An agent who is trying to have his contract with easyProperty rescinded says his small family business will be forced into insolvency if the debt is pursued.
Ian Beamish, who has run The Big Property Shop in Warrington with his wife for the last 14 years, says he is being chased by a debt collection agency for £6,000.
The sum is a 50% discount that has been offered by easyProperty on the basis, says Beamish, that he signs a non-disclosure agreement.
Beamish says he has had almost no leads from easyProperty and is alleging that it has failed to deliver on its promises.
Beamish has told the debt collection firm that easyProperty is clutching at straws and he is prepared to liquidate his company if the debt is pushed.
He took out a £500 monthly licence last September, but says that between then and March, he had only about four sales leads.
To make his easyProperty offering look stronger, he says he transferred four properties across from his own agency, where the instructions had originally signed up for a higher fee.
In March, he started to be charged £1,000 a month – he thinks because he had originally been allocated a second territory which was initially free.
Since March, when easyProperty expanded into lettings, he says he has not had a single lettings lead, and one sales lead where he might not have earned anything.
He says that easyProperty licensees were being encouraged to offer their services for free at that time as part of Project 6+6+6. This was designed to encourage every licensee to go out canvassing and to list 18 properties for free, he says, in order to boost easyProperty’s presence in the market.
Beamish said this idea, due to have run between April 16 and May 31, was fundamentally flawed: “I am paying them £1,000 a month and I am selling with my core brand – so why should I do this.”
Beamish said: “At the start, we wholeheartedly embraced the easyProperty concept, but they have failed to offer a viable offering to compete with Purplebricks as promised.”
He said that when he joined easyProperty, assurances had been given that there would be a flotation, and that there would be plenty of marketing and advertising.
Beamish’s agency has now retreated altogether from sales and is handling lettings only.
He says he has taken legal advice which has said he has a case not only for not paying the debt, but for claiming back the sums that he has paid.
He also says that if his firm is pushed into insolvency, he does not know how he and his wife – both in their sixties – would find new work.
Yesterday, easyProperty CEO Jon Cooke said that as the firm is taking legal action against the Big Property Shop, he was unable to comment.
Comments (47)
The Guild should hang their head in shame. Pushing a flawed business model onto their members. Pay £500 per month to dilute your own local brand then take a % of a cr@p fee.
All of this after they said they would stand up against online-only agents and help their members by educating the public and offering various advertising etc
So glad we left a couple of years ago
“The Guild should hang their head in shame. Pushing a flawed business model onto their members.”
From what I can see, EAMs, this company isn’t/wasn’t a Guild Member. Just another mark.
Other than that – you’re right, though.
“Ian Beamish, who has run The Big Property Shop in Warrington with his wife for the last 14 years…”
Incorporated 30/3/2017, according to Companies House.
“He also says that if his firm is pushed into insolvency, he does not know how he and his wife – both in their sixties – would find new work.”
Maybe with the other company they are Directors of, perhaps…?
Am I the only person who can’t get into the website of ‘The Big Property Shop’ – or of the other company Mr Beamish is mentioned as having a Directorial interest in at Companies House?
Am I the only person who, when clicking on the name ‘Beamish, Janice’ on one of those company listings, gets directed to the listing for MR Beamish?
Confused? You will be…
I wonder if he takes the same view on his mobile phone bill or Rightmove subscription?
“Hello O2, I don’t want to pay my bill because I didn’t get enough incoming phone calls to justify the line rental and charges”
“Hello Mr Shipside, these charges you are making are really unfair because I didn’t get enough clicks, views or viewing requests to justify the spend, oh also, I am 60”
Forget the +/-‘s of the High Street v Online debate, this is an example of a business decision that has gone south and its everyone else’s fault but the individual concerned….if you don’t get leads coming your way what’s wrong with going out and creating them like the rest of us?
A B2B business decision that didn’t work out? At least the PB squatter left their dirty laundry in the bathroom.
