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Many estate agents have a Sales Prevention Department. This department makes sure that arranged sales do not always proceed to exchange.  

 

Most people agree that the greatest stress they experience during a house move is caused by uncertainty, exacerbated by delay. This deadly combination not only prompts dramatic increases in blood pressure for all concerned, but it also results in fall-throughs, leaving people's home-moving plans in shatters - along with their nerves. And don't even mention the reputational damage and loss of commission from the agent's perspective! 

 

Let me get one thing straight - delay, per se, does not cause a sale to fall through. But delay provides a window of opportunity within which a sale is more likely to fall through. 25% of the time last count, nationally. That's one in every four sales arranged does not progress to exchange and completion. This is because of the stupid system we have in this country, of non-binding offers, combined with increasing levels of regulation, security checks, overworked solicitors, procedural constraints and official lethargy (eg two months to get a mortgage offer or search returned!)

 

This is the window. While this window's open, buyer or seller, anywhere up or down a chain, can change their mind for all sorts of reasons - they're offered a better property, they are worried about the market, they move jobs, they suffer illness or death, they lose or inherit money, they have a baby, or they just can't take the stress any more.

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Our job as estate agents has been to pour oil on troubled waters by communicating with conveyancers and making sure everyone knows what's going on. Solicitors have been pompous, secretive and protectionist, fearing that their relatively simple role could be substantially automated, threatening their livelihood. Too right! And there has been little connection between estate agents and conveyancing solicitors to find a way of dramatically shortening the whole process. Until now. 

 

I've recently been looking at a new type of conveyancing platform that recently got a sale from offer to exchange in NINE DAYS. I just had to check and I must say I was so impressed from an agent’s perspective that I’d encourage you to get your buyers and sellers to use them too, for the following reasons:

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1. They can incorporate the dashboard within your own website, so you can provide conveyancing quotes online, (and even vary the amount of referral commission you’d like to include), hands-off.

2. They help and even nudge, the seller to provide everything required in the TA6/TA7/TA10 property information forms, so that a contract and full supporting legal pack can be prepared before a buyer is even found. And this is the interesting thing, when you explain why this is so important at time of instruction, it can really help you secure the listing. It shows that you join the dots.

3. Their conveyancers anticipate enquiries, and replies-to-enquiries in advance, reducing the usual back and forth nonsense.

4. They arrange insurance to cover everything - searches, title issues, chancel repair, planning permission and listed building consent and other breaches, etc, covering all eventualities without the need for deep enquiries/investigations. This can really speed things along.

5. All parties (buyer, seller and connected agents and conveyancers) can access the conveyancing dashboard, upload documents and track progress in real time, with easily-understood flags for missing info. So you never have to chase a case again!

6. You can get them to add your favourite solicitor to the panel if you wish.

7. They pay an initial referral fee of £100 on instruction, followed by £300 on completion, although you can vary this figure up or down as you wish.

 

You’ll understand why Foxtons and many other contemporary agents use this system! They closed their sales prevention department, by opening up (outsourcing) a progressive conveyancing department, and you can do the same.

 

So why not, save some sales, speed up your cash flow, make more money and have and easier life, with happier clients. What's not to like?

 

If this sounds interesting - and it flippin' well should - you might just want to check them out by asking for a short demo HERE. It’s simple, fast and they are really nice people. 

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