Why you should always use estate agents

Estate agents are professional property sellers. Wherever your property may be, there must be a good selection of estate agents to choose from, and if you use the right criteria -- click here for how to choose agents -- you will find someone who must be a lot better than you would be at selling your property. Among other things, if you decide to try and sell privately, this will probably be your first sale -- the equivalent of your first day in a new job. An experienced estate agent would have dealt with hundreds of sales.

There are many components of an estate agent's expertise that you just can't match. Local agents will have the inside edge on prices. If you do research yourself, you will get price information but it will be out of date and it will generally be asking prices, not the prices properties actually sold at. The only satisfactory way to decide on a marketing prices is to get estate agents to tell you what you should put your property on the market at. Click here for more on getting quotes from estate agents.

The estate agents’ expertise really comes in to play when dealing with potential buyers and price negotiation. Everything you see on television, in magazines, and in supermarkets tells you the obvious truth that you have to market properly to sell things -- they don't just sell themselves. If you are selling your old hi-fi, you might just stick it on eBay and wait for bids. Even then, you would probably do something to talk it up, such as a positive description and photographs. Are you really going to leave your most important asset sale to a few words crammed into the Sunday Times lineage ads? Or depend on some blurry photo on an Internet site? Packaging works. Pay the estate agents’ commission. The investment will be repaid by many more thousands of pounds in eventual sale price and a quicker sale.

The estate agent markets the property, which means he brings it to the attention of people likely to buy it. Most people looking to buy a type of home in a particular area will be in touch with all the estate agents in the area. They will be looking at the postings on their websites, receiving particulars through the post, and checking out their office windows which will contain photographs and details of properties for sale. Of course, if you put it on the Internet, many more millions of people can theoretically see it, just not necessarily the people most likely to buy it.

Once someone shows an interest in the property, it's the estate agent's job, on your behalf, to persuade them that the property is just right for them. The first step is to get them to view it.Ideally, the estate agent should be showing people round the property. They will know how to make the most of its charms and downplay its shortcomings. Most buyers, not being interior decorators or architects, often can't see the potential, and it is the estate agent who points out that the study is in fact large enough as a fourth bedroom once some large furniture is removed, or that a nanny flat could easily be created above the garage. He will be dealing with all those "it's lovely but..." comments. There is a big advantage in having an estate agent doing this. The viewers can be much more honest and open with an estate agent about what they dislike about the property, so he can readily come up with answers to the problems. If you take people round your home yourself, they will be much less willing to make critical comments, but rather make polite comments and then leave and never looks back, a bit like how we are when asked about on meal by a restaurant owner. Also, if they do start venturing criticisms, you are likely to be defensive, rather than accepting points and suggesting practical solutions. A case in point is the bathroom. To the estate agent they might say that it's tired and grimy, and he could persuade them that it would only cost £1,000 to have it re-tiled and instal new units. With you, they might just be put off by the bathroom, and look for another property.

Negotiating is another aspect of your sale best left to an estate agent. Unless your daily business involves you in negotiating deals and prices, you may not be the best person to negotiate the price of the property. You may tend to treat any attempt to reduce the price as an insult, especially if it is based on some perceived defect in the property. The buyer, equally if not used to negotiating, may be over emphatic in his objections, leading to a row, or a breakdown in negotiations. An estate agent will keep everyone in play. He will be the buffer between the two sides and will “translate” the more vigorous comments each side makes before passing them on to the other side. He will also be able to give you a dispassionate view on whether you should accept a reduction or hold out for a higher price from these or other buyers. People will be commenting to him on how the price compares with other comparable properties -- they won't be making the same comments to you. You may well have arrived at a price at which to put the property on the market in the first place by getting quotes from agents and comparing sale prices for neighbouring properties, but that won't help you when it comes to working out what price to finally accept, or whether to lower or raise your asking price. That will depend more on the number of people who view, and their feedback.

Another factor in favour of using estate agents is speed. You are more likely to reach potential buyers through estate agents who are local to the property, because potential buyers will already be in touch with them. Getting a quick sale may be important if you want to tie it in with a purchase, or if you want to move by particular date, for example to tie in with school terms.