An agent has revealed that he was given 14 days by Rightmove to close down two of his three branches or pay subscriptions for all three.
If he did not, he was told he would have his remaining full branch turned off.
The agent felt he had no option but to close down two offices, which he had been running as satellite operations – he says on the advice of Rightmove itself.
The agent, who has asked not to be named, closed his branches in August.
He works in a small but spread-out and highly seasonal market where holidaymakers swell the usual population which has a high permanent proportion of wealthy retirees.
He had asked for the two seaside branches to become ‘satellite’ branches – open and manned only during the busy parts of the year.
The agent claims that the Rightmove rep himself suggested it back in February.
However, in August another rep said that what the agent had been doing for the previous six months was not compliant, leading to the closures.
The agent given the ultimatum has described it as unfair as he says that two of his competitors are still running ‘satellite’ branches in the same area with Rightmove’s full knowledge.
The agent said that while he acted within 14 days’ notice, one competitor has been running a satellite branch for over five years and the other for ten months.
He says that both have properties in these satellite locations which they are listing from other branches.
He has told his reps in correspondence which EYE has seen: “As far as I am concerned they can continue for ever, so long as everyone is allowed to do the same. I want to know why I have been singled out and treated unfairly and unequally to my competitors.
“Why does Rightmove want to create an unlevel playing field and offer clear commercial advantages to select agencies?”
The agent said that Rightmove’s tough stance appeared to coincide with a decrease in the number of estate agency branches in total, according to its latest results.
A Rightmove spokesperson told EYE: “Agents are charged per branch, or if they advertise a higher than average number of properties (more than 50% of their available stock) outside a 100,000 property radius around their branch location then they are additionally charged for virtual branches.
“Properties can only be displayed on Rightmove if they are from a paying branch that received the original instruction.”
The agent said that Rightmove’s response had not addressed his points.
He said that in any case the region where he operates only has some 70,000 properties in total.
He said his competitors operate satellite offices which display properties and which they man during the summer and in winter by request.
He said: “I tried doing this too. However Rightmove told me recently they do not recognise the term ‘satellite’ office, and if my offices have properties in the windows, any client is ever offered to meet there, or if any of my media (press, social, web, print) or staff ever mention the locations then we shall be charged for them as full branches.”
He said he was being told to obey different rules from his competitors: “Either I can operate branches without paying for them, or they can’t.
“It’s a tough market. Why would Rightmove not want equality?”
The agent said he is considering reporting Rightmove to the Competition and Markets Authority.
Same in my area. We have one office listing properties across 3 counties and 4 satellite offices, Rightmove didn’t even respond when I asked if I could do the same
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The corporate bully Rightmove are so greedy they are willing to force agents to shut branches or cut them off. The sooner agents drop rm the better. Worried about dropping them? Use them less. Concentrate on your own website, Facebook the other portals don’t put your props on rm for a week after launch. Never add links to rm anywhere. Use them but last.
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Totally agree
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Not news to me this.
I’ve ranted about them giving me this ultimatum a few times.
I have 3 offices in an area where other agents work just from the stronger of the 3 villages. (So I have 3 RM accounts, they have 1)
When I have said, I want to have the one account, they also said, you will pay for 3 offices never just 1, unless you close the other 2 branches.
Disgraceful that existing long standing multi branch EA businesses are unable to get the same deal as the newer 1 office hybrid agents. There is NO WAY…. my competitors are paying anywhere near what I do for my 3 branches. Even with the complicated chimney pot rule they have. Otherwise they would be paying circa £5.5k to £6k at that branch!
My options as ever leave RM or shut up and get on with it. Oh well…
I wonder how legal it is that they can actually make me pay for having a walk in office which has NO referencing on RM?? If the address of that office is not shown, then I don’t see how they can charge for it. The logic we have property in that area displayed is no different to the other 1 office EAs who also have property in the area displayed.
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How do Purple Bricks pay? Per local property advisor?
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and purple bricks get away with all their LPE’s using 1 account how? why do they as self employed individuals not have to pay RM for monthly business they bring in
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And yet if you are a very large posh agent with green and red logos, some portals will gladly allow you (them) to do exactly this.
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We’ve just had a 10% price increase. Before it even kicked in we had a further email advising it was going to be 15% and that we must decide what package we want before month end. A letter explaining the further hike would follow the next month. We’ve decided to leave and spend the money on alternative marketing channels.
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They attempted to treat me the same way so I left 2 years ago. I’m an independent business and will not be dictated to by any supplier. I have been using Zoopla and OTM as well as getting as many good Google reviews as possible. Turns out I didn’t need Rightmove after all. Sales are very tough, nothing to do with Rightmove, and my letting business continues to grow at exactly the same rate as before I left. Now would be a good time to dump them for 6 months and see how you get on.
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As a Cambs agent I concur entirely! Let them back in May after getting sick of paying well if the odds for very little more than any other portal (stats and market comparable as, etc.) and ARLA and The Guild (webinars) supply at much lesser cost! Same as you we have done better year on this year than any other since leaving…. we don’t need RM we convince ourselves we do for some random reason!
To all those still using RM…. Pull up your big girl/boy pants and be the change you want to see or suck it up!
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We are looking to leave, if other agents followed suit they wouldn’t be able to continue with this unethical model
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An agent here in the NE regularly “closed” branches, swapping properties from one RM account to another.
The lights in those “closed” branches were always on, though…
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I have 1 Office and cover a huge geographical area. I do so, not to avoid paying more RM fees, simply because of the geographical spread of my client base. I couldn’t do so if I was expected to pay multiple geographical area fees? The far reach properties represent a very small percentage of my annual sales so that should be proof that I am not manipulating areas to save on fees.
It’s time for the dinosaur that is RM (and others) to move to a per property listing fee – it’s simple when fairness is applied
When was RM ever fair?
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If they went to a per property fee then they would make as much. I’ve seen branches with 10 properties, then paying £100 per month, per property plus vat would male people think twice
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Multi agent agreement with one other agent and share the portal costs, list on 3 portals two agents working for the vendor higher fees but easy to sell to vendors, share the selling fee… it’s the future!!
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Surely you mean JOINT Agent?
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