Whether you’re selling your home in Northampton, Nottingham, Leicester or Lincolnshire, choosing a great estate agent is a hugely important part of the process. Pick the right agent and your transaction is much more likely to go off without a hitch. You’ll be able to find the house of your dreams or get your property off the market much more quickly.
The question is, how do you distinguish between a great estate agent and a mediocre one? It can be hard to tell at the initial stage when the agent will be on their best behaviour trying to pitch their services to you. Luckily, there are some signs to look out for. Read on to find out how to spot a great estate agent:
1. They’ll have excellent online reviews
Thanks to Google, it is no longer possible for any service provider to get away with lousy service. Customers and clients can easily leave bad online reviews which will affect their future business. Look online before you decide on an estate agent. If they don’t have their own reviews section, Google Business usually has honest reviews from customers.
Search for reputable estate agents that have verified reviews. If they’ve delivered exceptional service in the past, it’s likely, they will again. The same applies to those who have delivered bad service and have poor reviews – avoid them!
You can find our Google reviews here –
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2. They’ll often come recommended
One of the best ways to start your hunt for a great local estate agent is to ask around for recommendations. If anyone within your friends and family circle is personally vouching for an estate agent, they’re likely to provide excellent service. It also adds an element of credibility, as the recommendation is coming from someone that you know and trust.
3. They’ve been doing this for a while!
Find someone equipped with the experience you need to navigate the property market. Gain an understanding of how much experience your estate agent has before choosing them for your home move.
The more experience an agent has navigating the housing market, the more easily they’ll be able to spot any issues and help you circumvent them. They may also have partners that they can recommend to help you with your move, such as independent surveyors and removal companies.
4. Their average selling time speaks for itself
One of the signs of an effective estate agent is how quickly they can work to move your property off the market. While you want to ensure that they don’t rush the process and achieve a good price for your property, you also don’t want to wait too long when you’re ready to sell your house. A great estate agent will be skilled on how to market your property and will be able to find interested buyers and line up viewings until they get your house sold.
So, how do you find out whether your estate agent will be effective at selling your property? Ask them what their average selling time is. Beware of those with very short selling times, as this could have been done at the expense of price.
5. They offer a fair property valuation
To value a house accurately is a lot more work than you may think. All estate agents know that the property valuation you offer them could lead to you choosing to hire them or not, and they may adjust their valuation accordingly. Some agents may decide to overvalue the property to tempt you into working with them, only to reduce this to a more realistic valuation once you’ve chosen them. Opt for an estate agent that gives you a realistic valuation from the start that is aligned with the market value.
It’s perfectly okay to ask an agent to explain their valuation if you think it’s too high or too low. A great estate agent will happily explain their reasoning for their valuation and break down why they’ve given those numbers.
6. They have good communication skills
This is less easy to ‘measure’, but it’s one of the most important things that make up a great estate agent. They should be friendly and communicative so you can be sure that you will be kept informed throughout the process.
Suss out their communication style with a simple phone call or video call, although keep in mind that all agents will be putting their best foot forward at this stage!
If you are planning on moving, then feel free to get in touch. We’ll be happy to advise you on how to sell your home with us and provide info on all of our available properties in the area. Contact us for more information and an expert, friendly service.
