Estate agents in SE1
Sam Wednesday 26 June 2002 4.05pm
I had really wonderful service from Field and Sons -- I can't remember her name but she was Irish and was genuinely keen to help me find a flat. She followed up with phone calls, was knowledgable and passionate about the area, and was v. pleased when I eventually found something, even though it wasn't through her. Walking into their office is a sheer delight (the building is gorgeous). Well worth trying out, especially if you're at the end of your tether.
I'm not sure I'd go back to OJ's. The bloke there was just too corny-estate-agent by half, and I don't believe for a second that the flat he showed me was even technically available -- his price-pushing tactics were too obvious.
I eventually purchased through Kalmars on Bermondsey Street. I was pretty happy. Sometimes you need to push her to do things but on the whole I thought Marianna was competent, friendly and insightful (and all estate agents need not-so-gentle prodding every now and then anyway). I would definitely go back to her.
Stirling Ackroyd sneered at my price range but they'd kill to get their hands on the flat I purchased now. When it comes to selling, I SHAN'T RETURN TO THEM. Mu-ha-ha-ha.
I'm not sure I'd go back to OJ's. The bloke there was just too corny-estate-agent by half, and I don't believe for a second that the flat he showed me was even technically available -- his price-pushing tactics were too obvious.
I eventually purchased through Kalmars on Bermondsey Street. I was pretty happy. Sometimes you need to push her to do things but on the whole I thought Marianna was competent, friendly and insightful (and all estate agents need not-so-gentle prodding every now and then anyway). I would definitely go back to her.
Stirling Ackroyd sneered at my price range but they'd kill to get their hands on the flat I purchased now. When it comes to selling, I SHAN'T RETURN TO THEM. Mu-ha-ha-ha.
Mary Wednesday 26 June 2002 4.57pm
I had my ex council flat on with OJ's, Field & Sons and Daniel Cobb and to be honest with you, I wouldn't write home about any of them.
OJ's did adverise in the Standard as promised along with various other property websites and their website is one of the best I've seen. Maybe because of these reasons they sold it in the end, I just found the other two so old fashioned.
martyn Wednesday 26 June 2002 11.05pm
i bought my flat through Oliver Jaques last year found them fast and reliable. only my experience but thought they deserved a bit of support.
the loft man Monday 1 July 2002 12.47am
Well, Well - the world is against estate agents again! How truely unoriginal. Let me tell you something. Its not the estate agents that are all 'rude, arrogant, crooks, slippery, corney, untrustworthy, yuppies ........'. THE BUYERS AND VENDORS ARE ALL OF THE ABOVE AND MORE. Mind you, sweeping statements like this are ill advised, but then I have dealt with more buyers and sellers of properties than most of you dreamed exist.
I used to own a major estate agency company, that had 4 offices, for 8 years. I was also on the board of directors of several much larger estate agency chains. I was a member of most of the 'official regulatory bodies' etc, etc. But what drove me out of the business (in fact I sold it to a man with a dog and a white stick!) was the incredibly ingorant attitude of most vendors and buyers.
Let me give you a few pointers from the estate agents end. On an average day, we would receive about 50/100 calls from prospective buyers who wanted to buy a property. Most of them throught that they were the only ones looking to buy and most of them had little idea of what they really wanted. Most of them always seemed to think that because of them, thats how we (the estate agent) got paid. FIRSTLY, The SELLER PAYS the estate agent the fee, not the damn buyer. SECONDLY, 99 times out of 100, if you don't buy the property, then someone else will. THIRDLY, estate agents act ONLY ON BEHALF OF THE SELLERS INTERESTS. The buyer is probably one of 1,000 that any estate agent has on their books at any one time.
