Head of Residential Sales at Linley & Simpson, Mark Christopher
Head of Residential Sales at Linley & Simpson, Mark Christopher

Harrogate estate agent launches ‘pay as you feel’ fee structure

13 August 2015

An independent estate agent with branches in Harrogate, Ripon and Wetherby is breaking new ground in the industry by launching a revolutionary fee structure linked directly to customer experience.

We wanted to inject some innovation and modern day thinking into our fees – Head of Residential Sales at Linley & Simpson, Mark Christopher

Linley & Simpson is “putting its money where its mouth is” by offering vendors the unique opportunity to choose the sales fee based on the quality of service they receive.

After carrying out research and listening to clients, the company has developed a sliding scale of five different commission rates tailored to performance.

These range from 1.5% +VAT where customer satisfaction from initial instruction to final completion has been judged to be “excellent”, to just 0.5% +VAT where clients feels it has not delivered the highest standards it strives to achieve.

Homeowners putting their property up for sale through its branches across West and North Yorkshire will still be able to do so at the traditional flat rate of commission if they want, with the Leeds city centre branch retaining the flat rate of commission as standard. All its other branches – Roundhay, Horsforth, Chapel Allerton, Wetherby, Wakefield, Ilkley, Harrogate, Ripon, York and Saltaire – will offer the new fee structure.

Mark Christopher, Head of Residential Sales at Linley & Simpson said:

This is an innovation that is over and above, not a replacement for, the single fee structure that currently exists.

It adds a different dimension that will appeal to many wanting to break with tradition and have a more modern and personalised approach to payment. For the first time, vendors will be handed a bigger choice – and say – in what level of commission they pay and how.

In short, we are investing in our reputation for professionalism and customer service by putting our money where our mouth is and giving clients the ultimate reassurance that we will work on their behalf to the very highest standard.

The concept has been born out of our core values of trust, transparency and a determination to deliver an outstanding customer experience.

 

Mr Christopher added:

Estate agency has been in existence for hundreds of years, yet the way it charges for its services has largely remained unchanged.

The world – and people’s expectations – have moved into a different era. Our new approach, and its unprecedented client focus, is designed to reflect this, as well as act as a catalyst for rewarding and driving up standards across the sector.

We wanted to inject some innovation and modern day thinking into our fees. Many other forward-thinking companies in other sectors have adopted a payment-by-results approach with success. We feel it is timely to take the lead and offer our clients the same option in the estate agency sector.

1 Comment

  1. Nice to see an “innovative” agent at work. Harrogate already has estate agents charging 0.6% with no VAT for all their customers… Quite successfully I may add. This is simply PR nonsense.

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