Purplebricks
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Latest property news
Can Purplebricks ever make ‘fees saved’ comparisons again?
A complaint by West Sussex estate agent Arun Estates to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) about nine ‘fees saved’ testimonials still currently featured on the Purplebricks website has been upheld. The decision goes to the core of the debate around Purplebricks, which many traditional agents believe often compares itself inaccurately with its high street competitors because its ‘fees saved’ claims don’t reflect the different service levels offered by high street and online agents. The ASA complaint refers to testimonials seen last summer – and still live on the Purplebricks site – in which the company claims its customers have made significant savings by using its services than compared to traditional agents, based on an average fee of 1.8%. Purplebricks told the ASA that it was “very difficult” to find out what agents charged their clients and that it varied a lot from area to area, but that they had conducted a customer survey among 2,308 respondents instead. Average commission It discovered that the average commission in the UK is 1.5%, to which they added 0.3% VAT, and also told the ASA that other organisations including Citizens Advice Bureau and YourMoney.com pointed to a similar figure. But the ASA says it…
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Latest property news
Purplebricks taking market share off traditional agents, it says
Hybrid agent Purplebricks has published an upbeat summary of its most recent year of trading revealing increased revenue, number of Local Property Experts, market share, brand recognition and 2.5 million visits to its website every month. Purplebricks also says it sold property worth £5.8bn with a further £1.008 billion in the pipeline, and sells a property every nine minutes. The company also makes some punchy predictions for growth, and says it will double its turnover to £80m during 2017/18. But crucially for its high street competitors, the company claims its aggressive ‘commisery’ marketing campaigns have helped enlarge the total market share of all homes UK that are sold using hybrid and online-only agents like Purplebricks, although it doesn’t give any figures. This has come at a heavy price. At £14.4 million its marketing represents are half of its £24.2 million gross profits during 2016/17. More commisery? Purplebricks also says it is due to increase its advertising in the UK by £3.5 million during the next financial year. But despite the huge cost of TV advertising spend, Purplebricks’ UK operation squeaked in with its first operating profit at £0.2 million, although Australia lost £6.1 million and the US £100,000. “This has…
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Latest property news
Hickamore, Hackamore! Squirrel photo-bombs listing for £395,000 Beatrix Potter house
Picture of the week goes to the Purplebricks LPE who took this photo of a red squirrel for the images used to market a house for sale near Coniston in the Lake District. The red squirrel’s decreasing habitat in the UK includes Cumbria so it’s not unusual to see the arboreal, omnivorous rodents in the area. Beatrix Potter But what’s most fitting is that the property used to belong to Beatrix Potter following her acquisition of the surrounding Monk Coniston Estate for £15,000 in 1930, part of her attempts at the time to stop holiday home developers hoovering up large tracts of Lakes countywide, and to preserve traditional farming and countryside traditions. One of Potters’ more enduring characters is Squirrel Nutkin, the tale of an impertinent red squirrel who loses his tail after baiting an owl. Or in this case, photo bombing property marketing materials, with his tale intact.
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Leading independent agent vents outrage at yesterday’s Purplebricks ‘report’
Perry Power (pictured, right), a founding member of the Charter for Independent Estate Agents (CIELA), says he is “outraged” by a Purplebricks report published yesterday which claims that millions of vendors in the UK are being overcharged by traditional agents. The report, which quizzed just over 1,000 members of the public about their attitudes to estate agent pricing and service, was used to support Purplebricks’ claim that agents are ‘out of date’ and ‘out of touch’. “Purplebricks likening their online service to that of dedicated, passionate independent estate agents is like comparing two plastic surgeons when deciding to get major reconstruction,” he says. “One may be cheaper but only practiced the procedure twice, whereas the other costs more but has completed it thousands of times and has a brilliant reputation. Who would you enlist your trust in with something so important?” Shake up the industry “I applaud anyone who tries to shake up our industry, god knows we need it, but when it involves unsubstantiated comparisons…and bullying I can’t sit back and let a company with huge marketing spends try to take down the hard working independents. “Purplebricks should be applauding these people, but instead they surveyed a tiny fraction of the UK…
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Has Purplebricks own ‘commisery’ report backfired?