TIP NUMBER 1) If you want to buy a property, firstly, decide on the area you want to be in, research the type of property your budget will get you (by looking on all those terrible estate agency web sites) and then, AND MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL, if you are serious about wanting to buy a property, THEN BE THE ESTATE AGENTS FRIEND. You've all heard and see those disgusting stories when a waiter takes a dislike to you or someone on your table and they go and spit in your soup when you are not looking. WELL GUESS WHAT, Estate Agents are just like waiters. If you are nice to them, they will remember you and you will get the phone call when the right property comes on. GUESS WHAT, If you are an arrogant stuck up prick how things that all estate agents are twats, you will only get to buy the CRAP - THE WORST VALUE PROPERTY THE ESTATE AGENT CAN FIND YOU.
TIP NUMBER 2) When you call an estate agent to register your details, take and write down the name of the negotiator you spoke to. THEN MAKE IT YOU BUSINESS TO MAKE SURE THEY LIKE YOU. Call them everyday or every other day to tell them that you are still looking and that you are very keen to buy. WHY? Because if you don't, then 20 other smarter people will AND THEY WILL BUY ALL OF THE DECENT PROPERTIES. Between the four offices I owned, we had about 2,000 buyers on our books. My rules to the negotiators were KEEP A LIST OF THE TOP 20 HOT BUYERS and disguard the rest. A Hot buyer is a buyer who is polite, obviously serious about buying (because they call the agent every day or at least 2/3 times a week) and not too stuck up that they think that all estate agents should be
castrated.
TIP NUMBER 3) Don't lie to the estate agent. HOW DARE YOU I hear you cry. FACT - 80% of people who call estate agents to ask to buy a property LIE about some aspect of their situation (whether they have a property to sell or not - whether they have a mortgage ACTUALLY ARRANGED rather than having spoken to a mate of a mate how can arrange mortgages)
FACT - Probably only about 10% of all property purchases are made by buyers who have actually bought exactly what they wanted. The other 90% have been SOLD TO by the estate agent.
As for SELLERS, bloody hell - most of them are worse than the buyers. They all think that their property is THE BEST IN THE STREET, BLOCK etc. 'My apartment has three windows in the living room, all the others have only two and all the others overlook the sewage works' - 'Tanners Yard is far better than those scummy flats in The Exchange' - 'My BANKSIDE LOFT was designed by probably the greatest architect since the geezer who designed st pauls' . They all assume that their property is the finest one of its kind. WRONG!!!! As estate agents, we get to see 100's & 100's of properties and I can tell you -THERE IS NO ACCOUNTING FOR TASTE - Most sellers idea of what is good about their property, is most other peoples worst nightmare. OPEN PLAN KITCHENS for example - THE WORST POSSIBLE DESIGN ASPECT ABOUT ANY PROPERTY - WHY - Because you were suckered into buying into this CRAP by those bloody developers - who hide behind those bloody estate agents - WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO THE 'KITCHEN? I pity all you poor bastards with your open plan kitchens, laminate wood floors, 3rd floor walk up ex-council, pretend warehouse conversions (yes, I do mean TANNERS YARD, THE EXCHANGE, MAIDSTONE MEWS, THE SCHOOL HOUSE, THAT HORRIBLE DISGUSTING SCHOOL CONVERSION OVERLOOKING THE OLD KENT ROAD FLYOVER, THE PUMP HOUSE (grow up), BANKSIDE LOFTS (you're all pissing yourselves now with the impending 26 storey building going right in your faces - thats 30% off your price right now) By the way ACORN HOMES (not acorn estate agents - they're nice) - BUGGER OFF FROM SE1 - WE DON''T WANT ANY MORE OF YOUR IMPOSSIBLY CRAP QUALITY, FALL APART, RE-PRODUCTION SHITE IN SE1 ANYMORE. MARKS AND SPENCER PRAWN SANDWICHES ARE DEFINATLY BETTER BUILT AND WOULD GET AN NHBC CERTIFICATE FAR MORE EASILY THAN YOUR RUBBISH).
As a seller, trust me, there is always a better property than yours just round the corner.
I have not got time now to go into detail of all the totally unethical behaviour I have witnessed from sellers over the years. Lets just say that IDI AMIN is a cherub in comparison to many 'vendors' that I have come across.
