|
First up, can you explain what a self-employed agent means?
Self employed estate agency in England is finally following America and the rest of the world in how we sell houses. It’s very different from simply setting up as ‘Chris Goodwin property’ and being a one-man band – self-employed agency needs to be a partnership, between an experienced agent and a best-in-class marketing brokerage / agency. In my case, this is Hortons. Together, we have built a reputation for ‘not just listing homes, but making them impossible to ignore’. What drew you to becoming an estate agent? Most agents in this industry ‘fall into it’, however, I am that strange guy who always wanted to be an estate agent! I was 17-18, walking into most estate agents in the county, CV in hand, and luckily I ended up here in Harborough! One of my most distinct memories is from being a kid when my parents moved house. It fell on my 8th birthday, and I told everyone on the street that the new house was my present! I was nice enough to let Mum, Dad and my little sister use it too… After five years, how has the property landscape changed? The way people buy and sell homes has completely evolved over the last few years. When handing in my notice to go self-employed at the start of 2020, I didn’t expect a global pandemic to be around the corner… However, it actually turned out to be a springboard for offering a different approach to being a Harborough Estate Agent. Since then, things have continued to evolve, moving away from traditional approaches. Buyers expect video tours, drone shots, social media campaigns, engaging content in all forms – not just a few photos on Rightmove. Sellers expect a more personal service, too, and I’ve built my business around that. At the same time, the property market has gone through some real ups and downs from the Covid boom, to interest and mortgage rate challenges – so adapting quickly has been the key to keeping my clients moving. Who have been your biggest supporters during this time? Without doubt, my fiancé! She puts up with phone calls at every hour of the day, cancelling plans last minute for viewings that crop up out of nowhere, being my sounding board at the end of stressful days and I couldn’t be in this job without that support. I should also point out the amount of support I get from clients, too – those who really buy in to what I do differently, sing my praises and recommend me. I get the vast amount of my business from referrals and word of mouth. What makes Harborough a great place to live? Aside from The Garage Bakehouse’s Marmite Swirls? Market Harborough has everything you could want – a strong community and great independent businesses. It’s a very traditional market town where history is preserved. It’s no wonder I have sold more homes to people moving into and within the town, compared to those moving away. We are often featured in The Time’s Top 10 places to live in the country for a reason right? Do you have any memorable listings? I remember my very first listing since going self-employed, it was such a hard sell at the time (Covid, lockdowns etc.) but during the length of time it took to sell, the exposure into the market helped me stand out and it led to six other listings, all selling! For the wow property, probably the best home I have ever showcased locally is live right now, Hornhill Farm in Clipston! Just go find it, you’ll see why. What sets you apart from other agencies? The biggest difference is that when you work with me, you deal with me directly from start to finish. You have one point of contact who knows your property inside out. Another huge and very important difference from any other agent in Harborough, is the access I have to the very best marketing available. There’s a huge reason why the best agents around the world are partnered with brokerages offering exactly this. Not just estate agents trying to keep up with professional photography, drone footage, video tours, social media campaigns – it’s all done by the right people, the experts. That is why I am so thankful to be partnered with Hortons who, in the last five years, have developed a reputation for providing the best local agents with industry-leading marketing, now recognised nationally. What are your predictions for the next 12 months? I think the market will continue to be steady as interest rates have begun to ease, and confidence has returned. We are so lucky in Market Harborough though. In my 15 years selling homes here, we have never seen our market affected in the same way as those national trends have impacted other areas. My hope, personally, is to keep building on the reputation I’ve grown over this time, helping more local people move. I’m excited to keep pushing creative marketing and continue to strive for being the first to implement the next different approach to marketing. Who or what would be your dream listing? Locally, I’d love to showcase other landmark properties, those homes that everyone in town knows when they drive past. My dream listing though… would be one of the many villas in the hills of San Francisco overlooking the beach and Golden Gate Bridge. I actually considered a move to America, for an opportunity to obtain a real estate licence over there. Maybe someday I will take the plunge, but for now, there are plenty more homes to sell in MaHa first… Contact Chris on [email protected] or call 07791 226801
|
Issue 27
|