Purplebricks has moved into attack mode once more and produced a ‘commisery’ report that it says proves traditional agents are “out of touch, out of date and leaving millions out of pocket”. But it’s hard to find much data in the report to back up this contention. The report also appears to have avoided asking respondents what they expect to get for the much reduced fee that Purplebricks charges compared to traditional agents. Nevertheless, the report contains some worrying research for agents. This includes how only 5% of those buying or selling are concerned whether an agent has a high-street office, that house sellers are becoming more aware about alternative selling models, and that 68.9% of the public now know that they don’t have to “fork out” a percentage commission on the value of their property. It also says that the average commission among agents is 1.5% excluding VAT or £3,929 per sale. But the survey results don’t conclusively back up Purplebricks’ contention that traditional agents are out of date. 35% annoyed by cost The company talked to 1003 respondents three months ago, of whom 35% said they were annoyed by the cost of using an estate agent, but only 11.37% said…
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Latest property news
Purplebricks takes down website claims after ASA probe
Purplebricks has been reported to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) once more for claims made on its website and, following a probe by the watchdog, subsequently taken down. The claims under scrutiny on this occasion are that it “takes us just 14 days to find a buyer” but, after the complainant clicked an icon next to the claim, it clarified that “the average time taken from a property going live to a viewing being booked for the eventual purchaser is 14 days”. A similar claim made for the Purplebricks’ lettings operation was also contested by the complainant. Using an identical device, the company said: “6 days – on average it takes us just 6 days to find a tenant”. Upon clicking an icon next to this text the following text appeared in a pop up: “The average time taken from a property going live to a viewing being booked for the eventual tenant is 6 days.” Misleading? The ASA says the complainant suggested that both claims were misleading and could be substantiated and, after the ASA contacted Purplebricks, the company agreed to remove the claims and the case was resolved informally. This is now the fourth complaint received against Purplebricks since September 2016.…
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Guest Blogs
Can smaller agents take on the hybrid agent big hitters?
After watching the recent Haye vs Bellew Heavyweight boxing fight, it became to me clear that bigger isn’t always better when it comes to the hybrid agent. During my time working agency side, I gained first-hand experience of the shift in customer expectations. Unrivalled customer service is imperative but now it needs to be coupled with a reduced and fixed price tag. This has brought about the rise of the online-only and hybrid agent. We’ve seen an exciting couple of weeks in this space. Countrywide, the heavyweight champion, has now tested its hybrid offering and continues to roll it out. LSL, the contender, is hot on Countrywide’s heels, declaring its interest in the online/hybrid market and hinting at revealing its hand shortly. In the Purple corner… deep pockets and the ‘commisery’ (or ‘commisery TM’ we hasten to add) led campaign has helped Purplebricks secure a stake in the UK market and embark on Australian and soon American adventures. It’s advertising succeeding in two things, raising awareness of the brand and educating the public on a fixed fee service backed by a convenient consumer facing dashboard. Three heavyweights These three heavyweights are slowly lining up knock out blows. How can a…
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Latest property news
Is Countrywide now one of the biggest hybrid agents?
While there’s enormous interest in ‘online-only’ and hybrid agents such as Hatched and Purplebricks, a lesser-known online operation has been rolling out across swathes of the UK. Countrywide revealed this morning how its digital ‘hybrid’ roll-out has been progressing over the past year, and it’s significant. So far this has included a four-phase launch that now covers 25% of its business, and 200 branches. Four phases After trialling it with three brands in June last year – Austin & Wyatt in the SW, Frank Innes in the East Midlands and Spencers in Leicestershire – it then introduced the offering to a further three agencies in November. These were Carsons in Hampshire, Miller Countrywide in Cornwall and Devon and Fulfords in Somerset. In January this year it also added its hybrid offering to Entwistle Green in Liverpool and Lancashire and says that it has shown “the most positive results to date”. A launch then followed last month at Bridgfords, the largest agent to do so thus far. Benefits Benefits of Countrywide’s hybrid model, which charges a £695 to £995 fee (see ad above) for a Purplebricks-style service during which vendors have to conduct both their own viewings and sale price negotiations, have included increased traffic to agent’s websites.…
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Latest property news
CIELA kicks off with an assault on Purplebricks
Embryonic industry organisation The Charter for Independent Estate and Letting Agents (CIELA) has asked the hybrid agency Purplebricks to withdraw its current TV advertising campaign and stop making comparison fee claims. The request was made in a letter sent yesterday to Purplebricks’ West Midlands HQ in Solihull, on what was CIELA’s inaugural day. The ‘club’ also says that it will be submitting a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority about these matters if Purplebricks does not take “reasonable steps” to address the issues. The letter, which runs to some 900 words, claims that some of Purplebricks’ advertising is “misleading to consumers” even though CIELA admits they are “not factually inaccurate”. FEE STRUCTURE The letter also goes on to criticise Purplebricks for comparing its fee structure and operation with that of traditional agents and the way the company calculates the vendor savings that its adverts are based on. It also explains why Purplebricks’ business model should be looked again given current Consumer Protection legislation, and why it thinks the company’s advertising may require scrutiny by the Advertising Standards Authority. CIELA is also worried that vendors do not understand the difference between the hybrid Purplebricks model and traditional agents, in particular that Purplebricks…
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Purplebricks Australia ‘growing’
Michael Bruce, CEO, Purplebricks, says that its launch into Australia has had a fantastic start.
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