It’s a story which leaves a bad taste, on-line operators have got to be able to demonstrate that their marketing works and delivers a Return On Investment for their franchisees. Franchisees at EweMove who follow the approved marketing plan spend £2,000 on direct mail and Pay Per Click per month and achieve 43 quality leads month in month out. We have all the data which we are happy to share with anyone looking to move off the high street or away from salaried employment and run their own agency. In addition you pay £1,000 licence fee but that includes the website, 24/7 call centre and your properties advertised on RightMove & Zoopla.
What percent going into year 3 of franchises are still operating with the original owner?
Last check the average number of listings for a ‘Ewemove’ office was below 10.
Hi Smile Please.
There is a difference between the volumes our ex-agents achieve and those who come from a non-agent background and run their EweMove franchise more as a lifestyle business, (making good money in the process by the way), but turning over a smaller volume of stock relative to a High Street agent, that needs high volumes to cover their overheads, before they even think about making a profit. So don’t assume all KPIs are informed by average stock volume across the EweMove network.
Our ‘ex-agent’ franchisees and an increasing number of non-agent franchisees are completing (not listing) between 10-20 properties per month and when you assess this turnover in cash terms against a low-cost base business model, the numbers and margins look very good.
A typical franchisee that completes 5 properties a month will be achieving a NET profit margin of c50% after all their operational costs and marketing expenses. That’s not bad for a one-person operation with fees typically 1%+VAT!
“…those who come from a non-agent background and run their EweMove franchise more as a lifestyle business…”
Have you REALLY posted that, Head_Shepherd#2?
You are happy to publicly announce to your customers that some of your Agents see selling or letting their homes as “something to keep them occupied” in between enjoying coissants’n’Costa with their bezzies and snuggling up for Corrie, are you? And – as none of your “branches” state whether they see themselves as full-fat Estate Agents or skinny “lifestyle businesspeople” – you are quite happy for people to guess for themselves I take it?
And as far as your statement “(making good money in the process by the way)” goes – that surely depends on what they need to pay for the “lifestyle” you’re bleating about – doesn’t it? Maybe one sale every three months will pay for their Zumba classes. Two might get them a weekend in Skegness in a nice caravan… depends how low their particular bar is set, doesn’t it?
Which… looking at some of the “branch” listings totals, appears to anyone looking to be lower than a snake’s cojones.
#Ratner_Moment
The other elephant in the room here is why doesn’t he have enough money in his current business to pay off the 6k?
It doesn’t say he can’t afford it, just that he won’t pay it. Principle?
Dont get me wrong – I’m all about the principle but in the article it says that he may be pushed into insolvency. Whether you agree with the principle or not, surely if you are legally bound to pay and you are risking your livelihood by fighting it, at some point you have to take a commercial view? (even if it is through gritted teeth) i would rather pay the 6k than risk losing my business…
whether he should have known better or not is not the story here. easyProperty are selling out a model that is clearly not working, if it doesn’t work in a large town like Warrington then it must be flawed
Fools and their money ……
Couple of thoughts. Firstly at 60 years of age, the guy knew exactly what he was doing when he signed the contract. I’m guessing no one pinned him against the wall and forced him to sign it. He signed it on a punt expecting that it would all work out fine and he had something in his offering to go up against PB. Therefore pay up in exactly the same way he’d pursue a vendor who sold their house but wasn’t happy with his service.
In addition, it is seriously frightening that there are business owners out there that don’t just do the basics extremely well and concentrate on making their offering so stand out that they dominate and command their markets and generate the fee they deserve. This constant desperation to jump on a cheap solution isn’t what the vast majority of vendors want which is evidenced by the amount of instructions that are still listing with traditional agents rather than the “get what you pay for” cheap offering. Remember buy cheap, pay twice.
Or instead of concentrate on making their business stand out they whinge and moan on trade press forums about how unfair the world is.
