The important factor to remember here is that estate agency is essentially a people business. As such, having a good relationship between client and agent is critical.
But starting off on the right foot can often be difficult. For example, if a seller finds their 'dream home' to buy and needs to sell their own in a hurry to secure their onwards purchase but needs a price that is at the top end of its value or even over market value. Some agents will just take the property on at a high price to secure an instruction on their books and this is not a good start as it spells a recipe for disaster.
Ultimately there is a massive difference between someones wants and needs. We should always allow for exceptions and in certain times and certain markets whereby achieving high prices is possible. The reality is that it's not feasible [namely time and cost!] for people to move house several times a year so finding the right property for the foreseeable future it of utmost importance.
In the UK we tend to find that people only move house when they actually need to. This way, people put their existing property on the market at more or less the right asking price, agree a sale and then can buy their onwards purchase in the same manner. As such, fall-throughs tend to be rare, because the seller is genuinely motivated to moving house as opposed to just being on the market "to see what happens." As a result, conversations between client and agent tend to be positive ones about how best to make the sale happen.
Once a sale has been agreed, effective communication between agent and solicitor is imperative. Solicitors don't want to be bothered with spurious calls and insufficient information. At Belgarum we have a dedicated sales progressor to see our sales through. Harriet is constantly praised for her communication skills which eases the selling process for all parties involved. It makes the sellers and the buyers life much easier compared to agents which don't invest the time or resources into seeing a sale through, or worse, haven't a clue what is going on with a sale! This can result in a sale or chain fall apart.
Ultimately, communication is key, from the initial market appraisal through to marketing campaign through to the progression of the sale. It makes such a difference forming a good relationship with your agent (and vice versa for us as agents with our clients and buyers). If you can establish clear levels of trust and communication from the off, then it's a good foundation for a successful (and relatively stress-free) property sale.