Look boys and girls. Estate Agents are real people. They have opinions, like we all have, they all have their own personalities, bizarre and strange, like all of you lot and they work to make a living, just like you lot. In SE1, you have an excellent choice of many estate agents.
BUMBLE BEE - ASK IN AT LEAST 5 ESTATE AGENT. I know the thought of 5 seems alot, but if you want to obtain the information you need, the more opinion you receive, the easier it will be to see the right estate agent you want to go with.
DAVID A - You're talking BOLLOCKS. Colour photo,s, map of the area, flat layout - THEY MAKE NO SODDING DIFFERENCE AT ALL. I should now. I HAVE SOLD ABOUT £300M pounds worth of properties in 8 years. ARE THEY OPEN ON SATURDAY? GROW UP. WHY DO YOU THINK AT 90% of the estate agents in LONDON close on SATURDAYS - BECAUSE THEY WANT TO MAKE LESS MONEY?? No, its because 98% of the lookers on saturdays and sundays are WASTERS with nothing better to do. 98% of all our sales were done to people who looked during the week before, during and after office hours NOT BY BORED tossers with nothing better to do on Saturday. 'DONT NECESSARILY GO WITH THE ONE WHO QUOTES YOU THE TOP PRICE'. ++++YOU DID+++++ Was that GREED or just because you liked the 'friendly smile of the estate agent you used. I think Greed may have had a part to play.
ROB - Get a life. Pity you will only get to buy the crap that estate agents let you see. All the best stuff goes to those you treat every one with respect.
RICH - Nothing like a bit of free advertising.
RACHEL - Yes, the guys are WILLIAMS LYNCH are good guys, but Daniel Cobb, whilst they may be a bit sleepy when it comes to returning calls, they have two offices, one in Bermondsey Street and one in Kennington and advertise more than Williams Lynch (check London Property News etc)
TONY H - Please, please, please - don't you know anything. If you liked Trading Space, then I assume that you probably bought in either The PARAGON or The TABARD? Maybe not, but Trading Spaces are nothing more than a 'virtual estate agent with No office'. They just shove their properties on their web site, take out a lineage advert in The Evening Standard and The Times and hope for the best. NOTHING PRO-ACTIVE THERE. You obviously do not know the first think about buying (or selling) a property. RULE NUMBER 1 - Never, never, never, never wait for the estate agent to call you when they have a new property on their books. ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS call every estate agent you registered with at least 3/4 times a week to show them how serious they are.
DANIEL - GET A LIFE
HELPER - Daniel, tut, tut, tut. So innocent in your advice. But your email address gave you away (same as your personalised number plate) - YOU WORK FOR LIFE@PARLIAMENT VIEW!!!!! Good recommendation!!
GEORGE - Obviously a man (I assume - I once went out with a girl called george - always strange at the point of climax when howling out her name!!) how knows his own mind.
JIM - SPOT ON
The rest - every one is entitled to their opinion.
GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR SE1 buying and selling. You're going to need it!!
I used to own a major estate agency company, that had 4 offices, for 8 years. I was also on the board of directors of several much larger estate agency chains. I was a member of most of the 'official regulatory bodies' etc, etc. But what drove me out of the business (in fact I sold it to a man with a dog and a white stick!) was the incredibly ingorant attitude of most vendors and buyers.
Let me give you a few pointers from the estate agents end. On an average day, we would receive about 50/100 calls from prospective buyers who wanted to buy a property. Most of them throught that they were the only ones looking to buy and most of them had little idea of what they really wanted. Most of them always seemed to think that because of them, thats how we (the estate agent) got paid. FIRSTLY, The SELLER PAYS the estate agent the fee, not the damn buyer. SECONDLY, 99 times out of 100, if you don't buy the property, then someone else will. THIRDLY, estate agents act ONLY ON BEHALF OF THE SELLERS INTERESTS. The buyer is probably one of 1,000 that any estate agent has on their books at any one time.
