Rightmove is developing a new digital feature for the Modern Method of Auction (MMoA) to help agents who would like to offer clients the option of this method of sale.
Technical work is currently underway with auction provider iamsold with a view to launching in the spring.
The new feature is designed to give agents an additional route to market to offer to their existing and prospective sellers, and to help differentiate MMoA on the property website.
As part of their commercial agreement, Rightmove customers who are part of iamsold’s partner network will benefit by automatically having all of their relevant listings on the portal enhanced with information explaining how the MMoA process works, and real-time information about the latest online bids on the property added to these listings via an API from iamsold.
Also as part of their new collaboration, agents who do not currently have an auction service will have the option to sign up to iamsold to offer this to their sellers.
Further content explaining the MMoA process will also be promoted on Rightmove with the aim of helping educate buyers and sellers on the option.
Rightmove’s agency director Dave Anderson said: “We want to help give agents more choice to offer their clients, where they think this method would suit their sellers’ needs. We’re excited to be working with iamsold as our first auction provider for this feature and hope that by differentiating these listings on site it will help educate buyers and sellers about the Modern Method of Auction, so that they know there are different purchasing and selling routes available to them from agents.
“We also hope this may open up more routes to property transactions for agents who may not currently be using an auction provider or who do not have their own auction service.”
iamsold’s managing director Jamie Cooke added: “It’s our goal for the Modern Method of Auction to become a mainstream way of moving, allowing buyers and sellers more freedom of choice when it comes to the method best suited to their circumstances. Working with Rightmove is a huge step in the right direction for MMoA and will introduce it and its many benefits to the site’s vast audience.
“The volume of MMoA transactions is increasing every year. More agents are offering it and benefitting from faster and more secure sales, while movers are choosing MMoA for its speed, security and transparency, which have become more important than ever in today’s market. As the category grows and through our Best Practice Guide, we continue to champion transparency. We’re highly passionate that all consumers should be given a fair and consistent service, giving them a positive experience of MMoA.”
Comments (14)
So an Ebay property sort of thing? We don’t know what the value is, we don’t know how to value so if we tender it we’ve done the best we can?
This will provide a challenge for some agents but restricting sales to those who can proceed knocks a huge swathe of buyers out of the demand side of a property’s value.
Perhaps I’ve missed the point but this modern method of auction has never properly been explained. I don’t know how or where it fits between private treaty, auction, formal tender or informal tender
When I looked at it, granted a while ago, it struck me the reservation fee would pretty much rule out most buyers using a 90% mortgage as it would eat into their deposit.
RM promoting a competitor to their subscribers with the promise of added enhancements ??!! This potential inner sanctum can’t be what we all signed up to subsidise – great flanker by iamsold, appalled that RM have fallen for it!
I think this is very dangerous territory for RM and they may have overplayed their hand.
There’s a reason why RM works it’s a simple and a fairly equal playing field with fairly well regulated rules for advertising so consumers trust it. Are they now facilitating sales?
It’s going to confuse people and I’m surprised they are lending themselves to a much smaller group in this manner.
I predict this is beginning of end for the once dominant portal and will start to look like any other product.
It is more likely to be the end of agents
Disagree completely – look at the hundreds of millions online agents have spent but cannot break the bond between a human doing his or her best for another. You cannot commodify the process successfully.
People do not usually use an agent because they have any affection for them – they just see no other viable alternative and do not consider the on line agents as such
Look at the way agents fees have been driven down
No agent has ever had to compete with a company with the power and brand awareness of RM
PB are not in the same league
Eventually RM will sell themselves
I have never understood why this method includes the name Auction… When there is little to no auction involvement.
The power is in your hands! You have the stock and pay to give it away, portals could be out of business next week if more than roughly 50% stopped uploading. I always think the arrange a viewing is **** anyway, how many people will do this in the evening then change their mind next day.
…..or dare I suggest a pesky competitor, booking a viewing for Mr and Mrs Nobody?
Many solicitors say this is technically Tender not Auction. In any event, there are increasing numbers of people who feel they are being ripped off by the Modern Method with TPOS receiving more complaints and increasingly agents/'”auctioneers” paying the reservation fee when the facts are put before them. This is may well be the new PPI scandal because many practitioners are using the MMA as a licence to print money and are not complying properly. It just needs national media coverage to start the flow of complainants who, until now have not come forward because the practitioners say they have no case against them.
Pipe down Richard. The MMOA is here to stay in some form or other, so instead of just taking a pop at it all the time why don’t you come forward with some suggestions as to how it can be made to work properly, in your opinion?
Traditional auction will always have its place, it’s not going to die off, so don’t worry. It just seems that there is demand for a ‘simpler’ form of auction that allows the public to proceed on a property with more certainty than private treaty.
You want to be very careful rightmove. Are you an agent : no
iamsold charges the buyer. Who is our client. The method is deceitful and once again you are forcing breached standards…. why? For your cut of the fee . Let’s guess iamsold charge the buyer 3% of the purchase price. That looks like a three way split now?
Interesting. Dd these guys not recently jump into bed with Zoopla to do something similar? I bet the chaps and chapesses iat ZPG are thrilled to learn of this.
Would be interested to know what fee Rightmove get from a sale? There is obviously something in it for them.
More of a concern for agents though, is that this is only the start. The portals are easing their way in in order to ease the agents out. Soon, agents will simply be seen as the middle men and women in the listing process. Watching the video emblazoned on social media last week from Boomin. Demonstrating the ‘book a viewing’ function. At what point will sellers ask, if buyers can request to view from the portal, why do I need the agent? Next it will be submit an offer and so on. Watch out all.
Portals are willingly given data by the agents. This very data will be used to eliminate agents.