Estate Agent Tips

What do I need to do to start operating as an estate agent? Should you work in lettings and wish to go into sales the main thing you should consider in terms of compliance is your AML procedure. As well as compliance, we recommend spending some time researching the sales procedure to ensure you’re fully aware of how to successfully complete a sale before it falls through. Our guide to the moving process is a useful tool you can use, click here to read it. What do I need to do to start operating as a letting agent? If you’re considering becoming a letting agent you should take into account your compliance procedure. With over 150 laws, incorrectly letting a property could lead to a fine or potentially prosecution. We recommend becoming qualified through ARLA to ensure you have the essential knowledge to keep you compliant whilst provide you with …

Going BANG? We’ve put a list together of things you can do to ensure your letting or estate agency has that extra snap, crackle and pop, whilst also utilising our Openview property software to enhance your marketing. 1 Offer Online As well as offering a traditional high street service, adapt your agency to online. Launch your own online affiliate brand using Openview Online which can run alongside your traditional agency. Advertise your online brand in your office window and in the window of your website. This will increase your visibility online, whilst give new clients a choice of using you or your online affiliate, giving them no reason not to approach you. 2 Get On TV Whether it’s Homes Under The Hammer, Location, Location, Location or Grand Designs, look out for TV opportunities. This June, Curve Media are looking for family run estate agents to take part in a new …

When it comes to marketing your agency, “offline” marketing is just as important as your online approach. We’ve outlined some key things you should consider. 1 Newspapers Some say it’s rather an old approach but listing your property in the “local” newspaper is still a very effective method of marketing. 2 Cards If you were to receive a “thank you” or “congrats” card in the post with a gift inside, you’re likely to remember it. That’s why sending cards should be one of your key marketing methods. You could even ask the potential customer to tweet a picture of the card to your social media, combining your offline and online marketing. 3 Print If people see your name everywhere they’re more likely to turn their attention to you. Consider putting your brand on the back of a bus, a park bench, in the local shopping center, bowling alley, cinema, DIY …

Processing the selling and buying process as efficiently as you can is vital, not just to achieve excellent service but to also enhance your reputation in the industry. We’ve outlined a key timeline you can use when going through the selling or buying process. Advertise Research new business Organise valuation Carry our valuation Chase lead Gain instruction Verify AML Prepare photos/floorplans/marketing Produce property copyright and leaflets Put property on website/portals/social media Sell Look for a potential buyer Register their details Are the buyers qualified? Invite/book buyers for a viewing Ensure 3rd parties are aware Attend the viewing Ask for viewing feedback Pass feedback to vendor Ask for an offer Pass offer to vendor Negotiate deal Progress Start final paperwork Verify the buyer Organise Conveyancing/Tenancy Agreement Ensure deal doesn’t fall through Organise mortgage/funds Start survey/inventory process Continue to manage all parties Chase all parties to exchange Complete all paperwork Hand over …

The government has released several “How To” guides for the housing sector. Whether it’s buying, selling or letting a property, the guides detail everything your tenants, buyers or vendors need to know. Should you be a letting agent it’s important you issue your tenants with a copy of the latest “How To Rent” guide at the start of a new or renewed tenancy. A copy of the latest “How To Rent” guide can be downloaded below along with the other guides below. How To Rent Guide How To Rent A Safe Home How To Let How To Lease How To Buy A Home How To Sell A Home Find out more about how Openview can assist you in the housing process, call us 0800 328 0460, email us info@vtuk.com or visit us vtuk.com.

We asked our drone expert, Jae, for some guidance into how agents can use drones to enhance their marketing. How can agents use drones to enhance their marketing? An agent I’d expect would use a drone in order to take pictures of any property they have. I’m under the impression at the moment that it’s normally the case of a higher end property or a property with a decent amount of area around it. Offering drone photography is certainly a fantastic way to stand out as an agency and gain new instructions, although the operator flying the drone would need a licence to fly over any property or any area in which have people operating. Do you need to be a qualified pilot to fly a drone? You do need to be a qualified pilot to fly a drone. You need to take a short course which currently takes about …

What we want to do is try to give you a flavour of the kind of services we provide, to hopefully assist you in the going through change in your business. Something that is personal, getting fit, losing weight is often perceived as very positive but the minute this is mentioned in relation to business it becomes hugely negative. We’ve done consultancy in over 15,000 different companies. During that time we’ve found out that there’s a great variety of agents. Let me give you an example, at the moment the fee ban is coming in and we’re getting calls today from agents saying, “What can we do about the fee ban?”. On the other side of the coin we had agents a year ago contacting us and saying “What can we do about fee ban?” and we had more agents who on the day the fee ban was introduced in …

Whatever industry you’re in, making a profit or loss is a crucial aspect of keeping your business afloat, as well as a potential factor in the growth of your company. We appreciate that making a profit can be extremely difficult at this competitive time and we urge letting agents and landlords to follow our simple advice when it comes to profit. Establish Your USP Establishing your USP as a property professional is key. It’s important to think outside the box when creating your USP, be creative and establish a brand people can identify with, as this can decide whether your agency fails or continues to thrive in the market. Make your agency more than a business than rent’s houses to tenants, give them a reason to use your services by offering them something no other agent can offer, such as a reward scheme or a personalised lettings approach. Research Your …

Being a registered agent can provide you with many benefits, whether you’re with NAEA or ARLA. Below we’ve outlined the benefits you’ll receive. Professionalism By signing up to a scheme your brand will be seen as more professional. It’s important to make your registration clear by displaying the ARLA or NAEA logo on your paperwork, merchandise, website and your office window. By doing this, your tenants will see you as more professional. Help and guidance The ARLA and NAEA schemes will provide you with professional guides for any part of the lettings or sales process. Their website has handy guides you’ll be able to utilise such as guidance on consumer protection law, safety regulation guides, plus much more on the lettings and sales process. If you’re stuck on any procedure, your scheme will be there for you. Training ARLA and the NAEA also provide training courses for all agents. Whether …

Whether you’re a letting agent, estate agent or landlord, getting to know your client’s credit score is becoming more and more important. It’s vital you apply the following knowledge to conduct a successful credit check, so you can make an informative decision about whether to take on the tenant or (in some cases) work with the potential buyer. We’ve provided a simple Q and A for your guidance, alongside a useful visual guide published by our contacts at Sainsbury’s Bank. What defines your tenant’s credit score? There are a number of factors that define your tenant’s credit score, mainly being associated with their credit history. A record of late or missed payments or ongoing debt will portray a lower/negative score while a positive finance record will score higher/positive. How do I calculate a credit score? As visualised in Sainsbury’s Bank’s guide below, credit scores are calculated between two types of …