I wanted to know what additional value do traditional estate agents believe they offer to clients over low cost agents such as Hatched.co.uk?

I dont see it as an online estate agent vs 'traditional estate agency' argument or any real revolution - I just think that more and more estate agents will gradually leave the high street in favour of cheaper accommodation, whether its an off the high street office, or a back-bedroom office.

Combine that with a greater focus of online marketing instead of the 'local rag' and hey presto... online estate agent.

Hi,

In my opinion I think like these online estate agent will gradually need a high street occurrence to sell themselves to predicted vendors. I find meeting the Estate Agent face to face and building a relationship helps me get to the properties before they hit the websites so I think potential buyers are missing out by relying on on-line searches only.Basically, estate agents don't perform true valuations. They just give informal opinions to the prospective buyers.

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Plaza Estates- the leading Central London Luxury Properties to Rent - http://www.plazaestates.co.uk/properties-to-rent

I dunno, but its possible.
There have been quite a few of these online estate agents opening up recently. There is one in particular which I found has the potential to stir things up a bit, www.Sweetlocation.co.uk

This property site is completely free to use and users can advertise everything from houses, flats, apartments commercial property to new developments, and it's absolutely free. It's a new site so its a little bare but starting to pick up especially in Birmingham, Maida Vale - London, Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield and Liverpool and I can definitely see it getting bigger.

I find meeting the Estate Agent face to face and building a relationship helps me get to the properties before they hit the websites so I think potential buyers are missing out by relying on on-line searches only.