Agencies & People
News covering the businesses, activities, people and personalities in estate agency and letting agency and wider residential property industry.
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Which? says over-pricing costs vendors £4.3bn a year
Consumer champion organisation Which? has launched a scathing report on sales agents that will make painful and probably infuriating reading for many. Its research found that of the 370,000 property sales it looked at between October 2105 and September 2016, one in five had been heavily reduced in price between asking and final agreed price, and that the optimistically-valued properties sold more slowly and for less. More controversially, Which? says online-only and hybrid agents sold more homes that hadn’t been reduced in price compared to traditional agents. Also, Which? says its data suggests overvalued properties take 64 days longer to sell than the rest, and that properties that start out over-priced don’t generally later achieve a higher one than an ‘uninflated’ one. The best-performing agents across the UK for selling above the asking price are also revealed, as are those Which? says are the ‘worst’. In London these include Fine & Country, James Pendleton, EasyProperty, Camerons Stiff & Co, Watson Bull & Porter, Faron Sutaria, Chestertons and Marsh & Parsons. Outside London it includes Redferns in the SW, Nick Tart in the West Midlands, Boxall Brown & Jones in the East Midlands, Aldreds in the East of England, Whitegates in…
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As Connells’ new homes and mortgages businesses boom, what’s its magic formula?
Connells appears to have blown the Brexit cobwebs off its business following two key announcements. The company says that last year its network of offices, which includes Connells and Sequence branded branches, recorded a six per cent rise in new homes instructions and a five per cent increase in exchanges compared to 2015. It also says its 40-strong land team has increased returns from its land department by a third in 2016 and that it is optimistic about this year. “The fundamentals of the market remain strong – there is continued appetite for land to meet the demand for new homes, a pro housebuilding and pro homeownership Government in place, buyer incentives and good, competitive finance available,” says Connells Group Land Director Roger Barrett (pictured, left). “This, alongside the steady growth in new homes supply from national, regional and local house builders, will see a buoyant market where we will experience further growth in the total number of new homes sales in 2017.” It’s mortgage business has also been doing well and in 2016 recorded a 10% increase in the number of mortgages its arranged for customers compared to 2015, generating a loan book of £10.3 billion. One surprising figures from…
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Hunters’ expansion plans continue with Cotswolds opening
Hunters have opened in Malmesbury, Wiltshire, adding to their fast expanding network.
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London agent starts Airbnb letting service for landlords
Eighteen-branch London agent Portico has launched an Airbnb letting management service specifically for landlords as the number of hosts in the city approaches the 50,000 mark. Managing director Robert Nichols (pictured) says that despite the 90-day limit introduced by the San Francisco-based company, even “seasoned landlords are coming round to the fact that a combination of Airbnb and traditional tenancy will maximise their return on investment,” he says. Portico, which was launched in 2015 and replaced existing brands Edmund Cude and Bushells, says there are now 48,017 active Airbnb hosts in London and that the average two-bedroom flat there generates £2,226 a month based on a 70% occupancy rates. Portico claims its service will be able to achieve even higher occupancy rates for clients of up to 80%, and that landlords can expect to receive a booking within a week of listing on the site. Average day rates for Airbnb properties in London range from £65 a day in Bexley to £224 a day in Westminster. Portico is stepping into controversial waters – many agents and city housing professionals see Airbnb as a threat to supply within the existing private rental market, and several councils including Westminster have made their…
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Brum, brum! Fine & Country revs up branch expansion with new Birmingham branch
Fine & Country has opened a new office in Birmingham’s prestigious shopping location, The Mailbox.
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Haughton Warburton Launches Resi Division
One of Manchester’s longest standing commercial and industrial property agencies - Haughton Warburton has responded to market demands and launched Haughton Warburton Residential.
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Cheffins’ New Strategic Framework
Multi-disciplinary property and auctioneering business, Cheffins, has announced a new corporate framework to accelerate its growth...
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Belvoir urges franchisees to buy up rivals
Belvoir Lettings is to embark on an aggressive push to persuade existing franchisees to buy up local competing agencies as an “uncertain economy, increased regulation and erosion of profits mean many independent agents are selling up,” the company says. Managing Director Dorian Gonsalves (pictured) says his acquisition team are already being offered businesses for sale at a rate of one every working day and that the company is to launch a roadshow that will travel around its network of franchisees to encourage owners to consider expanding, helped partially through funding arranged by the Belvoir head office in Grantham. The company says this helps franchisees increase turnover and profits, enhance market presence of and capital value to their business. “Belvoir prides itself on working closely with our franchise owners to help them assess whether an acquisition opportunity is likely to add significant value to their business,” says Dorian. If this proves to be the case, and our stringent due diligence checks are approved, Belvoir can, in the right circumstances, loan up to 30% of the purchase price. The process takes approximately three to six months and I look forward to reporting many more mutually beneficial acquisitions throughout the year.” A recent…
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Rogue letting agent jailed after National Trading Standards investigation
A rogue letting agent and landlord in Lancashire has been jailed for three years and nine months after he was convicted at Bolton Crown Court of nine counts of fraud, theft and forgery following a lengthy investigation by the National Trading Standards. Tahir ‘Tony’ Khaliq (pictured, left) operated a string of property companies including several letting agencies which he used as vehicles for his fraudulent activity. The most shocking was the theft of holding deposits of between £200 and £400 from over 100 prospective tenants, many of whom were extremely vulnerable people mainly in the Rochdale, Bury and Oldham areas. Khaliq, with the help of accomplice Paul Dickinson – who received a two-year suspended sentence and 240 hours of community service – took the holding deposits and claimed they were processing fees for unsuccessful tenancy applications. The court heard how one woman, after losing her holding deposit, was forced to move into a Mother and Baby unit, as well as another who experienced extreme financial difficulties while trying to save money to leave her violent and abusive partner. National Trading Standards says Khaliq was involved in other illegal activities relating to his property businesses including forging documents, the theft of…
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Former Rightmove tech boss joins online letting agent
Online-only lettings agency Upad has bagged James Micklethwait, former head of product development at Rightmove, as an advisory board member. Micklethwait (pictured, left) was responsible for a 100-strong tech team at Rightmove and headed up the portal’s product development. He left Rightmove in September last year after a two-and-a-half-year stint at the portal. Before that he spent three years at broadcaster ITV and before that nearly eight years at the BBC. “Since leaving Rightmove I have been drawn to areas where I believe technology has the greatest potential to change our industry,” says James. “In my view, lettings is one of those areas and I am very impressed with what James and the Upad.co.uk team have achieved to date. I look forward to helping the company achieve its ambitious growth plans.” James Davis, (pictured, right) CEO of Upad, says: “With our latest figures suggesting that over 90% of UK tenants now start their rental search online, optimising the digital customer journey is imperative. James has unsurpassed expertise in this field, specifically relating to property searchers.” Upad, which was set up ten years ago by Davis, has also appointed a further big brain to its board – Eddie Holmes of PropTech…
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