Estate agent, Nested, surveyed UK homebuyers who have purchased a home within the last six months to gauge how they felt their estate agent had performed and what areas they could best improve.
Overall estate agent performance
On a scale of one to 10 with one being outstanding, 15% rated their estate agent’s performance during their last sale as a five - the most prominent individual score.
However, the good news is that 51% did rate their agent between one and five, with 9% stating they were outstanding. That said, 8% also stated that they thought their agent’s performance was terrible.
Asking price performance
When it came to the asking price achieved, buyers were also split down the middle. 47% said their agent didn’t achieve the asking price agreed. However, 39% did and a further 14% said their agent achieved above the asking price for their property.
94% of buyers said their agent advised them on what asking price to set but just 37% said they offered advice to lower their asking price when they struggled to sell.
Areas of improvement
Nested also asked what areas of improvement homebuyers would like to see from their estate agent, with the answers ranked in the following order: -
More proactive during the transaction in order to speed up the process.
Better or more frequent communication
Better customer service in general
More information on how their sale was progressing
A higher percentage of the asking price achieved
Better quality of property listing and/or photos of their home
More help on what was needed from them to progress the sale
Alice Bullard, Head of Commercial at Nested, commented: “Estate agents up and down the land have done an outstanding job during the pandemic, negotiating Covid protocols while servicing a tidal wave of market activity to help get the nation moving.
"However, not all estate agents are created equally and our latest insight into seller experience shows that choosing the right agent can dramatically improve your experience of selling a home and the outcome you achieve.
"Price is always going to be a driving factor and the very best agents will advise on a realistic asking price based on current market conditions and then go above and beyond to achieve it, or in some cases, exceed it.
"But it’s clear that sellers view the added value of an estate agent above and beyond the price they achieve and constant, clear communication and a proactive approach to selling are some of the key areas they value most.
"This is hardly surprising given the fact that it takes an average of 320 days to sell a home and the vast majority of this time is spent progressing the sale to completion once an offer is accepted, during which time it’s still susceptible to falling through.
"It’s at this nail-biting stage that a good agent really shines, keeping the seller calm while also doing their best to progress the sale. So you want to be absolutely certain that the agent you choose not only includes sale progression as part and parcel of their service but that they’re excellent at it.
"Perfecting this push for the finish line was one of the most important aspects when building the Nested proposition but unfortunately, not all companies share the same passion for completion.”
