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How to choose the best estate agent

Choosing an estate agent is critical to your move – but how do you separate the good agents from the bad? Here's how to find the best estate agent near you.

Angela Kerr Director, Editor

KEY INFORMATION

How to choose the best estate agent summarised

Choosing the best estate agent means you’ll sell your house for the best price possible. Here’s how to do it:

• Find the best performing estate agents: Use our Best Estate Agent Finder tool which compares agents based on their success rates, speed of sale, and how close they come to achieving the asking price. You’ll get results instantly.
• Invite at least three agents to value your home: Ask your shortlist of estate agents to value your home. Ask why they’ve valued your house at that price and about their experience and success in selling properties like yours. Do your own research into your home’s value too so you’ll know how accurate the valuations are.
• Check marketing quality: Most buyers find their new homes on property portals like Rightmove. So check the quality of each estate agent’s photographs and their property descriptions. Also, what’s their marketing strategy for your house?
• Do you get a good impression? You’ll want the person selling your house to be professional, helpful and enthusiastic.
• Negotiate on fees: If you’re using one estate agent to sell your house, aim to negotiate a fee of 1.2%, including VAT. But don’t just go on price – the best performing estate agent may be worth a higher fee.
• Check contracts carefully: Before choosing an estate agent, go through the contract carefully to make sure there aren’t any terms hidden in it that could cost you dearly, like having to pay estate agent fees if you pull out and don’t go through with the sale.

To find the best estate agent, compare local estate agent success rate, speed of sale and track record on asking price using our free Best Estate Agent Finder tool.

Shopping around to find the best estate agent to sell your house is critical. The right agent will sell your home quickly and for the best price, while adding value to the process to earn their fee. Here’s a list of things to consider when working out how to choose the best estate agent.

Remember: the agent works for you

When you sell a property, it’s worth keeping in mind that the estate agent works for you. So your experience of choosing an estate agent should feel positive. If when speaking to agents it doesn’t feel this way, speak to another firm. High street estate agents usually charge a fee based on a percentage of the price your home sells for, which means if they don’t sell your property, they don’t get paid. So it’s in everyone’s interests to get off to a good start.

How do I find the best estate agent near me?

Finding the right estate agent can make all the difference in how quickly you sell your home and the amount you sell it for. The best estate agents won’t just get you the best price, they will also work hard behind the scenes progressing your sale to completion. Follow these steps to ensure you choose the best agent for your needs:

1. Look at For Sale signs erected near you. This should give you a good idea of the more popular local estate agents and which ones sell houses like yours.
2. Ask family, friends and neighbours – it’s always good to have a personal recommendation.
3. Use our Best Estate Agent Finder tool below to help you find a list of the local estate agents in your area and you can rank them by which one has the largest local market share i.e. sells the most homes in your area
4. Compare which agent performs best. Again, use our Best Estate Agent Finder to rank and compare estate agents by how likely they are to achieve asking price and their success rate at selling houses like yours. It uses the latest data to show you the best estate agent.
5. Check online reviews and ratings. Look at platforms like Google Reviews and TrustPilot to see what other customers have said about the agents.
6. Assess their online presence: Check the agents’ online listings. Do the photographs look professional and are the descriptions well written? Do they offer virtual tours?
7. Visit local estate agent offices: Speak to agents directly in their office. This will give you a sense of how professional and approachable they are.

How to choose an estate agent

Once you have a list of possible agents, you’ll want to narrow it down to a shortlist of at least three. Here are some key points to help you select the best ones:

1. Compare local estate agents. Use the Best Estate Agent Finder tool to compare agents based on their success rates, speed of sale, and how close they come to achieving the asking price. This tool helps you find the best estate agents in your area and compare their performance.
2. Experience in selling similar properties. Make sure the agent has experience with properties like yours by checking their window, website, or listings on property portals like Rightmove.
3. Check the marketing quality. Look at the properties they have listed on portals like Zoopla and Rightmove. Are the photos high-quality, and are the descriptions clear and engaging? Get an idea of whether they price properties correctly by checking if many have been reduced.
4. Trust your instincts. Don’t feel obligated to hire the agent you bought your home from unless they impressed you with their services. Instead, choose agents who are enthusiastic and committed to helping you sell your property.
5. Consider commission and terms. Ensure you understand their commission rates and terms, and don’t hesitate to negotiate – read on for more on this. Use our Best Estate Agent Finder tool for an impartial comparison.

