OnTheMarket has confirmed that it will accept agents who do not have bricks and mortar offices.
We asked about the issue yesterday after Cornish agent Chris Wood announced that he is closing the doors of his high street office for the last time this Friday at 5.30pm.
Instead he will work from home. Wood also said that he is on neither Rightmove nor Zoopla, but is with OnTheMarket, as one of a large number of agents with a free contract.
Some comments from agents without shop fronts said that they had been turned down for OTM membership.
One said: “I run a letting agency which doesn’t have a physical high street office and On The Market have turned down my application to join on that basis so I am interested to know how you [ie, Chris Wood] have managed to stay with them as you appear to be in the same position ?
“This is the reason why Purplebricks, Doorsteps and the other onliners don’t advertise with OTM.”
A ‘bricks and mortar only’ rule was in place before OTM floated on the stock exchange last February 9, but this was then dropped – and has stayed dropped, said OTM yesterday.
A spokesperson told us: “The initial membership rules of Agents’ Mutual specified that members must be estate or lettings agents offering full service, office-based agency.
“Following admission, the company also accepts listings from full-service agents which do not necessarily operate high street branches.
“We assess every advertiser’s application to list at OnTheMarket on a case-by-case basis.
“Our initial focus since admission in building rapidly our agent customer base has been on traditional office-based agents who continue to represent the vast majority of the residential sales and lettings agency market.”
Comments (35)
When I asked, Alex Deland from OnTheMarket sent me this:
Hi Andrew,
Thank you for your email.
On The Market currently only accept advertisements from full service traditional estate agents. This essentially means a bona fide commercial office-based estate or letting agent offering a full range of agency services including valuations, attended viewings and liaison between the parties to an agreed sale or letting in pursuance of exchange of contracts.
Thank you for your interest in joining On The Market, we will keep your details on file, should our listing criteria change.
All the best,
OnTheMarket Info
I thought the Mutual concept at the beginning was great, but they don’t always make for the best run businesses. Things change. This is a Brexit type moment. We won’t get another chance anytime soon to support a viable option to the ever increasing and crippling Rightmove charges.
I have just agreed the 5yr sign up option. 400 pound a month and a chunk of shares at the end. Ditching Zoopla. If the momentum that OTM have created continues, Rightmove will be next, just that Best Price Guide data I’ll miss for appraisals.
Are you aware that I provide an automated house price index indication that brings forward about 22 million transaction bang up to the last released House Price Index from Land Reg?
Helping agents win instruction without sharing their dead file completions data with their #local or remote passive intermediary competition is one of the ways we’re a service that compliments the OTM portal.
I just ran a search Robert, in Google and the first result – you have your own page on Rightmove!
“House Prices in Robert May Close, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, CB1”. hehehe.
Odd that you should mention this today, as we’ve been asked to have a play with their new property price tool. I think only some of us have access to it right now, as we’ve been asked to give feedback. It’s not quite up to the Rm and Z versions etc (yet), but it looks like it’s not that far off (as long as they keep to their promise and look to work on my feedback / suggestions!).
OTM have just produced a price guide for appraisals, it’s still WIP but looking good, your right Russell Williams I’ve had a play with it and put my feedback in, it’s looking good and will make a big difference to agents if they can go prepared to appraisals
I’ve been using RMs but reprint it on my own letterhead and include the OTM logo, come on guys use your loafs.
Not sure why things like this are a surprise when you’re looking at a limited company that’s soul purpose is to generate revenue and increase profits.
A ‘bricks and mortar only’ rule was in place before OTM floated on the stock exchange last February 9, but this was then dropped – and has stayed dropped, said OTM yesterday.
So when did they take this decision to drop the bricks and mortar rule? How do they propose to not fall foul of BPR’s?
I know many Lettings agents who work from home offering full service, one was a founding gold member who semi-retired now only does full lettings management and was told to get lost by OTM.
Can someone explain the FREE option? Come on Chris!
WT At the various regional meetings before de-mutualisation IS did not rule out admitting call-centre agents – I seem to recall it was on one of the slides in his PP presentation (along with giving free shares to attract the corporates).
Free trials were also part of the proposed marketing mix.
If IS does not offer suitable sweeteners to the original members, he will have a sudden exodus in February 2020.
I’ve always had my doubts about the de-multualisation. Shame it has never been investigated.
It had a certain whiff about it, but for agents the best option is to support OTM in the knowledge that it is currently the best(cost effective) alternative to RM.
It will take at least 10 years of double-digit price increases for OTM to catch up with RM/Z, and in that time someone will have come up with another game-changer.