TIP NUMBER 1) If you want to buy a property, firstly, decide on the area you want to be in, research the type of property your budget will get you (by looking on all those terrible estate agency web sites) and then, AND MOST IMPORTANT OF ALL, if you are serious about wanting to buy a property, THEN BE THE ESTATE AGENTS FRIEND. You've all heard and see those disgusting stories when a waiter takes a dislike to you or someone on your table and they go and spit in your soup when you are not looking. WELL GUESS WHAT, Estate Agents are just like waiters. If you are nice to them, they will remember you and you will get the phone call when the right property comes on. GUESS WHAT, If you are an arrogant stuck up prick how things that all estate agents are twats, you will only get to buy the CRAP - THE WORST VALUE PROPERTY THE ESTATE AGENT CAN FIND YOU.
TIP NUMBER 2) When you call an estate agent to register your details, take and write down the name of the negotiator you spoke to. THEN MAKE IT YOU BUSINESS TO MAKE SURE THEY LIKE YOU. Call them everyday or every other day to tell them that you are still looking and that you are very keen to buy. WHY? Because if you don't, then 20 other smarter people will AND THEY WILL BUY ALL OF THE DECENT PROPERTIES. Between the four offices I owned, we had about 2,000 buyers on our books. My rules to the negotiators were KEEP A LIST OF THE TOP 20 HOT BUYERS and disguard the rest. A Hot buyer is a buyer who is polite, obviously serious about buying (because they call the agent every day or at least 2/3 times a week) and not too stuck up that they think that all estate agents should be
castrated.
TIP NUMBER 3) Don't lie to the estate agent. HOW DARE YOU I hear you cry. FACT - 80% of people who call estate agents to ask to buy a property LIE about some aspect of their situation (whether they have a property to sell or not - whether they have a mortgage ACTUALLY ARRANGED rather than having spoken to a mate of a mate how can arrange mortgages)
FACT - Probably only about 10% of all property purchases are made by buyers who have actually bought exactly what they wanted. The other 90% have been SOLD TO by the estate agent.
As for SELLERS, bloody hell - most of them are worse than the buyers. They all think that their property is THE BEST IN THE STREET, BLOCK etc. 'My apartment has three windows in the living room, all the others have only two and all the others overlook the sewage works' - 'Tanners Yard is far better than those scummy flats in The Exchange' - 'My BANKSIDE LOFT was designed by probably the greatest architect since the geezer who designed st pauls' . They all assume that their property is the finest one of its kind. WRONG!!!! As estate agents, we get to see 100's & 100's of properties and I can tell you -THERE IS NO ACCOUNTING FOR TASTE - Most sellers idea of what is good about their property, is most other peoples worst nightmare. OPEN PLAN KITCHENS for example - THE WORST POSSIBLE DESIGN ASPECT ABOUT ANY PROPERTY - WHY - Because you were suckered into buying into this CRAP by those bloody developers - who hide behind those bloody estate agents - WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO THE 'KITCHEN? I pity all you poor bastards with your open plan kitchens, laminate wood floors, 3rd floor walk up ex-council, pretend warehouse conversions (yes, I do mean TANNERS YARD, THE EXCHANGE, MAIDSTONE MEWS, THE SCHOOL HOUSE, THAT HORRIBLE DISGUSTING SCHOOL CONVERSION OVERLOOKING THE OLD KENT ROAD FLYOVER, THE PUMP HOUSE (grow up), BANKSIDE LOFTS (you're all pissing yourselves now with the impending 26 storey building going right in your faces - thats 30% off your price right now) By the way ACORN HOMES (not acorn estate agents - they're nice) - BUGGER OFF FROM SE1 - WE DON''T WANT ANY MORE OF YOUR IMPOSSIBLY CRAP QUALITY, FALL APART, RE-PRODUCTION SHITE IN SE1 ANYMORE. MARKS AND SPENCER PRAWN SANDWICHES ARE DEFINATLY BETTER BUILT AND WOULD GET AN NHBC CERTIFICATE FAR MORE EASILY THAN YOUR RUBBISH).
As a seller, trust me, there is always a better property than yours just round the corner.