…or whinge and moan about others supposedly whingeing and moaning…
#Delicious_Irony
If I have mentioned it more than 3 times then I’d be surprised whilst you and your erstwhile cronies spend most of the day complaining about how unfair the world is. If I’m whinging and moaning then a new word needs to be invented for your like.
How about pathetic there’s a good one.
WOW!
Those are really really big and complicated words.
Did a grown-up help you with them?
Typical deflect the discussion to something else rather than address the point.
“the point” being what, exactly?
The world IS unfair. Don’t see anyone arguing with you there.
Don’t see anyone on here complaining about the said unfairness of the said world, either.
Therefore it is abundantly clear that your “point” hasn’t got one.
So shall we adress the pointless instead?
I’m up for it if you are.
I thought I had already been addressing the ‘pointless’. He even responds equally so it seems.
You crack me up. You really should give up your day job and become a comedienne.
Really should. You’re wasted as anything else.
Thanks your not the first person to say I should go into comedy but I enjoy winding you lot up too much.
Sorry to wazz on your firework but you couldn’t wind up a motion-sensitive watch.
And yet you’re still going!
Nope – YOU’RE the one that’s still going.
This is an automated reply service because PeeBee couldn’t give a fuppenny.
Nighty night.
Stop already
After you…
No you
No… please…
After you.
I insist.
Oh ok then if you insist
I do. Insistently.
Ok I’ll stop
Best comment you’ve made yet.
Look forward to seeing it in action.
I’ll just not hold my breath…
Best not to you would die.
You gotta die of something… ain’t cha?
Be a terrible shame to go that way though! Have to say I agree with a lot of what you said on today’s easyprop story. I think the most interesting thing will be to see how it impacts on the way guild members feel about continued membership after being sold a pup by messers Cooke and McKenzie
ARC
We probably ‘agree’ on most things.
I’d be particularly interested to know what you don’t agree with… but I’d be far more interested to know why!
You up for it?
I don’t agree with in my opinion lazy agents who have had it too easy for too long getting all bent out of shape because some of their potential vendors have chosen to instruct an agent that does less for less. I don’t necessarily count you in that camp.
ARC
I’m with you 110% on that. We, as Agents, have to EARN our instructions – then PROVE our vendors right to instruct us. We don’t have a ‘right’ to anything.
If ‘Agent X’ can do the same job that I can… get the same result as I can… cheaper – then why should I expect to be given the job?
HOWEVER… when the opportunity to EARN the instruction is removed by the hype… misinformation… downright LIES (if you want to be so bold as to call it just that) that are being pushed down the throats of the public by certain companies – and I’m not necessarily even referring exclusively to the suspects you suspect I am – then THAT is where my “problem” with all this kicks in.
And I believe in the main I speak for the readership of EYE on that count.
How’s about we open a thread on ‘The Arena’? This article will be lost ever-deeper in the Archive today, and I’d very much like to keep this going – and open it up to others – if, that is, you’re ready to linguistically rumble!!
;o)
Happy to oblige
So here’s the thing…
‘smile please’ started a thread a while ago that he wanted to turn into a sounding board for best practice – it can be found here:
It’s sort of what I’m proposing – but I’d like to get down’n’dirty with main issues which might frighten away some.
Shall we just gatecrash – or come up with something independent of that?
Your call.
(and of course YOURS, smile please – I don’t want to spoil your party)
Sorry for delay gatecrash every time
It’s on there now, ARC. To coin a phrase:
To you… (credit: Barry Chuckle Dec’d)
Easy property sounds a wonderful proposition.
Pray on the naive and elderly. Sell them a dream of getting rich off the back of an ipo.
Upsell them territories.
When they realise the firm as a whole is struggling encourage franchises to list property for free to boost stock while they still pay thousands a month!
And of course best of all sign them up to a 12 month notice period so even if the business is struggling they still have a minimum of a years more debt!
How that is in anyway justifiable is totally beyond me.