New year – old ideas

Right then, I have a feeling that this year is going to be a big year for House Revolution. I say feeling … I really mean ’plan’. Yes, I am a man with a plan and if I may be so trumpet blowing (don’t worry, it’s not the Chrismtas sprouts) it’s a quite a cunning plan. It does involve an awful lot of your help this is true but I’m not going to say anymore at this stage. You will just have to wait till a later blog.

It always feels good to have a plan, especially a new and really really good one like mine (that I’m not going to tell you about just yet). It feels good because unlike the tired, old, expensive high street estate agents who to their credit also have plans just tired old expensive ones, mine is about offering great service at the right cost.  £999 + VAT to be exact.  The high street estate agents’ plan is always the same. Open more offices till we go bust or better still, spent a fortune revamping the old office and then go bust.

In my little town alone 4 different estate agents are opening new offices this month. Recession anyone?

“Why are they doing this” you ask? “Shops cost a lot of money and no one ever goes in an estate agents office to buy a house anymore – they go online. Quite frankly I would like something useful on my high street like a lovely vegetable shop or a really nice shop that sells drum kits”.  Sorry that last bit was just me.

Well its simple really, the fees charged are so high they can afford to do so. In summary you pay for it, they do it !

Rather than doing what smart customer friendly businesses do, i.e. find ways to reduce costs to consumers by embracing technology and modern business practice, the old estate agents use old ideas to maintain (sniff) the old days and their justification for having an office is “so we can place your home in our high street window.” Get out of here. Aside from the fact that a tiny tiny proportion of buyers look in a window, if it was genuinely the case tell me why major estate agents are now removing house photos from their windows in favour of big expensive plasma screens used to advertise, ready for this …. themselves!

The truth is it’s a needless and expensive way to market themselves that keeps their fees high!

So get ready for my plan …