A number of online letting and sales agents are offering flat fees to their customers. Now, the head of a leading online agent has suggested that these type of fees will soon become the norm.
Rob Ellice, head of easyProperty, who recently announced an expansion into the sales market, said in an interview that he believes the agency model will evolve, possibly within the next six months.
Rethink
‘As online agents become the new norm, we could see many of our competitors offer our flat fees to keep their customers, and a radical rethink from high street agents on their commission rates,’ commented Ellice. He feels that agents will, ‘shift towards a customised experience,’ with technological innovations, ‘creating the impetus for more transparent and efficient ways of letting and selling a property, enabling customers to tailor their approach and take control of the process.’[1]
Undoubtedly, the market will change in the long term, with greater technological advances changing its face in the next decade, Ellice noted. He went on to suggest that innovations in the way people view and sell a property will also change. Concluding, Ellice said he is convinced that any agent looking to enter the current market will not consider a high-street office as a priority. Instead, he feels that most are now looking to set up online as a first move.
[1] https://www.lettingagenttoday.co.uk/breaking-news/2015/8/flat-fees-will-be-industry-norm-says-online-lettings-chief