breckon.co.uk 31 years estate agency experience Qualifications: MARLA, FNAEA, Advisory board member at ARLA Property Mark
What do you recommend to sellers and landlords in preparing their home for sale / for viewing? Attention to detail; fix those things that need fixing, clear away those things you’ve been meaning to clear away for ages and make sure your property is looking its best; this applies to letting or selling.
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What do you recommend that a seller or landlord should do prior to calling in an estate agent for a valuation? Research; ask friends for recommendations, look at reviews sites, look at agency websites and try and get a feel for the type of agent you want. The quick and simplest way to get in touch is often by email, but try and call as you will get a good impression from how that is dealt with.
What makes your branch different from your competitors? Our clients are the sole focus and we listen. Providing the best customer service is somewhat of a cliché, but we work hard on engagement and communication to ensure we deliver.
What constitutes a great property marketing campaign and how do you execute it? Think differently; concentrate on presentation and then where you place it. Video content and social media are a must if you are looking to create a campaign.
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What is the best way of valuing a home?
Thinking of selling or letting your property?
CLICK HERE
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TO BOOK A FREE, NO OBLIGATION PROPERTY VALUATION
What are the challenges when negotiating between seller/buyer & landlord/tenant? Finding common ground; often there is a natural ‘meeting of minds’ but that’s the art of negotiation, finding that common ground and try and avoid getting principles involved as that often creates rocks that can’t be moved.
What are some COVID-19 practices you have introduced? At the start of Covid we set up ‘SafeMove’; our internal policy and procedures for the safety of our staff and the general public. Prospective applicants were screened and our offices were quickly rearranged to accommodate social distancing along with remote working. While now second nature, it was at the time a huge task and one which we needed to make very quickly.
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Preparation; spend time researching and be aware of what is happening locally. There are a multitude of products in the market that provide some really powerful information. Look at what you are presenting; is it good enough?
Providing the best customer service
What are the key aspects when negotiating a house sale/let?
Be open, be fair and listen to the needs (or wants) of both parties.
think differently
Do you like sellers/landlords (tenants) to be home when viewings are conducted? Some do, some don’t. I personally feel it is better if owners or tenants are not at home; partly due to the viewer feeling a little more uncomfortable as they are invading their space, but also it’s important to still maintain Covid policy. It also creates a feeling that the space is smaller than it is with 4+ people in each room.
How important is having a good reputation in this industry? Critical; in fact reputation is important in any business. Clients understandably want to use people they can trust. What is your favourite part about the area/ community where you work? We are based in Oxford, a beautiful city, so are very fortunate. There is a real community spirit and strong B2B connections with a real sense of purpose; it’s a great place to work.
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top tips to 8 prepare your home for selling/letting
Your home needs to be well presented, ideally, look better than the competition, and have a neutral theme to appeal to more buyers/tenants tastes ‘Your goal is to present a tidy house that’s filled with natural light, feel spacious and practical' In fact, in most cases, to make your home appealing, you don’t need to spend loads of money. Some simple changes can make a big difference between your home sitting unsold until you eventually reduce the asking price or your home selling almost immediately for the full asking price.
5. Smells sells! Research suggests that smells influence buyers, therefore use this to your advantage. Placing fresh flowers in the kitchen and/or scented candles such as vanilla or cinnamon and even ‘cake baking’ smells have an impact. However strong or over-powering smells will put off potential buyers such as: pets, bins, cooking & smoking. Remember to air the house before each viewing.
PRO TIP
6. Back to basics Buyers want to visualise your home as their home. The function of some rooms can change; a spare room used for storage can become the office or a second TV room. Certain rooms hold a greater perceived value, think about converting rooms back to their original use. Remove furniture that looks too big for the room; clutter that isn’t essential to the function of the room will free up valuable space and help make your house looks bigger. Consistent light fittings, flooring and curtains also help.
Think of it as a business transaction, where you are making business decisions.
1. Deep clean the house Make sure it’s done properly, if you do, then you are already a step ahead of your competition. Include dusting, carpets & garden if you can afford it. Try your best to keep it clean & tidy until sold or let!
2. De-Clutter Have a clear-out. This will make your home look larger and a place that buyers or tenants can imagine themselves living in. Make sure there is a clear flow when walking around your home. Try doing a walk-through, as though you were on the viewing.
3. Complete outstanding DIY Small jobs left undone make a huge difference to the potential buyers/ tenants. When they can see you care and look after your home they may offer you more as they can see additional value.
