Free property website kickstarts a buyers revolution

The tickeverybox.com website was started by property professionals David Roberts and Lorna Phillips because they had become exasperated by the poor service they were getting from estate agents.

“It seems as if we have started a buyers revolution, judging from the response” said David.

“The number of private sales in the UK has grown from 4% to 10% in the last two years and we know from our own experience that there is a lot of frustration out there”.

Lorna pointed out that buyers entering an estate agents office with one type of property in mind are often convinced to view properties that don’t match what they are looking for because that is all the agent has to offer.

“Buyers should bear in mind that agents have a duty of care to the vendor and their priority is to sell.

“Our message to buyers is – you should be able to find the property that you want, not the one that someone else doesn’t”, she added.

Buyers complete a detailed profile of their requirement including location, price range, buying position, property type and specific criteria important to them. Sellers can enter property details and when a match is made both parties are automatically alerted by email.

“We have a unique system that ensures that no opportunity is missed” David says. “ When time is at a premium for many families, this is a pro-buyer service that lets property come to them”.

Because the primary function of the site is to provide a platform for buyers, it does not display property information, giving vendors confidence that any information they provide will not be hijacked by external sources.

Using a private messaging system, parties correspond with each other without revealing their personal details.

“With currently five buyers for each available home in the UK, some estate agents are not working hard enough to locate property that matches the required spec”, added David, a qualified Chartered Surveyor.

“There is vast untapped market of house sales out there made up of people who do not want the hassle of working with an estate agent, putting a board up outside their house, advertising and the rest of it. Many people would like to ‘test the market’ and see what is out there before going through all of that.

“The website simply lets the buyers specify what they are looking for and where – and hook up, privately, with sellers. All this without the hassle of having to trawl around either estate agents or unsuitable properties”.

www.tickeverybox.com