When it comes to selling a property, there are very few things more frustrating than time wasters – people who have no intention of buying, are unable to buy, or unable to commit to something and see it through.
It is estimated that estate agents and home sellers could be wasting hundreds of hours a year conducting viewings for people with no intention of buying their home, material Information and digital property pack provider, Moverly, has found.
Moverly calculated the number of hours wasted each year based on the average number of viewings it takes to sell a home, the average time each viewing takes, the number of viewers estimated to be a time waster, and what this equates to when you apply the figures to the total number of homes sold across the UK in a year.
The research shows that it takes an average of 14 viewings in order to sell a home, with each of these viewings taking an average of 28 minutes.
Last year, 718,127 homes were sold across the UK, which means that agents and sellers hosted over 10 million viewings. Based on the estimate that one of the required 14 viewings it takes to sell a home was a complete time waster, this means that 718,127 viewings took place whereby the buyer had no intention of making an offer.
At the average time taken to view of 28 minutes, this means that agents and sellers wasted 335,126 hours on time wasters during the viewing process – that’s the equivalent of 1,995 weeks.
Signs of a legitimate buyer
Are they pre-approved for a mortgage? If they have their finances ready it’s a good sign they’re in a position to buy.
Why do they want to move? If they don’t have a clear answer, like good schools, more green space, or upsizing, it maybe that they’re simply browsing.
When the viewing does take place, genuine buyers tend to move through a house slowly, visualising themselves in each room.
Good signs are if they ask about utility bills and council tax, while the same goes if they ask about the local amenities, like parks or dog walking opportunities.
Gemma Young, Moverly CEO, said: “Nobody likes to have their time wasted and it can be particularly frustrating during a stressful life stage such as the property selling process.
“You might think it’s just 28 minutes lost, but across the property sector as a whole this adds up to hundreds of hours over the course of a year.
“The best way to get ahead of time wasters during the viewing process is to ensure your agent has properly qualified any buyer before they enter your home.
“The proper provision of upfront information is another way of sorting the wheat from the chaff in this respect, as it provides buyers with all of the relevant details required to help them form a comprehensive initial view of your property.
“So whilst you may still get the odd time-waster keen to nose around, you should also benefit from a streamlined viewings process when it comes to serious buyer interest.”
Need to start charging a £20 green tax..
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I totally disagree with anyone that actually shows up at a view being a timewaster. In fact, the more of those that have no interest in buying, the better. Why? Very simply, because house buying is in 2 stages. You go online (the continuing Rightmove saga is another story) and build your shortlist. You then arrive at the property, unscrew your head and it’s all about heart, and feeling. This is one of the reasons that feedback is a waste of time, as we don’t actually get to ask the right part of the body when we call. ‘What did you think of the property Mrs Janes’ ‘It was lovely, but the not for us’. That’s the head’s answer. It hasn’t seen the property; it was left at the door. Anyone that has conducted an proper open house, where more than one buyer views at the same time, knows how well that works. That’s because human nature comes into it, so when someone else is looking at something you want, you want it more. It’s why Black Friday works.
So, you want as many viewings as possible. you want viewers to cross at the threshold to get the ‘someone else is looking’ reaction. Therefore, if you use these ‘tyre kickers’ they become invaluable. Any agent that restricts viewings doesn’t understand how it works. Get them all in, make sure the viewings are separate, but there is a crossover.
Now, people that book, and don’t turn up. THAT is the real problem, and there was an article on here how one agent was charging per viewing. Maybe that’s the way forward.
More viewings =more sale and more feedback
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I dont agree. Time spent with an applicant is an excellent learning curve and helps build relationships and understand their needs.
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I vehemently disagree that this is a waste of time. Meeting people and building relationships is our first and most important job. Unfortunately, this is more a reflection of many agents not knowing how to pre-qualify a prospective viewer, ask the right questions and set up a viewing with the aim to help educate the buyers AND also deliver better results to the vendor client. There’s an acronym from my days as an Agent in the USA that I like; LPMAMA – Location, Price, Motivation, Agent, Mortgage, Appointment – Establish these things in this order while qualifying the buyer and then your time will NOT be wasted. Do they REALLY want to live in this area? What is their affordability / pricing. What is their reason for moving and time frames, how are they going about the Agent process (registering with Agents, working with particular agents), do they have a mortgage or need a mortgage and then book the appointment. Takes 5 mins.
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What about when agents waste buyer’s time.
I booked a viewing for a property 40 mins drive away. I was told that it was being 2nd viewed the day before my viewing. I said OK, but please let me know if it goes under offer, so I can cancel the viewing and not waste your or more time.
I turned up at the viewing, first thing agent said was ‘We received an offer yesterday, vendors are likely to accept. Do you want to go to office and see if we have anything else you would like to view?’
After a quick grumble about not being told about the offer, I made a rapid exit!
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