The world has seen a lot of changes over the past year, not least of all with the arrival of covid-19 in the UK. Adapting to the new normal has been a challenge for us all, but how is it affecting estate agents and what does it mean if you’re looking to move, sell, rent or buy a property in the UK?

The first thing to say, is that it is essential that you stay abreast of the government’s guidelines with regards to covid-19 and the property market, with things changing regularly. Advice and guidance with regards to things like property viewings, the sales process and much more besides is always changing so make sure you’re up to date with what is allowed.

In a world where the process of moving, buying or selling looks completely different than it did a year ago, estate agents have become more important than ever. It is difficult enough to keep up with things in our daily lives, let alone changes in the property market and associated regulations when they need to be considered.

Property Viewings

Estate agents in London and the UK are now meeting customers’ needs by showing off potential properties virtually in some cases. Although in-person viewings are now permitted, there are still many people who wish to view potential properties online.

For a buyer, a virtual tour of the home will give a better sense of whether it is right for you than just looking at what may be repetitive, still images. Whereas for a seller, a virtual tour of your home means having one estate agent in your house instead of potentially many, many unsuitable or uninterested in-person viewings, which means exposing you and your home to people outside of your household.

Also, when it comes to physically filming the property for the virtual viewing’s footage, most people will not have the professional set up to be able to film the property professionally, which is often needed. Estate agents however are set up to do this and can do so much more easily.

In-Person Viewings

Once any potential buyer is seriously interested in a property it will be up to the estate agent to arrange an in-person viewing as necessary. Your estate agent will be completely up-to-date with the current government guidelines and will be able to advise you as to how this should happen. Your estate agent will always have your best interests at heart and once again, open and honest communication is the key.

For buyers and those looking to rent a property of any nature, the estate agent will facilitate this process and will deal with the landlord or property owner for you.

Facilitating Processes

Flexibility is key and with the constantly changing nature of the world at the moment, buyers and sellers are both having to be quite a bit more flexible. Whether that’s arranging viewings, sorting paperwork or complying with new restrictions, rules and regulations.

Whenever one party needs flexibility or adjustment, your estate agent is the one to facilitate that. Communication really is key and an estate agent can make that whole process a lot easier, acting as the communicator and middleman between all parties involved.

Keeping in Touch

Although you may not necessarily be able to arrange in-person meetings with your estate agent, you will be able to communicate with your estate agent in a range of ways.

Whether over the phone, via text or email, your estate agent will do their best to keep in contact with you and keep you up-to-date on what is happening. This is probably the biggest change that estate agents have seen since the beginning of the pandemic. In times like these, it’s important that we put our safety in the hands of professionals. More so than ever, estate agents are taking the risk out of buying or selling property. Estate agents are working hard to make sure that our lives can continue and that we can still find those dream properties, but without putting ourselves or others at risk.