London Estate Agents Fees Should Be Clear

Estate agents are often secretive about what they charge sellers, it has been alleged, whilst there is great variation in the levels of fees that they charge.

A new survey found that only one agent in London – Winkworth – disclosed its fees on its website. About 20% of London agents refused to disclose their fees over the phone or via email.

The survey, by new estate agent comparison website ipostcode, looked at 250 agents’ fees across London and found that it is not necessarily in the most expensive postcodes where agents charge the highest fees.

Some of the highest average commissions are charged in the SE1 (Bermondsey), NW11 (Golders Green) and W6 (Hammersmith) postcodes, although agents in some lower priced areas – E8 (Dalston), N8 (Crouch End) and SE28 (Thamesmead) – offer some of the lowest commission rates.

The majority of the London estate agencies surveyed quoted 1.5% commission, but 15% of agents quoted 1%. The highest commission level quoted was 2.5%.

There were several postcode areas including Islington (N1) and Clerkenwell (EC1) where commission levels spanned the range from 1%-2.5%, which means that on a property priced at the London average of £342,749 (according to latest Land Registry figures), the seller could be paying anything from £4,113 to £10,282 including VAT to sell the same home.

Estate agents’ reputation for being guarded about their fees was borne out by the survey, with one in five of agents refusing to say what their fees were, either on the phone or via email. Only one agency, Winkworth, which has 43 London offices, displayed fees online.

One in four agents said that their fees are negotiable based on either a realistic valuation of the property or depending on the price range of the property. Many agents in the survey stressed that an agency should not be chosen simply on their commission rates but on service, track record and marketing.

The survey also found that estate agent fees in London at an average of 1.7% are more or less in line with the national average of 1.8% – contrary to the perception that London estate agent fees are the highest in the country.

Estate Agent Today