4. First Impressions DO count!
7. Depersonalise your home Think of your home as a show home. These are effective sales tools as they are always anonymous. Buyers/ tenants want to imagine themselves living there, creating their own story. This can be difficult if overwhelming evidence of you or family are everywhere. Remove some family pictures, trophies, children’s artwork. Your house needs to look lived-in without looking like anyone actually lives there.
8. Neutral tones
Potential buyers/tenants will be judging your house even before they knock on your door! Make sure that the external appearance
Natural light is great, bright rooms appear more spacious than dim/ dark ones. If necessary, use table lamps in rooms that need
is well-maintained and cared for; the outside needs to look as great as the inside. This includes the garden, driveway etc -a tidy, lawns mowed, litter removed and so on. Walk up & down your street and compare it to your neighbours.
a little lift. Colour is personal, it’s best to go with neutral colours instead of highly individualised interiors. Creating a blank canvas helps buyers imagine how they would live in it and it will appeal to more tastes.
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“ Motivation, ability, need.
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Role of a SELLER IT’S NOT EVERYDAY YOU SELL YOUR HOME. HERE ARE 3 TOP TIPS TO HELP YOU UNDERSTAND YOUR ROLE AS A HOME SELLER
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Viewings
Most home buyers will look at several homes before buying one. You will have competition. Ask your estate agent what they think you need to do to your home prior to the first viewing. Keep it clean and tidy. There may be occasions where the agent will call you at the last minute for a viewing, where possible be flexible. As you will be having potential buyers walking through your home, keep all valuables in a safe place and out of view. If you have pets, it would be advisable to keep them outside as there may be buyers who may not feel comfortable around pets, especially if the potential buyers have children with them. If you have kids toys or obstructions around the house, make sure it is safe to walk around.
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PRO TIP
Communication
Always keep the agent up to date on any changes. For example, if you go away for the weekend or you go away on a vacation. This will help the agent if there is a last-minute viewing and they’re trying to get a hold of you. In this situation, it may be advisable to leave a spare key with the agent. If you are planning a family event and you do not want the agent to conduct a viewing, try and give the agent plenty of notice. If you make any changes to the property let your agent know. For example, if you install a new boiler or you fix a leaking roof. This will help the agent when asked specific questions by a buyer. The key to any successful sale is open communication
Ask the estate agent whether it’s best you remain in the home whilst they conduct the viewing. If you do remain home, allow the agent to do their job, they are the experts. Unless the agent asks you to, don’t walk around on the viewing with them, it may make buyers uncomfortable.
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Negotiating
Most home sellers have an emotional attachment to their homes. Potential buyers won’t have that attachment, to them, your property is seen as a piece of real estate. Therefore, if the agent submits a low offer, don’t take it personally. The negotiation for your home can vary widely. In some cases the negotiation is straight forward or take weeks of back and forth negotiations. Always keep an open mind and remember that an experienced agent will know how to negotiate for you.
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AREA SPOTLIGHT SUMMERTOWN
OXFORD Summertown in North Oxford is a suburb of Oxford, England. Summertown is a one-mile square residential area, north of St Giles, the boulevard leading out of Oxford's city centre. Summertown is home to several independent schools and the city's most expensive houses AVERAGE HOUSE PRICE (SALES)
£638,000 AVERAGE HOUSE PRICE (LETTINGS)
£2,030 P/M
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Interesting Fact Most of North Oxford came into being as a result of the revolutionary decision by the university to permit college fellows to marry and live in real houses, as opposed to rooms in college.
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Choosing an Estate Agent
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For most of us, our home is the most expensive asset we will ever own. Therefore, it’s important to choose the right estate agent and know you’re in safe hands.
1. Not all estate agents are the same Choosing the right estate agent is a very important decision, there is a difference between all estate agents. Carry out your due diligence before choosing, here are some examples of how estate agents may vary: • Levels of service • Marketing ability • Knowledge / Experience • Professional bodies & qualifications • Fees • Track record
2. Do your research View Agents has over 17,000 estate agents listed and over 350,000 estate agent reviews. It is a comprehensive estate agent search platform, helping you compare and choose. We advise you to invite more than one agent, so that you can get a good understanding of what makes each agent different. If you have difficulty choosing, email us at valuations@viewagents.com and we can recommend them to you.
3. Ask questions & feel comfortable In some cases, a home sale can take several months from listing presentation to completion. Therefore your relationship with your chosen estate is important. You need to feel comfortable communicating with them and make sure you ask plenty of questions. Remember, if your property is being let and then managed by an agent, then that relationship may last several years.
4. Select an agent to sell or let/manage your home Once you’ve weighed up all your options then you will need to select an agent. The agent will then place your property on the market and the marketing process will begin. Good luck!
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