You've selected an agent, put your property on the market, made yourself available for viewings and done everything the estate agent has asked of you, but things aren't going to plan. You've followed the agents' advice and nothing is working. Maybe now is time to change the estate agent, but just how easy is that to do?
Your house has been on the market for a while and there has been little or no interest shown from potential buyers. Would a change of agent help?
There can be any number of reasons why your agent is struggling
It could be down to:
- The advertised price of the property
- The marketing reach of your estate agent
- The quality of marketing materials
- The experience of your agency staff
- The number of competing instructions your agent is dealing with
The good thing about the Gibraltar housing market is that reputable estate agents will operate on a 'no sale, no fee' system. Understandably estate agents will ask for a certain period of time to market your property (usually 12 weeks), but if they have failed to agree a sale in this time, then you can dis-instruct them cost-free and risk-free.
There are a few things to consider before dis-instructing your agent:
- You will probably be required to give a notice period of between 14-28 days
- Your current agent will still be able to approach you with offers from parties they have introduced during the period of their agreement
- You will not be able to end the agreement until your initial sole agency period has expired
Switching agents is as simple as it was to instruct your current agent in the first place
Contact a few agents and invite them round, discuss with them the feedback you have received and how a new agent will act differently. Choose an agent that you feel will have a fresh approach, after all, there's no point replacing one agent with another that will have a similar approach.
It's worth bearing in mind that although other agents can't market your property until the notice period ends, you can still:
- Invite different agents around to appraise your property
- Have fresh media carried out by an agent of your choice
- Invite the new agent's staff members around to familiarise themselves with the property in readiness
Once your notice period has come to an end and your first agent removes the property from the market, your next agent should be able to seamlessly market the property the following day, avoiding you losing any market time. Ensure the new agent gets different images to make it look like a fresh instruction online.
...et voila, it's that easy. Your new agent should hit the ground running and have prospective viewers already lined up.
One last thing to bear in mind
Your original agent will still have claim over any fee if the property is sold to a party that they introduced. It is therefore advisable to get a list of people introduced by Agent 1 to give to Agent 2. This will avoid any grey areas down the line when Agent 2 gets you an offer.
If you have any further questions about switching agents, your rights, or responsibilities, feel free to get in touch in strictest confidence on 00350 200 79210 or email info@richardsons.gi where one of our dedicated staff will happily assist.