DaveK Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 I've never sold a house before, so I didn't know this - and most of you will probably think "Duh!" - but you know that lovely percentage figure they quote? That would be exclusive of VAT. I just got my statement of account from the conveyancer and I was a bit surprised to find I'm paying £300 more than I expected to the thieving scum (apologies to any estate agents who are on this board). The girl who handled my sale was very pretty - for an extra £300 I think I should have at least got a date! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MARTIN R Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 our house is heading for completion, and to be fair they always made it clear that it was exclusive of the dreaded VAT. ( At least your agent was cute, mine definately was not:D ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edd_t Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 oh know what ya mean there. my place is for sale now. at first i was quite pleased with the fee they quoted me, then one guy let it slip that VAT was on top! grrrr. spose i've found out before paying out though. Anyone want a 1 bedroom flat by the way? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neil tt Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 They always have been getting money for old rope:hang: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlotte Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 It annoys me that they get a lot more than the conveyancing people and they barely do anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveK Posted May 5, 2007 Author Share Posted May 5, 2007 It annoys me that they get a lot more than the conveyancing people and they barely do anything. It annoyed me that the quoted conveyancer price was also plus vat. But I agree - they don't do anything. Although mine did look pretty while she didn't do anything. Not sure that was really worth over £2K though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlotte Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 It annoyed me that the quoted conveyancer price was also plus vat. I always say plus VAT when I quote someone, I think that's a general business thing to expect anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pabs Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 Yep - Dave - Same thing (almost) here.... We found out about 2 weeks ago that VAT was extra..... grrrrrr. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveK Posted May 5, 2007 Author Share Posted May 5, 2007 I always say plus VAT when I quote someone, I think that's a general business thing to expect anyway. I did expect it with the conveyancer (so I guess I expected them to be thieving conveyancers ). For some reason it surprised me with the estate agents - I guess maybe because it's a percentage, I just forgot about vat. In fact, estate agent fees don't make much sense. Why should they get more money for selling a big house than a little one? They don't actually do anymore work surely? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlotte Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 In fact, estate agent fees don't make much sense. Why should they get more money for selling a big house than a little one? They don't actually do anymore work surely? Oh yeah, apparently they do exclusive advertising. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveK Posted May 5, 2007 Author Share Posted May 5, 2007 I think perhaps I'm in the wrong job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mr lover Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 The girl who handled my sale was very pretty - for an extra £300 I think I should have at least got a date! For 300 more than a date Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
toyotasuprauk Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 It annoys me when anyone quotes prices without VAT. We have to pay it so why try to mask the true price of things by not including it? Since the house prices went through the roof the estate agents must have started to make so much more money. What % did they charge? I've heard some advertise that sell for a fee rather than a % now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hogmaw Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 It's not like the estate agent takes the vat and buys herself some bling. It goes straight to the government and we all know what they do with our taxes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveK Posted May 5, 2007 Author Share Posted May 5, 2007 It annoys me when anyone quotes prices without VAT. We have to pay it so why try to mask the true price of things by not including it? Since the house prices went through the roof the estate agents must have started to make so much more money. What % did they charge? I've heard some advertise that sell for a fee rather than a % now. Mine did initially want a fee - I think it was £2K on a house that was on the market for £136,950. They gave me the most confidence among the estate agents I got values from - but the others were cheaper. I also felt that on a percentage sale, they might try harder to get a better price. So I told them this, and they matched one of the other's prices - 1.35%. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hulse Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 i just got a new job guess what ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pabs Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 We paid 1.48% (+ VAT) to sell a £109k flat. Was the best we could find anywhere. 2 estate agents were on a set fee - but that was 2.5-3k!!!! Ridiculous amount of money.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suprasteve Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 Before anyone shoots me down in flames, i work in an Estate Agency as a mortgage advisor and i showed this thread to a colleugue who has asked me to reply on his behalf.... I've never sold a house before, so I didn't know this - and most of you will probably think "Duh!" - but you know that lovely percentage figure they quote? That would be exclusive of VAT. Do you normally sign a contract without reading it properly ? especially one as important as this ? It annoys me that they get a lot more than the conveyancing people and they barely do anything. Complete and utter bollox ! an average house transaction takes up to 12 weeks and within this time quite often, due to absolutely no fault of the E agent, the purchase falls through (i.e. purchaser has a change of circumstance / of change of heart, they pull out) the E agent gets paid £0, where as a conveyancer will still get paid their fee! An estate agents hours tend to be longer than most - 8am to 6.30pm as standard and then all those after hour appointments etc not to mention Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays - not like solicitors that go home early on a friday...cos they feel like it! oh yeah and when solicitors cock up (which is more often than you can believe) and fail to meet completion deadlines who gets all the abuse from the clients...you've guest it, that'll be the E Agent. In fact, estate agent fees don't make much sense. Why should they get more money for selling a big house than a little one? They don't actually do anymore work surely? this is a stupid statement !The company profit is based on averages, you can say that about almost every sales job...does a second hand car salesman work any harder selling a merc than a ford ??? There is sooo much more to estate agency that happens behind the scenes that Joe public is unaware of, its just ignorance that E Agents get paid "money