Sales Tactics of Estate Agents & Builders in Leeds

If you are applying for a first time buyer mortgage in Leeds, are looking at moving home in Leeds or are planning on taking out a buy to let mortgage in Leeds, you will no doubt at some point find yourself dealing with an estate agent.

Estate agents do their job well, they often act as a middle ground between seller and buyer, advertising the property on the open market and enticing potential property buyers to purchase something that they have to offer.

Whilst many out there are honest, loyal and do right by their customers, there are also plenty who do not. We feel, as a mortgage broker in Leeds, that it is our responsibility to educate potential property buyers on the sales tactics that some of these estate agents may use.

Estate Agent Sales Tactics

Pushing You to Take Their Mortgage Advice in Leeds

As a mortgage broker in Leeds, one of the situations we hear of the most is the estate agent pushing the home buyers to use their in-house services. This can include conveyancing, solicitors and even their own mortgage advice in Leeds, to name but a few.

You are under no obligation to take any of these services, it is up to you what you do, but refusal to accept their offers can lead to a whole range of controversial actions on their part, such as refusal to put an offer forward.

Refusal to Put Forward an Offer

Even though it may be hard to believe, we have seen instances of estate agents actually refusing to put your offer forward, if you instead decided that you don’t want to use their in-house mortgage advisor, finding a mortgage broker in Leeds.

We have also have seen them showing favouritism to other potential home buyers who are willing to use their in-house mortgage advice service, even if you were already part way through negotiations. Of course neither of these practices are legal.

Overpriced Service Costs

In addition to being pushy and refusing to put through your offers, we also frequently see them giving overpriced quotes for things like conveyancing. In the past we have seen customers quoted over £1,500 for just a standard purchase!

With the help of our knowledgeable mortgage advisors in Leeds, we were able to get the customer using another conveyancer and only facing a cost of £750, around half what the estate agent had actually quoted them.

Demanding Information and Being Pushy

Once an offer on a property has been made, you might start to notice your estate agent becoming a lot more pushy with you. We have heard genuine cases from customers wherein the estate agent has called them up and demanded to know the conveyancer you have used.

Again, this can lead to a refusal to proceed with anything or borderline harassment on their end, until you agree to use their in-house services, which as said are often extremely overpriced and you are under absolutely no obligation to go with, you are free to choose.

Are these tactics legal? Do I have to use my estate agents in-house mortgage advisor?

No, you have the freedom to go wherever you wish when it comes to your mortgage process. You can use any mortgage broker in Leeds, any conveyancing or any other financial service. It’s all down to what you would personally prefer.

You are under no obligation to use the services on offer from the estate agent, as their job is to foresee the sale between yourself and the vendor, with everything else being purely optional.

Popular Estate Agent and/or Builder Sales Quotes Include:

“Keeping everything under one roof is easier with one point of contact.”

“If you use our services, it will give the vendor peace of mind that everything will go through smoothly.”

“We will do all of the chasings of the solicitors for you, and they’ll be more responsive to us due to the amount of work we send them.”

“You need to come in and see our mortgage advisor in Leeds for your offer to be qualified.”

“Everything is likely to go through quicker if you use us.”

“Free carpet/washing machine if you use our (extortionately priced) recommended conveyancing service.”

“Choose us and your offer is more likely to be accepted if you use our mortgage advisor in Leeds.”

“Our service gets better deals than most mortgage brokers in Leeds.”

Be Careful and Stand Your Ground

Always bear in mind when you are negotiating with a purchase price, that it is probably not within your best interests for the person you are purchasing from to also know your financial situation, including the amount you could possibly afford.

Make sure that you are always vigilant and that the estate agent knows you are not willing to use them if you don’t want to. At the end of the day, this is your potential home and it’s your decision.

Book a free mortgage appointment with a mortgage advisor in Leeds today and ensure you are as prepared as you can be for your home buying experience.