Leading London estate agent Chestertons has revealed plans to expand its lettings business using both recently-implemented tech to drive greater efficiency and an aggressive effort to buy up competitors.
The company follows several other large London agencies hoping to persuade competitors to sell up as the Tenant Fees Bill progresses through parliament and many competitors look to their bottom lines.
Chestertons says its lettings business has been doing well recently, helped by heavy investment in tech services and a surge in activity.
The company declined to tell The Negotiator which tech services it has invested in, but Chestertons says they are designed to increase the efficiency of its Anti-Money Laundering (AML) checks and the speed with which it can process tenancy agreements.
Chestertons says it has also opened branches in Chelsea and the leafy suburb of Barnes and has completed several branch refurbishments.
Lettings surge
This expansion and renewal programme has all the ambitious hallmarks of recently-appointed Managing Director Guy Gittins, who took over from now Group CEO Allan Collins in June this year.
“Chestertons has been well positioned to take advantage of the huge surge in lettings activity in London, thanks to our highly experienced front offices staff working closely with our centralised Tenancy Progression team and expert Compliance department,” says Guy.
“By introducing more technological solutions to support these teams, we will be able to increase our capacity, improve the experience for buyers, sellers, tenants and landlords and substantially reduce the time it takes to complete transactions.”
Chestertons has been doing better since it demerged from Humberts four years ago, and its most recent accounts reveal an increased turnover of £39.19 million for 2017, up from £35.2 million the year before.
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