Most people will only buy and sell their home a handful of times in their life. So, choosing which estate agent to trust with the sale of their home can be a difficult decision. Here’s our guide to choosing an Edinburgh estate agent
High quality promotional visuals
The majority of home searches start online so in order to attract the attention of as many buyers as possible it’s well worth investing in high quality marketing visuals. Professional photos are a must so that a home stands out from others being listed at the same time and good estate agents may invest in aerial photos. In the past 2 years, video tours have really taken off and it has become normal for Edinburgh estate agents to shoot a video tour of each home they sell to help with online advertising. The quality of these vary and at Umega we create extremely vibrant videos of each home to showcase that home at its best, often including drone footage, uplifting music and on camera presentation by one of our team who really sells the home to viewers. A 3D tour is also well worth producing to give potential buyers the most accurate picture of the layout. This is particularly helpful for buyers based outside the city or overseas to allow them to take themselves on a virtual viewing of the property, in their own time.
Breadth of Promotion
It’s important that each home is promoted as widely as possible to reach as many potential buyers as possible. Rightmove and Zoopla are the country’s busiest portals and where we find a high percentage of our buyers. We also advertise on Boomin, OnTheMarket and PrimeLocation. An Edinburgh estate agent should also promote each home through social media channels creating excitement about the home before it goes on the market and when it’s on the market, keeping a sense of excitement throughout. An experienced Edinburgh estate agent should also have a database of buyers to match the home against. They will normally also promote the home in their office and put a For Sale board up outside the home to attract attention of passers by.
Responsiveness/communication
Home sellers should choose an Edinburgh estate agent who they believe will communicate well. The home selling process can be a stressful, fast-paced experience and so to have an estate agent who understands this, and the need to communicate well, is vital. It’s not just about communication with the seller, but also how well the estate agent communicated with prospective buyers. A good estate agent will respond with tenacity and, in order to sell each home will do what they can to help prospective buyers reach a stage to be able to offer. Modern estate agents should offer a range of communication methods including livechat, online viewing bookings and convenient messaging apps like whatsapp; the selling process should be short and so it’s essential that communication is quick and regular.
Personal service
It’s important that home sellers feel supported well by their Edinburgh estate agent throughout the selling process and this starts with an individual taking responsibility for the sale. When an estate agent is successful and has a large number of homes on the market at one time the concern to many sellers is that, as a client they may become ‘a number’ in this larger machine. At Umega we insist that one member of the team takes full responsibility for each sale to make sure each seller and any prospective buyers for that home, feel supported and comfortable throughout. We’ve organised our business into small working ‘pods’ so that each customer gets the attention and care that they deserve in order to deliver a successful outcome.
Experience / knowledge
To make sellers feel in safe hands, to get the best price and to choose the right marketing strategy for each specific home, an Edinburgh estate agent should have adequate experience and knowledge of the city, the variety of homes, historical sales values, current market conditions and home buyers preferences. With over 15 years of experience in the Edinburgh property market we have this experience at Umega Estate Agents so our customers can feel in very safe hands.
Umega Estate Agents
Umega is an award-winning Edinburgh estate agent and letting agent. We care about our customers and achieving the best sale price for them while making them feel informed and supported throughout. We do this by preparing the best marketing assets and promoting them well, and widely. Our reputation is so important to us so we do everything we can to reach a very successful outcome for our customers, while treating buyers with respect and transparency. We market each property with excitement, creating a buzz, dealing with people fairly and promptly and importantly with real tenacity.
If you’re looking to sell your Edinburgh home through an award-wining Edinburgh estate agent, please contact our team on 0131 221 8289 or at [email protected] or start your journey by carrying out a free, instant online valuation of your home.