By following these steps, you can confidently choose a shortlist of estate agents who are best suited to sell your home efficiently and for the right price.

Meet at least three estate agents

To find the best estate agent for you, invite the shortlisted firms to your home individually to discuss their offer and conduct a valuation. If you have used our Best Estate Agent Finder tool to draw up your shortlist, you can contact them directly via that.

This meeting is a good opportunity for you to ask the estate agent some further questions to help find the best estate agent to sell your home. You might want to ask:

• When did they last sell a home like yours and did it achieve asking price?
• What is their reasoning behind the value they’re proposing to market your property at? They should be able to demonstrate they know the local market and have done their research. See our guide What price should I sell my house for?
• Are they members of an accredited independent ombudsman service? They must be either a member of the Property Ombudsman or the Property Redress Scheme
• What would they do if your property was not selling as quickly or at the price you expected?
• Check the estate agent will accompany potential buyers when you are out, or all the time if you want them to take the lead. If there is a particular agent you like, ask if it will be them personally on viewings.
• Find out about their standard terms & conditions, particularly their standard commission rate and typical tie in period.

Find and compare local estate agents with our free tool: compare fees, success rate, speed of sale and track-record achieving asking price

Key questions to ask an estate agent

Here are some of the key questions to ask an estate agent before making your decision on which to choose:

• How much is my home worth? Estate agent valuations draw upon their knowledge of what homes like yours are selling for and why you might set the sale price higher or lower.
• How quickly do you sell houses like mine and how often do you reach the asking price? The agent should have data and evidence they can share with you. Compare the performance of local estate agents in your area using our Best Estate Agent Finder tool – their success rate, how long they take to sell properties like yours and their likelihood of achieving the asking price.
• Have you recently sold any other properties locally? You’ll want to be sure the estate agent knows the local market well and are active in the area.
• What is your marketing strategy for properties like mine? This is where high street agents should demonstrate their years of experience and local knowledge, to inform their plan for marketing your home.

Read more in our guide 18 key questions to ask estate agents when selling a house.

Video: 6 top tips to find the best estate agent

See our video with our top tips to find the best estate agent for you.

KEY INFORMATION

Caution: Beware of estate agent valuations

Some estate agents will overvalue your house to win your business, but then suggest reducing the price a few weeks later following a lack of interest.

While other estate agents insist they’re giving a realistic price, and tell you not to be fooled by falsely high valuations.

Here’s how to navigate this situation:

1. Get an idea of what you could sell for with an instant online valuation tool. This should give you an idea in less than two minutes.
2. Research local house prices and wider market conditions. Along with your instant online valuation, this should give you an idea of how much your house is worth.
3. Compare estate agents’ valuations: If the estate agents broadly agree on the value of your home, you can feel confident about the valuation.
4. But if valuations are wildly different: Go through the valuations carefully. The agents should come armed with evidence of local sold prices to support their valuation. Consider whether the estate agent has overvalued your house. We find that vendors will sell more quickly and make more money by achieving 99% of a fair asking price than 90% of an unrealistic one.
5. It’s your decision: While it’s advisable to take the advice from the estate agent, ultimately it’s you and not the agent who decides what price to put the property on at.

Check how often the agent achieves their recommended asking price using our free Best Estate Agent Finder tool which shows agent performance using actual sales data.

How much do estate agents cost?

When you are trying to find the best estate agent you’ll want to factor in fees. Overwhelmingly, estate agents charge a percentage fee, which can be anywhere between 0.9%-3.6% (inc VAT) of the agreed selling price for your home depending on the type of contract you opt for with your estate agent – and how well you negotiate. See How many estate agents should I use?