I have not got time now to go into detail of all the totally unethical behaviour I have witnessed from sellers over the years. Lets just say that IDI AMIN is a cherub in comparison to many 'vendors' that I have come across.
Look boys and girls. Estate Agents are real people. They have opinions, like we all have, they all have their own personalities, bizarre and strange, like all of you lot and they work to make a living, just like you lot. In SE1, you have an excellent choice of many estate agents.
BUMBLE BEE - ASK IN AT LEAST 5 ESTATE AGENT. I know the thought of 5 seems alot, but if you want to obtain the information you need, the more opinion you receive, the easier it will be to see the right estate agent you want to go with.
DAVID A - You're talking BOLLOCKS. Colour photo,s, map of the area, flat layout - THEY MAKE NO SODDING DIFFERENCE AT ALL. I should now. I HAVE SOLD ABOUT £300M pounds worth of properties in 8 years. ARE THEY OPEN ON SATURDAY? GROW UP. WHY DO YOU THINK AT 90% of the estate agents in LONDON close on SATURDAYS - BECAUSE THEY WANT TO MAKE LESS MONEY?? No, its because 98% of the lookers on saturdays and sundays are WASTERS with nothing better to do. 98% of all our sales were done to people who looked during the week before, during and after office hours NOT BY BORED tossers with nothing better to do on Saturday. 'DONT NECESSARILY GO WITH THE ONE WHO QUOTES YOU THE TOP PRICE'. ++++YOU DID+++++ Was that GREED or just because you liked the 'friendly smile of the estate agent you used. I think Greed may have had a part to play.
ROB - Get a life. Pity you will only get to buy the crap that estate agents let you see. All the best stuff goes to those you treat every one with respect.
RICH - Nothing like a bit of free advertising.
RACHEL - Yes, the guys are WILLIAMS LYNCH are good guys, but Daniel Cobb, whilst they may be a bit sleepy when it comes to returning calls, they have two offices, one in Bermondsey Street and one in Kennington and advertise more than Williams Lynch (check London Property News etc)
TONY H - Please, please, please - don't you know anything. If you liked Trading Space, then I assume that you probably bought in either The PARAGON or The TABARD? Maybe not, but Trading Spaces are nothing more than a 'virtual estate agent with No office'. They just shove their properties on their web site, take out a lineage advert in The Evening Standard and The Times and hope for the best. NOTHING PRO-ACTIVE THERE. You obviously do not know the first think about buying (or selling) a property. RULE NUMBER 1 - Never, never, never, never wait for the estate agent to call you when they have a new property on their books. ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS call every estate agent you registered with at least 3/4 times a week to show them how serious they are.
DANIEL - GET A LIFE
HELPER - Daniel, tut, tut, tut. So innocent in your advice. But your email address gave you away (same as your personalised number plate) - YOU WORK FOR LIFE@PARLIAMENT VIEW!!!!! Good recommendation!!
GEORGE - Obviously a man (I assume - I once went out with a girl called george - always strange at the point of climax when howling out her name!!) how knows his own mind.
JIM - SPOT ON
The rest - every one is entitled to their opinion.
GOOD LUCK WITH YOUR SE1 buying and selling. You're going to need it!!
David A Monday 1 July 2002 10.36am
A superb "fighting talk" reply from the loftman with good tips.
Was I talking bollocks? Possibly, but ...
My suggestion on details with extra frilly bits and being open on Saturdays mainly arose from what helped me when I was looking.
The first because it avoided me wasting time by helping to clarify what I wanted and not viewing inappropriate properties. The second because my job did not make it easy for me to visit or ring agents during the week (there are just too many of them in SE1!).
[on a self justification point, I did not chose the ones that suggested the highest price, I went with those who suggested a more moderate price, but I thought I could build a friendly relationship with - Winkworths and I have nothing but praise for them]
The key issue seems to be about time wasters - I can imagine how annoying they must be for estate agents. BUT, shouldn't agents accept them as part of the business, after all today's "time waster" may be tomorrow's "hot buyer"? Or is it such a sellers' market that potential buyers do not need to be treated with respect?
