Self interest and self preservation still seems to be rife in the property industry, even though I've been writing about the impending change in its established, traditional business model for quite some time. Occasionally, though, it seems someone else has taken on board the writing on the wall traditionalists have put up to keep that impending change out, and that, although extremely rare, is also extremely gratifying.
For example, Martin & Co is a national lettings agency with 170 franchisees throughout the UK. Its MD, Ian Wilson, is reported to have said 'The days of the High Street are numbered. We just don't know how long that is'. Wise words indeed - and not just because that's what I've been saying for so long, now.
For franchisees and shareholders, Wilson's statement might not, at first, appear to be good news. However, he's moving with the times and capitalising on the fact that the vast majority of property searchers are going online, and introducing the idea of 'virtual franchising'. This means letting agents - not necessarily in high street premises - can operate under the name of Martin & Co. In other words, as online estate agents. This would surely be a groundbreaking concept - if eMoov and other forward-thinking estate agencies hadn't beaten Wilson to it by a good couple of years.
The internet has changed our lives in so many ways: from the way we shop for groceries, to how we deal with our insurance ... even to how we can enjoy a friendly game of poker any time of day. But still estate agents have branch offices open up and down High Streets across the country, and now sales have halved from their previous peak, those branches are an extremely expensive proposition.
In fact, the way the current economy is going, estate agencies are going to have to adopt a different methodology, one that includes cutting costs and saving money. It's not quite as difficult as it might sound, because even some senior figures in the property industry are acknowledging - albeit reluctantly - that thanks to the internet, there really isn't much call for an intimate knowledge of the area covered by a high street branch any more.
These combined have made internet estate agents possible. And indeed their success more probable. Especially as they use the economy of scale that their coverage provides to offer rock bottom selling fees. It is only a matter of time before the biggest estate agency chains wake up to the sea change upon them. Fewer premises covering bigger areas, able to charge lower fees.
And the more vendors and househunters alike discover the advantages of going online, and the more agencies like Martin & Co discover the advantages of going online to cater for those vendors and househunters, the more pressure traditional high street agencies are going to feel to go online themselves - and that will be good news for consumers.
For example, Martin & Co is a national lettings agency with 170 franchisees throughout the UK. Its MD, Ian Wilson, is reported to have said 'The days of the High Street are numbered. We just don't know how long that is'. Wise words indeed - and not just because that's what I've been saying for so long, now.
For franchisees and shareholders, Wilson's statement might not, at first, appear to be good news. However, he's moving with the times and capitalising on the fact that the vast majority of property searchers are going online, and introducing the idea of 'virtual franchising'. This means letting agents - not necessarily in high street premises - can operate under the name of Martin & Co. In other words, as online estate agents. This would surely be a groundbreaking concept - if eMoov and other forward-thinking estate agencies hadn't beaten Wilson to it by a good couple of years.
The internet has changed our lives in so many ways: from the way we shop for groceries, to how we deal with our insurance ... even to how we can enjoy a friendly game of poker any time of day. But still estate agents have branch offices open up and down High Streets across the country, and now sales have halved from their previous peak, those branches are an extremely expensive proposition.
In fact, the way the current economy is going, estate agencies are going to have to adopt a different methodology, one that includes cutting costs and saving money. It's not quite as difficult as it might sound, because even some senior figures in the property industry are acknowledging - albeit reluctantly - that thanks to the internet, there really isn't much call for an intimate knowledge of the area covered by a high street branch any more.
These combined have made internet estate agents possible. And indeed their success more probable. Especially as they use the economy of scale that their coverage provides to offer rock bottom selling fees. It is only a matter of time before the biggest estate agency chains wake up to the sea change upon them. Fewer premises covering bigger areas, able to charge lower fees.
And the more vendors and househunters alike discover the advantages of going online, and the more agencies like Martin & Co discover the advantages of going online to cater for those vendors and househunters, the more pressure traditional high street agencies are going to feel to go online themselves - and that will be good news for consumers.
About the Author:
Tired of paying high Estate Agents Fees you should join the growing number of people choosing Internet Estate Agents eMoov.co.uk. eMoov will visit you to take full details of your home including high quality photographs and will then advertise it on all of the UK's top 25 property sites including Rightmove. Selling fees start from just 99. What are you waiting for...?
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