Average estate agent fees are typically 1.42% including VAT. So on a £275,000 house this would mean estate agent fees of around £3,900.

However when you want to find the best estate agent you should negotiate with them on the fee and aim to get a fee that is 1.2% incl VAT on the agreed sale price for a sole agency contract. For higher value properties – such as over £500,000 – agents are often prepared to accept even lower fees, and perhaps go below 1.2%.

Fees should be advertised inclusive of VAT. But check with your estate agent. You may be able to get your shortlisted agents to compete on cost, but make sure you understand all about estate agents fees before you make a decision. And, if cost is a big consideration, see our guide on the cheapest way to sell a house.

But when you want to find the best estate agent don’t go on fee alone. Top performing agents that achieve the asking price can be well worth their commission fee. For example, if a property is listed for £300,000 and the agent achieves this asking price and the commission is 1.42%, you will pay commission of approximately £4,250. But, if another agent charges a lower fee than this or even no fee at all and achieves 98% of the asking price, this has cost you £6000 in a lower achieved sale price (in this instance, you are at least £1750 worse off with the cheaper agent).

What makes a good estate agent?

In trying to choose the best estate agent it helps to think about what makes a good estate agent. Some important factors are:

Being enthusiastic about your property: You’ll find the best estate agents will be positive about the prospect of selling your home. You’ll get this insight as soon as you invite them for a valuation meeting.

Being proactive: You’ll want to be confident the estate agent will be proactive in marketing and chasing up viewings and offers, calling them to tell them about your property. And while it’s a good sign if an estate agency is busy you’ll want to be sure they have enough time to focus on selling your house.

A good track record: If you want to find the best estate agent, look at the data. Compare local estate agents based on the facts: how quickly they sell property, how close they come to achieving the asking price and how successful they are.

Our free, impartial Best Estate Agent Finder tool helps you find the best estate agents in your area.

Property marketing strategy

When you want to choose the best estate agent, it’s important to establish how they plan to market your property. You need to understand what their plans are, and be comfortable with their approach. You should ask them:

• Which portals are they are using? You want your home listed on the big property portals namely Zoopla, Rightmove and OnTheMarket.
• Will they use premium listings on Rightmove or any other features (e.g. virtual video tours) to showcase your home? And will this come at an additional charge to you?
• Will they advertise your property in local newspapers? Which ones? If you are selling a more expensive property, will it feature in any national newspapers or magazines?
• Will your property feature in their window? For how long?

Choosing sole or multiple estate agents

You’ll also have to decide how many estate agents you should use. You can choose:

• Sole agency: This is when you instruct one estate agent and it’s the most common way people sell their homes. Estate agent fees are generally cheaper when only one agent is involved; typical sole agency fees are 1.2% to 1.8% inc VAT.
• Joint sole agency agreements: This means appointing two agents who will agree in advance how to split the commission. Typical fees are 3% to 3.6% inc VAT. But joint sole agency agreement usually only make sense if you want to appoint a specialist agent who acts nationally as well as a generalist local agent so that you cover different markets.
• Multiple agency agreement: This means using two or more agents to sell your property. This is usually more expensive, with typical fees 3% to 3.6% inc VAT, because only the estate agent that introduces the buyer to the purchase gets the commission. With multiply agency agreements, agents are competing with each other which can make the sales process quite frenetic. Read our guide Multiple agency agreements: Does it help?

Common pitfalls to avoid when choosing an estate agent

When you’re choosing an estate agent watch out for these tricks.

