Posts with tag: online property listings

HouseSimple Claims it’s the Second Best Online Agent

Published On: October 5, 2015 at 3:01 pm

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HouseSimple has claimed that it has taken second place in the online estate agent rankings.

According to its CEO, Alex Gosling, HouseSimple is behind Purplebricks, but “well ahead of eMoov” regarding new property listings.

HouseSimple Claims it's the Second Best Online Agent

HouseSimple Claims it’s the Second Best Online Agent

He believes that HouseSimple is catching up with Purplebricks fast, “and doing so much more cost-efficiently” by not spending a huge marketing budget.

Gosling reports that HouseSimple now has 120 listings per week, “which will soon equate to 500 listings per month”.

He adds: “This is double that of any of eMoov, Tepilo and House Network, who are all around 60 per week still.”1 

The new listings for HouseSimple are all on Zoopla.

At the weekend, Purplebricks had 371 compared to HouseSimple’s 92. Tepilo had 64, eMoov had 58, House Network 46 and easyProperty had 30.

HouseSimple is currently offering a week’s free trial followed by a weekly pay-as-you-go rate of £9.

When asked about HouseSimple’s claim, founder of eMoov, Russell Quirk, replied: “HouseSimple had a good week last week, but that was only last week.

“It’s a bit silly to put out a statement claiming greatness based on a one-week snapshot just because, for the first time, it shows they had a better week.

“It’s akin to overtaking Lewis Hamilton in a Sainsbury’s car park and declaring you have won the F1 world championship.”

He adds that eMoov currently averages 340 listings per month. And he said that even if HouseSimple’s claim to list 120 per week proves consistent, it will result in a monthly rate of 520 – “certainly not double our monthly figure”.

He said: “A free one-week trial may not be a particularly sustainable approach for HouseSimple, which is ironic given their criticism of Purplebricks’ marketing spend and their own cost-efficiency. I might send Alex Gosling a calculator as a free gift.”1

In July, Quirk ranked HouseSimple fourth out of all online agents, based on current inventory and weekly run rate.

1 http://www.propertyindustryeye.com/housesimple-claims-second-place-in-online-agency-rankings/

 

OnTheMarket Reports Another Record-Breaking Month

Published On: October 5, 2015 at 12:55 pm

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OnTheMarket Reports Another Record-Breaking Month

OnTheMarket Reports Another Record-Breaking Month

OnTheMarket has reported that traffic on its website rose again in September, making it another record-breaking month.

During September, the site achieved 5.6m visits, compared with 5.4m in August.

This activity included over 2.7m unique visitors, up from 2.5m in August.

Last month was also a record month for the amount of leads to agents, according to the portal.

Chief Executive of OnTheMarket, Ian Springett, comments: “We are delighted to see such a significant increase in our traffic yet again.

“Consumers are increasingly becoming aware of our new and exclusive properties, which are uploaded to OnTheMarket 24 hours or more ahead of any other portal and they know that to get ahead of the game, they should search there.

“Alongside our strong uptake in traffic, support among estate and letting agents for OnTheMarket to succeed continues to increase daily.”

He adds: “We believe it is only a matter of time before we overtake Zoopla as the number two portal in terms of available UK property listings, and provide agents and consumers alike with a credible alternative to the current duopoly of Rightmove and Zoopla.”1

The portal uses Google Analytics to measure its traffic.

1 http://www.propertyindustryeye.com/another-record-breaking-month-for-us-says-onthemarket/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Four Estate Agents Leave OnTheMarket

Published On: October 1, 2015 at 1:58 pm

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Categories: Landlord News

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Four Estate Agents Leave OnTheMarket

Four Estate Agents Leave OnTheMarket

Four estate agents have left OnTheMarket, according to online agent eMoov.

As an online only agent, eMoov cannot belong to the property portal, but has named the defecting agents as Stirling Ackroyd, Statons, Alex Neil and Cheffins.

eMoov reports that it has been tracking all the major portals: “This reveals some interesting developments over the last few months.

“After the initial rush to join OnTheMarket.com earlier in the year, their growth appears to be stagnating with little or no increase in membership numbers over the last couple of months.

“The reality appears to be setting in for its members as a number of notable names have quit OnTheMarket to return to Zoopla, including multi-office agencies like Stirling Ackroyd, Statons, Alex Neil and Cheffins, amongst others.”1 

It claims that it has received several requests this year from vendors wishing to list their property with them, as eMoov markets on Zoopla and Rightmove.

1 http://www.propertyindustryeye.com/four-estate-agency-offices-named-as-quitting-onthemarket/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

High Street Agents Extinct, Says easyProperty Boss

Published On: August 26, 2015 at 12:43 pm

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Categories: Landlord News

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Two branches of Hunters estate agents have moved onto the high street, but an online-only firm believes this isn’t necessary.

Both Hunters offices, in Tring and Leighton Buzzard in Bedfordshire, are owned by franchisee Caroline Murgatroyd.

They were previously operated out of town, but Murgatroyd believes that a high street location raises the brand’s profile.

Hunters’ franchises are often started from the franchisee’s own home or in out-of-town offices.

But Robert Ellice, the Chief Executive of online agent easyProperty, insists online is the only way to go: “I don’t believe any estate agent starting today would believe they need a high street office.”

Murgatroyd opened the Tring office in the autumn of 2012 with just two staff members. The team has now grown to eight members of staff in the last three years.

She says: “We’ve experienced a massive difference since relocating to the high street and the branch is a lot busier now. So many people look into our display window, which is attracting more walk-in clients.

“The uplift in business was immediate and we’ve seen a 20% increase in activity, which is exactly what we were looking to achieve with the move.”1 

Hunters in Leighton Buzzard, opened by Murgatroyd six months ago, has also moved to the high street.

Its Branch Manager, David Lawrence, comments: “The business has really taken off and we’ve tripled our workforce in the short time we’ve been operating. Our new office makes us more accessible to our clients, which is very beneficial.

“I am very confident that displaying the Hunters brand on the high street will further raise the company’s profile.”1 

In a recent interview, Ellice states: “Being online, we don’t have to charge over-the-odds prices to cover expensive overheads. This makes us more agile and able to respond to what customers really need.

“When I started writing my business plan, I felt so excited because I was rewriting the rule book with easyProperty.

“High street agents are extinct, they just don’t realise it yet. More and more people are putting faith in online transactions, seeing online portals as the new norm.

“Having a shop-front no longer instils trust and credibility, especially for estate agents, so there is a significant tide of people turning to online agents, which are faring much better in terms of transparency.

“The marketplace is moving away from bricks and mortar, and easyProperty is determined to drag it into the digital age.”1

Yesterday, easyProperty had 24 properties listed for sale on Rightmove and 326 for rent.

1 http://www.propertyindustryeye.com/high-street-agents-extinct-but-just-dont-realise-it-yet-says-easyproperty-boss/