Would another tip be to go into the agents with proof that your property is on the market or that you have secured a mortgage offer?
Was I talking bollocks? Possibly, but ...
My suggestion on details with extra frilly bits and being open on Saturdays mainly arose from what helped me when I was looking.
The first because it avoided me wasting time by helping to clarify what I wanted and not viewing inappropriate properties. The second because my job did not make it easy for me to visit or ring agents during the week (there are just too many of them in SE1!).
[on a self justification point, I did not chose the ones that suggested the highest price, I went with those who suggested a more moderate price, but I thought I could build a friendly relationship with - Winkworths and I have nothing but praise for them]
The key issue seems to be about time wasters - I can imagine how annoying they must be for estate agents. BUT, shouldn't agents accept them as part of the business, after all today's "time waster" may be tomorrow's "hot buyer"? Or is it such a sellers' market that potential buyers do not need to be treated with respect?
Would another tip be to go into the agents with proof that your property is on the market or that you have secured a mortgage offer?
Sam Monday 1 July 2002 10.39am
You went out of business because you're a prat.
Every single person here is entitled to their opinion. It was a fairly low-key, fair, interesting discussion about people's experiences buying and selling in this area. Naturally, it was hijacked by over-defensive estate agents.
I'm a normal buyer and seller. You didn't tell me anything I didn't know, though you've probably confirmed a few prejudices. Your contempt is rank.
Get off your bloody high-horse.
Understand that most people are just after fair, honest, polite, open negotiations.
Learn to spell.
And stuff your head in the oven of your poky self-contained kitchen.
Every single person here is entitled to their opinion. It was a fairly low-key, fair, interesting discussion about people's experiences buying and selling in this area. Naturally, it was hijacked by over-defensive estate agents.
I'm a normal buyer and seller. You didn't tell me anything I didn't know, though you've probably confirmed a few prejudices. Your contempt is rank.
Get off your bloody high-horse.
Understand that most people are just after fair, honest, polite, open negotiations.
Learn to spell.
And stuff your head in the oven of your poky self-contained kitchen.
Helper Monday 1 July 2002 11.08am
Lots of respect for the Loft Man, obviously knows his stuff! People in this forum take note. The advice from him is very valuable and in normal circumstances would cost £££. He has taken the time to advise people with his expertise and whether you agree or not these points can only help.
Helper
Helper
Sam Monday 1 July 2002 11.17am
I wouldn't pay ££ for common sense. No question, there's plenty of it in the post. But you don't have to be a genius, as a buyer or seller, to work out 99% of what he said for yourself. Let's not pretend this poster is an oracle. I've heard and/or deduced it all before.
I also wouldn't pay ££ for boring, self-serving, narcissitic, rude, aggressive, predictable, contemptuous, illiterate tripe.
(And by the way, anyone who has posted on this thread who IS an estate agent but hasn't DISCLOSED it, is SCUM.)
I've had some very, very good and a couple of bad experiences with estate agents in SE1. I didn't need to be spoken down to by 'Loft-man', whether or not his post had a few nuggets worth collecting.
Nuggets I'll throw at the bastard, if he ever comes anywhere near my gaff.
I also wouldn't pay ££ for boring, self-serving, narcissitic, rude, aggressive, predictable, contemptuous, illiterate tripe.
(And by the way, anyone who has posted on this thread who IS an estate agent but hasn't DISCLOSED it, is SCUM.)
I've had some very, very good and a couple of bad experiences with estate agents in SE1. I didn't need to be spoken down to by 'Loft-man', whether or not his post had a few nuggets worth collecting.
Nuggets I'll throw at the bastard, if he ever comes anywhere near my gaff.
Dominic Monday 1 July 2002 11.18am
Loft man I salute you but dont agree with your entire speech however a general buyers wake-up call is needed. Your comments about Acorn Homes are spot on. There are a lot of people who have suffered in SE1 because of them and a combination of market driven haste, failure to investigate, and misplaced trust.
This thread has been closed