Kate Faulkner comments on the OFT Report on Home Buying and Selling

BUT ARE THEY RIGHT? According to the latest review on housing (one of many!) the OFT claim “A shake-up in how homes are sold, including updating legislation to allow new entrants into the market, could lead to a better deal for house buyers and sellers”.

Their main reason for this thought appears to be because the “housing market remains dominated by traditional estate agents with weak competition between them on price. As property prices rise during housing booms, so too do estate agents' fees”.

It’s an interesting conclusion and having worked in this market for over 20 years, my experience of estate agent competition is that it’s quite intense. So how exactly is the OFT claiming ‘weak competition’ on price and backing up the suggestion that selling through an agent is an ‘expensive’ process? Read on to find out!