Estate agency's job cuts lead to concern
FEARS have been expressed over possible closures and job loses in sections of Northampton's estate agency industry.
They come on the back of one of the country’s largest estate agents, Your Move, shutting offices and axing 315 full-time jobs nationally. The cuts are the first large-scale redundancies in the sector, which employs 50,000 people, since the property slowdown began late last year.
The move has sparked speculation about the effect of the market changes on the rest of the industry.
In an article in The Times, John Socha, the vice-chairman of the National Landlords Association, said the market was slowing across the board and “the cannier estate agents are acting now”.
He argued that, after almost a decade of growth in the sector, the industry was at its most vulnerable in the Midlands.
He added: “It is the places where the cost of entry, such as renting an office, is the lowest that are in trouble; perhaps cities like Leicester, Milton Keynes.”
Mr Socha also referred to the situation in Northampton, which had 200,000 residents and more than 60 estate agents, and raised concern about the future of the industry.
But Simon Bond, joint managing director of Northampton-based O’Riordan Bond, said he was confident that current market conditions would see established estate agencies, such as his, standing out from the crowd and increasing market share. But he believed some of the smaller estate agencies in the town would find the year ahead very challenging.
“It is now a genuine market. House prices will remain steady, but the number of transactions will fall slightly. This is because banks are less likely to lend money to people who cannot afford it, and because there are less people who are buying houses to make a quick profit, rather than buying them as a home,” he said.
“This is a good thing, and a steadier market gives more opportunities for good old-fashioned estate agencies going out and actively selling houses. The days of some estate agents just putting a for sale board outside a house and it selling itself are gone.”
The change in the market meant there were more chances for people to get on the first rung of the housing ladder. “We’ve had a good start to the year, and in the first few days of 2008 we have had 174 inquiries, which compares favourably to last year,” he added.
Dean Fielding, finance director of LSL Property Services, which operates Your Move, the UK’s third-biggest chain of estate agents, said: “It is very difficult to see where the market is going to land. Our larger competitors are doing similar things.”
oliver.jelley@northantsnews.co.uk
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