Homeowners could save hundreds of pounds in fees on their property sale if they were prepared to haggle over estate agent fees.
This is according to an online estate agent, Housesimple.com, which has unveiled research revealing 82% of home sellers agreed to the first fee quoted to them.
As many as 41% of those surveyed said they did not realise they could have negotiated their commission fee, with many paying between 1.4% and 2% of their sale to their estate agent.
Yet, according to Housesimple.com, house sellers could collectively have saved £487 million in agent fees a year if they had haggled down the initial quote by just 0.25%.
Indeed, by negotiating with an agent to reduce the commission on a 1.25% fee down to 1% they could make savings of £1,500 on a property marketed at £500,000.
Sam Mitchell, CEO of online estate agents, Housesimple.com, said home sellers could benefit by negotiating and not taking ‘no’ for an answer.
He added: “There is always room for manoeuvre on the fee and an estate agent that is not willing to reduce their rate will need to have a very strong case as to why, particularly if it is significantly higher than other agents are quoting in the area.”
Why sellers are apprehensive to negotiate
The problem is many people are uncomfortable haggling, Housesimple.com’s survey discovered.
Almost half said they felt pressurised by their estate agent and one in five admitted they simply did not feel confident haggling, which is why they didn’t challenge their estate agent.
There was also confusion over fees and 89% of those questioned thought estate agents needed to be more transparent with their fees. Housesimple.com reported a wide disparity between agents’ fees and said some websites did not list their charges.
However, Mitchell pointed out that while estate agents were extremely good at sales and could put forward a convincing argument, they also wanted to secure your business.
He added: “If they are as good as they say they are, then your house shouldn’t be on the market for long, and they will have had to do very little work to make their commission.
“High street agents are living in the past, charging exorbitant fees and not doing enough to justify their meaty commissions.
“Consumers want value for money and are, quite rightly, asking ‘why am I paying an agent thousands of pounds of listing a property on Rightmove and managing a few viewings?’”
