You don’t need a contract with your estate agent – busting the myth and giving yourself freedom

 If you google ‘Estate Agent Contracts’ you will see pages of results warning of traps and issues to look out for when signing estate agent contracts. Many sellers do not realise that you do not actually need a contract when selling a house. Start and Co has always offered the freedom of no contract when selling a house, it’s just what we believe is fair. 

 Remember, contracts and tie-in periods have absolutely NO BENEFIT to you as the seller, they exist for the agent, pure and simple. Ask yourselves why an agent needs to tie you in? If they are good at what they do, you should be able to put them to the test. Here at Start & Co, we stand and fall based on our sales results and customer satisfaction, and we have been standing strong doing just that for over 40 Years. 

 Reasons to choose to be contract free: 

 Tie-in Periods – A myth 

There is absolutely no reason any seller should tie themselves in for a fixed period of time with any agent. In the industry you could find instances of tie-in periods of 20 weeks with a 4 week notice period. This leaves you totally powerless as a seller to change your mind, be agile to the market or leave that agent in favour of another.

 By having no fixed contract period, you can test the market without the pressure, the decisions are in your hands and you are working with an agent on a trust and expertise basis, based on their performance and results. At the end of the day if you are not happy for any reason, you can just walk away. By having no tie in you can also open yourself up to a more strategic way of selling making the most of key times in the year that may suit your better personally or when the market may be more favourable towards your property. 

A valuation is a time of options, not contract signing

An increasing trend in the industry as it becomes more competitive is that some agents ask for signatures on paperwork you may not really have time to read when they come for a valuation. Valuations are designed to be a time of you discussing options with an agent and of them listening to you and your understanding your home. This time should not be about the agent and paperwork. Get a selection of valuations and go with an agent that puts you in control, and never sign anything during this period or you may unwittingly be locked in with one agent when you actually preferred another. Ask your selected agents for time to consider your options. When you have made your decision, you can then let them know. We offer time to consider, and never badger our prospective clients, preferring to let them make their decision and come back to us when they are ready, not the other way around.

 Hidden costs and services

Contracts with agents can include additional costs such as marketing, energy performance certificates, conveyancing and administration. Find an agent that has transparent pricing that includes everything and is only payable when the house is sold. Don’t find yourself with a marketing bill and the house has not sold. Plain English speaks volumes.

 Sole Selling Rights

 Sole selling rights means the estate agent gets a commission even if you find the buyer yourself. Again, choose freedom to work with your agent together without a contract that may tie you to this. 

Handwritten Changes

Be wary of any paperwork or contract with handwritten changes, these could well be additional costs. If anyone handwrites words onto a contract before you sign, they can equally do this afterwards as well.

Why can we be different?

 Start and Co simply have a short terms and conditions document that ensures we operate responsibility for you, protecting you and confirming exactly what we will do, for exactly how much. No other contract exists and never has. We are able to do this because we are totally independent, believe in our ability, and focus on building relationships with people in our community across their lifetimes.