Traps in estate agent contracts

When you hire an estate agent, you will be bound by their terms and conditions, so it’s important to understand what to watch out for with estate agents’ contracts. Some of the biggest things to beware of include:

• Extra costs: Will you have to pay more for marketing and other costs, such as taking professional photos and putting up For Sale boards? These basics should be included in the commission fee
• Fees for finding your own buyer: Do they insist on ‘sole selling rights’? If so, it means that even if you find a buyer yourself, you still have to pay the agent their fee. If you do give away sole selling rights to an agent, it must only be for a very limited period.
• Being charged if your sale falls down: Some estate agent contracts may include a ‘Reading, willing and able’ clause which means that if someone is ready, willing and able to purchase your property  – and even if an exchange of contracts doesn’t happen – then the agent will be entitled to a fee. Do not accept this! It means you have to pay the agent for finding a buyer, even if you decide not to sell.
• Could you be charged two sets of fees? If you’ve signed up to an open-ended agreement, beware that the agent can claim commission if you sell to someone who they originally introduced to your property, even if months or years have passed since and you used a different agent for the sale. So before signing an estate agent contract make sure you understand whether you’ll have any continuing liability to the agent for a fee if you terminate the agreement. If you terminate the contract the agent should include a list of parties that agent has introduced to the property. If they don’t give this to you – ask for it and then share it with your new agent. Read guide on changing estate agents: what to consider.

Find more information on what to beware of in our guide Estate agent contracts: What to watch for.

Get the best service

You’ll also want to make sure you get the best service. Here’s what to look out for:

• Who will be selling your house? You might have been wowed by the agent who came to value your house but will they be conducting viewings? If not, make sure you feel confident in the agents who will be showing people around your home.
• Using the estate agent’s in-house services: Using the conveyancer your estate agent recommends may seem like the easiest option but you could end up paying more for a worse service than you can get elsewhere. We have a helpful guide explaining how to choose a conveyancer and a handy tool that lets you compare conveyancing quotes from regulated and reviewed conveyancing solicitors that cover your area.
• Similarly, they may recommend a mortgage broker too if you’re buying and selling at the same time. But not all mortgage brokers are equal: some only recommend mortgages from a select ‘panel’ of lenders while others charge fees. So speak to a fee-free mortgage broker like our partners at L&C to make sure you get the best deal. Also, read our guide Do I have to use an estate agent’s mortgage advisor?

Find the best estate agent: What about online estate agents?

Online estate agents can be much cheaper than conventional high street estate agents. But usually you’ll usually pay this cheaper fixed fee up-front rather than on a no sale no fee basis. And they vary in terms of what packages and prices they offer. Fees for online estate agents can be less than £100 and while Strike will sell your home for free.

Use our estate agent fee calculator to see how commission compares with fixed fees from online estate agents. Online agents often have online tools to track viewings, viewing feedback and offers.  Most online agents charge extra for accompanied viewings.

What type of agent should I use for a quick sale?

There has been a rise in companies advertising to buy your house for cash with the promise of a quick and trouble-free sale. Their business model is to pay you far less than you might get if you sell on the open market but in return they promise to complete in around 7-28 days. It can be a route to consider if you need to sell quickly, are keen to avoid a chain or are having difficulty selling your property. We explain what to consider when selling a house for cash and see our guide to quick sale firms to see whether they are right for you.

Should I change estate agents?

Are you feeling like you’re estate agent hasn’t been performing as you’d hoped? For example have viewings dried up or do you find it hard to get hold of them? Then you may wish to change estate agents.

But before you do it’s vital that you check the terms and conditions you signed up to because you may still be in your exclusivity period. If so, there’s not much you can do immediately but you can plan for when it comes to an end. If you do switch estate agents you’ll also want to make sure you’re not left paying two sets of commission. Find out how this could happen and how to avoid it in our guide on switching estate agents.

Choosing the best estate agent to sell your house

In summary:

• If you want to choose the best estate agent, make sure you shop around for the best performing estate agent near you. To find the best estate agent, compare local estate agent success rate, speed of sale and track record on asking price using our free Best Estate Agent Finder tool.
• Make sure you get along with your estate agent, and that you trust them. They will be the first point of contact for any potential buyers, so you need to make sure that they will represent you and your property well – see what you should expect from your estate agent in our guide what does an estate agent do
• Check the estate agent fee and try to negotiate on the fee so that you find the best estate agent at the best price.
• Remember to read the contract carefully and check your sole agency tie in period and required notice period. If you don’t understand something, ask. If you are not happy in any way do not sign the contract.

Frequently Asked Questions