An advert spotted on Facebook for online agent HouseSimple saying that it is “40% more likely” to sell a home than a high street agent has now caught the eye of the advertising watchdog.
As we reported last week, estate agency trainer Julian O’Dell mused online as to what the science was behind this “rather bold” statement.
At this point the Advertising Standards Authority took an interest, below, asking O’Dell to send it details if he wanted the ASA to look into it.
We asked HouseSimple about its claim and told it of the ASA’s interest.
HouseSimple directed us to https://www.housesimple.com/fees
Interestingly, it makes a claim quoting the RICS, something which annoyed the institution last year.
The RICS said then that the claim was “baseless” and “a misinterpretation of our data” last year, as we reported.
The HouseSimple website currently claims: “We’re more likely to sell your property than the average high street estate agent. The Royal Institute [sic] of Chartered Surveyors January 2016 UK Residential Market Survey report showed that in 2015 the national average ratio of houses listed, to houses sold was 37.5%. HouseSimple sold 54.23% of houses listed in 2015 in the same year (1st January 2015 – 31st December 2015).”
The website also claims to have saved “clients across the UK millions of pounds against the fees charged by high street agencies”.
In another claim, it says HouseSimple will “sell your property for more”, saying: “Between 1st September 2015 and 29th May 2016 HouseSimple achieved an average of 98.9% of the asking price.
“Over the same period the Automated Valuation market leader, Hometrack, reported that the national average percentage of asking price achieved was 97.31%.”
So, will O’Dell be challenging House Simple?
We understand that the Advertising Standards Authority could be hearing from him soon.
HouseSimple did not comment on this possible scenario although invited to do so.
“HouseSimple sold 54.23% of houses listed in 2015…”
SO… there it is – in bold text – the admission from one Call-Centre Agent that over 45% of people (a proportion of whom presumably paid them a Fee for the privilege) were UNSUCCESSFUL in selling their home with that company.
Feel free to use it, my office-based brethren – IT IS THEIR OWN WORDS which cannot be claimed as “misinterpreted”!
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All that is great if you’re selling your home in 2015, how are the numbers now? In round terms it was 50/50 whether you were going to sell or not, has that performance improved or got worse?
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#InformallyResolved
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Looks like a polite conversation is on the way, followed by a withdrawal of certain things and then an announcement of an ‘informal resolution’.
I bet they are quaking in their boots!!!!
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#InformallyResolved
you know it well. Nothing going to happen.
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ONLINE ESTATE AGENT OPENLY ADMITS TAKING OVER £600K OF HOME SELLER’S MONEY WITHOUT EVER SELLING THEIR HOME!
*Based on their website which claims they only sell 54.23% of homes, had listed 3,153 properties, with an average fee of £420.76
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I’m loving that AnEstateAgent75,
‘There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics’, Disraeli I believe.
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If you assume that only motivated sellers consider using an online agent (speculative sellers will natuarally be reluctant to pay up front if they’re not sure they’re going to move) their figure of 54% is pretty shocking.
If nothing else though, both these figures destroy the notion that selling houses (not just getting them under offer) is easy and that an “estate agent” only needs to advertise the property to get the job done.
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