Estate agents trying their luck with quick sales, claim

Nine out of ten ‘quick sale’ companies advertising on the internet are estate agents in disguise.

The accusation has come from quick sale company HighPricePaid, whose director David Sessford said: “Ninety per cent of the companies advertising on the internet as ‘quick sale’ companies are not genuine cash buyers.

“They are either estate agents trying to sign up vendors on lengthy contracts, or they are investors or working with investors.”

He said: “After doing our own research we have found that a number of companies are asking for valuation fees from customers, are trying to tie vendors down into lengthy contracts to put them on the open market and hope for a buyer to turn up, and are still trying to drop prices at the last minute, even after the OFT investigation.

“A number of the cash sale companies advertising are merely estate agents in disguise and don’t have the cash available to buy.”

He claimed his own firm does have funds to purchase, and that it does not drop its offers at the last minute – something that was criticised by the OFT which has launched an investigation.

He said: “Companies that advertise as cash buyers and then simply list properties on Rightmove or Zoopla are facing the problem that the vendor requires a quick sale, and the only way to guarantee this happening is with a cash offer.”

In August, the OFT published a report into the quick sales sector, which expressed some concerns, and also announced it was formally investigating three firms.