for old rope". You think someone pops round and takes a couple of pictures, stick it on righmove, a person goes round a buys it, job done ? get real ! Don't you think if it was possible for an estate agent to drop their fees to say 0.5% in order to gain the business from other agents, they surely would wouldn't they??? its because the company would go out of business for not making ends meet ! I can't answer for all E Agences but the venders of more expensive properties expect more for their money i.e. glossey broucures, professional photography, full page advertisments in local papers and they tend to take longer to sell too due to less applicants in this price range. (suprasteve) - I can seriously back up the shit they deal with on a day to day basis, their jobs are extremely stressful ! i can't understand why any sane person would want to be an Estate Agent ! there are far easier ways of making money. in my opinion the reason why estate agents have a shitty name is that they act as the middle man and they are the one who have to deliver the bad news on behalf of the third party which us the customer take personally and need someone the blame. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveK Posted May 5, 2007 Author Share Posted May 5, 2007 Before anyone shoots me down in flames, i work in an Estate Agency as a mortgage advisor and i showed this thread to a colleugue who has asked me to reply on his behalf.... Do you normally sign a contract without reading it properly ? especially one as important as this ? Complete and utter bollox ! an average house transaction takes up to 12 weeks and within this time quite often, due to absolutely no fault of the E agent, the purchase falls through (i.e. purchaser has a change of circumstance / of change of heart, they pull out) the E agent gets paid £0, where as a conveyancer will still get paid their fee! An estate agents hours tend to be longer than most - 8am to 6.30pm as standard and then all those after hour appointments etc not to mention Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays - not like solicitors that go home early on a friday...cos they feel like it! oh yeah and when solicitors cock up (which is more often than you can believe) and fail to meet completion deadlines who gets all the abuse from the clients...you've guest it, that'll be the E Agent. this is a stupid statement !The company profit is based on averages, you can say that about almost every sales job...does a second hand car salesman work any harder selling a merc than a ford ??? There is sooo much more to estate agency that happens behind the scenes that Joe public is unaware of, its just ignorance that E Agents get paid "money for old rope". You think someone pops round and takes a couple of pictures, stick it on righmove, a person goes round a buys it, job done ? get real ! Don't you think if it was possible for an estate agent to drop their fees to say 0.5% in order to gain the business from other agents, they surely would wouldn't they??? its because the company would go out of business for not making ends meet ! I can't answer for all E Agences but the venders of more expensive properties expect more for their money i.e. glossey broucures, professional photography, full page advertisments in local papers and they tend to take longer to sell too due to less applicants in this price range. (suprasteve) - I can seriously back up the shit they deal with on a day to day basis, their jobs are extremely stressful ! i can't understand why any sane person would want to be an Estate Agent ! there are far easier ways of making money. in my opinion the reason why estate agents have a shitty name is that they act as the middle man and they are the one who have to deliver the bad news on behalf of the third party which us the customer take personally and need someone the blame. My word - touched a nerve there didn't we? Although it's not the actual subject of this thread - I know absolutely that either my estate agent lied to me, or the other people's estate agent lied to mine. And I know several friends who have had the same problem. Now guess why I have a low opinion of estate agents. And you think I make stupid statements? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suprasteve Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 hey i'm just the messenger ! whats that saying? 1 rotten apple spoils the whole barrel ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveK Posted May 5, 2007 Author Share Posted May 5, 2007 hey i'm just the messenger ! whats that saying? 1 rotten apple spoils the whole barrel ? I think most people's view would be the other way around - in a barrel of rotten apples there might be one or two good ones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foodfreak Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 in my very recent experience, I have caught 2 totally independant estate agents out in a complete lie,.... maybe it does go with the teritory. When I chalenged them, they both just shrugged it off as meaningless. I obviously didn't do any business with them John Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thorin Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 I've got one for you... If I buy a house I have to get a mining survey done etc. If I sell the house again a year later the new buyer would have to get another mining survey done. Are there going to suddenly be mine shafts dug under the house since the last time or is it all a big con? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pabs Posted May 5, 2007 Share Posted May 5, 2007 The people we're buying a house from had a survey done on their potential new property. The valuation came back lower than expected, so the mortgage offer was less than what they needed. So - what they did - was initiate another survey, this time from someone else. 2nd time around saw the right valuation, so now they can get the mortgage. Talk about screwing you for money. It's a bit of paper with a valuation on. I recon they just guesstimate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suprasteve Posted May 8, 2007 Share Posted May 8, 2007 I've got one for you... If I buy a house I have to get a mining survey done etc. If I sell the house again a year later the new buyer would have to get another mining survey done. Are there going to suddenly be mine shafts dug under the house since the last time or is it all a big con? Not got a clue, thats a question for a solicitor. is it not possible for the new purchasers to buy the original survey from you at a discounted price??? The people we're buying a house from had a survey done on their potential new property. The valuation came back lower than expected, so the mortgage offer was less than what they needed. So - what they did - was initiate another survey, this time from someone else. 2nd time around saw the right valuation, so now they can get the mortgage. Talk about screwing you for money. It's a bit of paper with a valuation on. I recon they just guesstimate. Sometimes if a lenders usual panel of surveyors are busy they get surveyors from outside the area to deal with this and can get it wrong. More often than not the surveyor will come in the office here to ask the estate agent how much the property is worth ! madness heh ! If you are ever in the situation where your property is down valued, you are entitled to appeal. You need to get comparibles from all the local etate agents of SOLD properties (as apose to ones that are still on the market as they could be over priced) and demand another surveror in the company deals with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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