You can sell or let your home privately and NOT pay the agents commission. As Dez-Res is not an Estate Agent, but an advertiser, there is no conflict with sole or multiple agency agreements. It is the same as placing an advert in your local paper.
Its official - The Office of Fair Trading states
Sole Agent: the term refers to your appointed Estate Agent - the only agent with the right to sell your property. You should be able to sell the property yourself without paying the agent a fee - provided that the buyer was not introduced to you by the agent during the contract period.
In December 2005 'The Office of Fair Trading' issued guidance on how to determine whether a property internet site was in fact an Estate Agent or not. If a site was really an Agent then your would be liable to pay £1000s in commission to your Estate Agent.
The main issues which make a property internet site an Estate Agent are when they
Sending out property particulars and arranging viewings (Dez-Res does not.) Receiving and fielding queries from potential sellers or buyers and passing on details to your clients (Dez-Res does not. Buyers and tenants contact you direct via the web site). Providing clients with a 'For Sale' or 'To Let' board containing the websites contact telephone number (You may erect your own 'For Sale' board which has your own personal telephone number on it).
Before advertising on any other site, ensure they comply with the latest guidance from the Office of Fair Trading. Dez-Res does, many do not!
The Myths Estate Agents Promote About Private Selling and Letting
In the past, sellers and landlords had no choice but to but to bear and grin and pay £1000s to an Estate Agent. Traditionally you would have to use an Estate Agent because:
Advertising was very expensive and not cost effective to private individuals. Agents would mainly find buyers and tenants by advertising in newspapers and their shop windows. They could then split this cost over 100s of properties and return a profit. As you will find out the internet, a new, more effective form of advertising has replaced this, and is available to everyone.
Unable to reach buyers and tenants not in the area without advertising in national newspapers. Again Agents can split the costs over 100s of properties.
Displaying a 'For Sale' or 'To let' board would cost £100s. Agents can buy 100s of boards at a time and pay very little for each board, plus agents can re-use their boards again and again, lowering their costs further.
There was no other way! New forms of advertising such as the internet were not yet established. The chance of you meeting someone who would want to buy or let your property was small.
Fears of security and letting strangers into your home with the comfort that agents screen viewers. Most agents don’t check, when was the last time you were asked for an ID by an agent when viewing a property.
Don't have the time to perform viewings so you employ an Agent to perform this task. But how many times have you actually performed the viewing yourself because the Agent said they were too busy? Too many probably. And wouldn't saving £1000s justify the time spent.
Led to believe you legally had to use an Agent? This is not true. Agents perform no legal duty even though they earn more money than professional solicitors.
Already with a Sole Agent and have been told you can't sell or let your property yourself! This is not true and any agent restricting you is breaking the law. Simply threaten to report them to trading standards under the 'Unfair contracts act'. Some may try to enter a 'Sole selling rights' clause, simply tell them to remove this clause immediately. You can sell or let your home yourselves and NOT pay the commission even with a Sole Agent. If in doubt, ask an independent solicitor to read through the contract on your behalf before you sign. it is your right!
Agents can give accurate property values. Not true, agents are not qualified valuers, that's the job of a surveyor. All agents do is set a reasonable asking price, something anyone can do by looking on any property website or local paper.
All this has now changed !! The need for Estate Agents is minimal. You can sell or let your property faster and save £1000s in commission. Estate Agents now sell most of their properties via the internet.
Remember, word of mouth works so tell all your family, friends and acquaintances of your properties availability, and above all, please remember to tell people that they can view its details on Dez-Res.
E&OE