Along with many other agents, I was approached with a free trial. When I announced I was ending my high street lease, I was informed that not having a high street presence was not an issue since floating. Having spoken to a number of agents who have been paying from the start, I can fully understand the comments being made on here. Had the roles been reversed, I would probably be feeling similarly.
So what is the difference with agents they will not accept who do not have a high Street office? I’m struggling to see the difference between full service and not full service to be on OTM, it used to be very clear! Lets take PB as an example (bound to raise the post numbers today) no high street, but vendor has paid the extra for full service. Now how on earth does OTM know or even regulate which PB vendors are or are not full service?
OTM came about to protect the industry that was under threat. That appears to have gone out the window.
I specifically rang them and asked them yesterday if they had changed their rules and they once again told me ‘no’. They said you could as long as you had a commercial office premise, although not necessarily a shop front but could not if you had a residential address. The girl I spoke to even went to check and had someone else talk to me!! So it looks like they either changed their rule in the afternoon or they are telling fibs to one of us. I don’t necessarily want to join I was just interested.
I had a meeting with our OTM rep. Basically, if we had all supported the initial launch (whilst they were a mutual) call centre agents wouldn’t be allowed to advertise.
They then had to go public to “re-launch” to keep going so they now have others to answer to who will require them to make more of a profit – so they are looking at call centre agents.
We’ve kind of messed it up for ourselves… :0(
Greatest respect but b******s.
OTM did zero advertising and their reps did not go out and find new agents.
Look at Ian Sprignett history with Primlocation.
It was always his intention to float.
100% agree they had absolutely no intention of making it work as a Mutual. The long game was always going to be the float because that’s where Springett gets to make his money. Why else would he get involved?
In my last year as a gold member, have not yet had a rep out to see me. I will keep subsidising all the free contracts then vote with my feet. The money I lent them has been returned in shares at a rate of £1.65 per share. By the time they had organised my share certificate, the value had already tumbled.
I have gone from being an outspoken supporter to a disillusioned member held in place only by my contract.
Estate_Agent_Memes….
Ask your OTM Rep to come and visit me if that’s the story that he/she played out to you ……they clearly need to be re-educated on the reasons for OTMV1 and then OTM V2.
The “case by case basis” is the failure here. We sell mainly historic village property, we are squarely “full service”. Yet because we work out of an office that we built (at great expense!) on our own land hence is still classed as a residential ancillary building, Onthemarket won’t touch us! They seriously need to look at what customers want, not what they think they want.
Re apply now as their criteria seem to have changed since February 2018.
it hadn’t changed yesterday when I checked!
Do you only want to list because it is free or would you pay £400 per month?
Is £400 a month what the eventual cost will be with OTM? If yes, what does this include?
Well we know one thing OTM has zero integrity.
How any agent can trust them is beyond me.
Unsurprisingly I don’t trust OTM sp ….however Rightmove also monumentally fails when one applies any level/test of “Trust”.
That’s very interesting as this is what I was told by OTM in June 2018 ie after the float mentioned above. I will re apply to OTM today and see what happens.
“Thank you for your interest with OnTheMarket.com. Unfortunately, we are unable to proceed with your registration at this point due to your business model not meeting our requirements. We do not currently accept agents who operate out of residential properties. We will keep your contact information on file, and should we be able to accept you in the future, we will get back in contact. Kind regards, Jessica”
Another ‘rule’ broken to get numbers, at the cost of their founding members.
What’s next, for sale by owner listings allowed if they agree to put a sticker in their lounge window?
Top marks for the use of ‘lounge’!
I got grief from a vendor in 1986 for using ‘Lounge’ on a set of details.
A lounge? How very Surrey.
I still remember a neg doing a set of details calling it a ‘Front Room’ he also had an ‘On Sweet’ to the master bedroom.
Lounging in your Lounge?
In Scotland we still have “Lounge” …..we must be aspiring to free ourselves from our kilts & shortbread image ….. Lounging in our Lounges, like Lizard Lounges….
If there is a “Living Room” ….is there a “Dying Room”?
Right, I need to go and get ready for my Highland Dancing Class….. it fair makes a difference when you take your swords out at a valuation, lay them on the Lounge floor and start dancing the Highland Fling whilst chatting about your estate agency services.
Clients always remember you?!
Burl yer wilkies or do a joogly wilky fae a lasting impression in yer kilt.
Do all the agents who own it assess it together?
“We assess every advertiser’s application to list at OnTheMarket on a case-by-case basis”
Hmm, I don’t like this one little bit.
Wake up!!! It’s Payanyway you need to ban. Everything else is fair game.
If your not going to have the most houses to drag the public to your site you need to organise a rightmove switch off.
P.r. genius aren’t I. For further information contact me at godsSheep.com
Bless u all