Those TV Adverts…
Independent companies like Keystone choose not to allocate huge budgets on TV ads. We don’t want to compete with property giants who claim to save you thousands of pounds. What we do, is only charge you if we sell your house.
This seems simple, but for some, that is exactly what they need.
In reality, online estate agents might be able to save you a significant sum of money if you’re in a large city. But here in Deeside? It is unlikely to happen. Would you pay a bathroom fitter to re-do your bathroom before he even starts it? Probably not. Keystone don’t charge any upfront fees for selling your home, so there is no risk to you.
Fees
It’s already a stressful time when you’re planning on selling. Finding a friendly and experienced estate agent, getting the house looking perfect for photos and of course finding a house to move into! You want everything to be straightforward, including the fees. That’s why we always give you the exact fee. We won’t surprise you with any fees, or hidden extras – that’s not our style.
The advertising of one online agent is about com-misery, making out that they don’t charge commission. They charge a fixed fee but only tell you about it in the small print making out they don’t charge anything in the main body of their adverts.
We could harp on about not charging commission, but we’d consider this misleading. We charge a fixed fee not a percentage, so technically we could say we don’t charge commission.
Local Knowledge
We know our stuff when it comes to local property. Many of our staff have grown up in Connah’s Quay. Myself, Ben, has owned an estate agency here for ten years. That’s definitely another thing that puts us ahead of national online estate agents; they may say they have local experts in your area… but that local expert could be spread across a 30-mile radius. So, do they really know what’s going on?
You are more likely to get an accurate valuation of your property with an agent who is genuinely local. We have the knowledge that those bigger companies simply don’t have.
Buyer Network
With that local knowledge, comes a local buyer network. We get to know our customers, so we know what sort of property they’re after. As soon as a property comes along that fits their specifications, our team will give them a call, so they have a chance of securing their dream home. Online agents can’t and won’t do that; they don’t have a big enough local buyer network. We have far more properties for sale in the Deeside area than any online agent…more properties means far more contact with local buyers, it’s that simple.
Solicitors
One very prominent online agent will actually charge you more if you don’t use their recommended solicitors – make sure of this before you sign up as it can be significantly more.
On another note if you are the type to do thorough research prior to putting your house on the market. Here’s a tip that will really open your eyes to what online agents are really like…
Call three local solicitors and ask them for a price for selling if you use a local agent. Then get your partner to call the same three solicitors and ask for a price if you’re selling with the aforesaid online agent and see what happens. This is where it will really hit home. You’ll find that almost all of them will charge far more if you are with this agent – why? The solicitor ends up doing the estate agents job and they know it’ll be a far more time-consuming process, hence why they charge a bigger fee.