#Spencers Deadly Estate Agent Sins Blog!

Spencers Seven Deadly Sins!

What other Agents get VERY wrong

(in our very humble opinion!)

Lust – some very naughty agents lust after property SO much that they convince a vendor to sell to them off the market, which goes against all of an agent’s normal advice and principals. If an agent tries to buy from you off market, make sure you get a second opinion from another party to ensure you aren’t being diddled!

Gluttony – too much of a good thing is certainly not good for the soul. Taking on volumes of properties that your staff can’t properly manage will not make you very popular! We take on an exacting number of properties by cherry picking the ones we really want so that our staff are never overloaded and you will always get the very best service.

Greed – some agents will tell you that your house is worth A LOT of money just to get the instruction. I will never forget what a competing agent said to me when I challenged him on this, “better unsold on our wall than sold on someone else’s”. If you think they are telling you your house is worth too much money, they probably are!

Sloth – some agents are incredibly lazy. I viewed three properties recently after requesting to see TEN via Rightmove. I only viewed three because only three out of the ten agents came back to me to book me in and I await a call from the other seven! Out of those three, NONE of the agents have called me for feedback! Make sure you do your research into an agent’s service and don’t just take their word for it!

Wrath – Spencers stay out of Agent v Agent mudslinging. Because we are based out of the way of the war at Banner Cross we don’t tend to find other agents slating us for fun to try to make themselves look better. Now, now, big boys, if you have nothing nice to say………..

Envy – they say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and we have had our share of other agents who have wanted to copy our name / ideas / style. Well, we can honestly say that we are flattered, thank you for thinking we are so dangerous to your business!

Pride – no one likes a bragger. You may have the biggest car, the most expensive house, the custom made suit….but did you make someone smile today? Did you make someone feel like they should drop you in a nice card to say Thank You? I know what gives us the greater sense of satisfaction

#Spencers #Sheffield #RaceForLife

#Spencers #Sheffield #RaceForLife

So proud of the Spencers Girls this weekend with all having run / jogged / wobbled / hobbled through the Race for Life in Sheffield. Thousands of women turned up at the new venue of Meadowhall in the beautiful sunshine for this fantastic cause and we all very proudly finished in very respectable times.
Thank you too to everyone who sponsored us. We may be reluctant athletes but we were all very determined and all did our very best. 
Well done done Girls! Very proud. 
#jogoncancer

TEAM SPENCERS!

The Pregnant One forgot her Race Number! #BabyBrain

Lizzie looking Raring to Go Go Go!! 

Team Spencers - Chase the Logo! 

Should have brought sunscreen - spot sensible Marilyn! 

Hubble Bubble - Sorry! I mean..... Well Done Girls! 

Marilyn and Maggie nearing the finish line! 

Yes! Together We Will... 

Amazing Effort Peeps

Happy at the finish! Not sure that the Twins loved it as much as their Mum!

Well done Team! Not too late to sponsor us either. Go to OUR PAGE if you still fancy sending a small donation through. Thanks.

Find Spencers at www.SpencersEstateAgents.co.uk 
To read more of #Spencers of #Sheffield #blog posts go to http://spencersagents.blogspot.co.uk/ 

#Spencers Estate Agents #SocialMedia #FACTS #Sheffield

Instead of asking "Why are Spencers Estate Agents so OBSESSED with Social Media?" You should be asking "Why am I not?"

Facebook FACTS

1. Total monthly users: 1,310,000,000 with 680 million of them on mobile devices.

2. On a daily basis there are 350 million photos uploaded, 4.5 billion likes, 10 billion messages sent and 22 billion times that the Like or Share buttons are viewed.

3. Between 2012 and 2013, there was an increase in Facebook users by 22%.

4. Ever since Facebook launched there have been a 150 billion friend connections, 1.13 trillion likes and 250 billion photos uploaded.

5. Every 20 minutes on Facebook 1 million links are shared, 2 million friends are requested, and 3 million messages are sent.

6. Despite being blocked, there are roughly 95 million Facebook users in China.

7. Approximately 7.5 million sites contain the Facebook Like or Share Buttons.

8. Every morning when they wake up, 48% of 18-34 year olds check their Facebook account. 28% of that demographic actually check Facebook before they even get out of bed.

9. Users are exposed to 1500 pieces of potential content every day.

10. As of September, 2013 the percentage of 15-34 year olds on Facebook are 66%. Interestingly, 45% of internet users who are 65 years or older are also on Facebook. And, don’t be embarrassed if you’re Facebook friends with your parents; 70% of users are friends with their parents.

11. When Facebook began selling stock to the public and trading on the NASDAQ on May 18, 2012, its shares were priced at $38, which meant the company was valued at over $100 billion. It also meant that Facebook was worth more than eBay, Yahoo, Groupon, LinkedIn, Netflix, IAC, AOL, Zynga and Pandora… combined.

12. One million web pages are accessed using the “Login with Facebook”  feature

13. 3 percent of Facebook users login at least 5 times per day

14. 47% of Americans say Facebook is their #1 influencer of purchases

15. 70% of marketers used Facebook to gain new customers

16. 640,000,000 – total number of minutes spent on Facebook each month

17. 18 minutes – average time spent on Facebook per visit

18. 54,200,000 – total number of Facebook pages

19. 130 average friends per user

20. 75% of Facebook’s users are from outside of the USA

21. 7 million apps & websites are integrated with Facebook

22. Facebook employ only 4619 people

23. In 2012 the revenue was $5,090,000,000 in 2013 it was $6,150,000,000

Twitter FACTS

Total number of active registered Twitter users	645,750,000
Number of new Twitter users signing up everyday	135,000
Number of unique Twitter site visitors every month	190 million
Average number of Tweets per day	58 million
Number of Twitter search engine queries every day	2.1 billion
Percent of Twitter users who use their phone to tweet	43 %
Percent of Tweets that come from third party applicants	60%
Number of people that are employed by Twitter	2,500
Number of active Twitter users every month	115 million
Percent of Twitters who don’t Tweet but watch other people Tweet	40%
Number of days it takes for 1 billion Tweets	5 days
Number of Tweets that happen every second	9,100

1. 34% of marketers use Twitter to successfully generate leads

2. Twitter was the fastest growing network with a 44% growth from 2012-2013

3. 215 million monthly active users

4. Fastest growing demographic  on Twitter is 55-64 age bracket

Social Media FACTS

1. 93% of marketers use social media for business. Only 7% of marketers say they don't use social media for their business. That means there are lots of people out there getting involved and managing a social media strategy. It's becoming more common to include social media as part of an overall marketing budget or strategy, as opposed to when it was the outlier that no one wanted to spend time or money on.

2. 25% of smartphone owners ages 18-44 say they can't recall the last time their smartphone wasn't next to them. It's pretty clear that mobile is a growing space that we need to pay attention to. And we've all heard the cliché of smartphone owners who don't want to let go of their phones, even for five minutes. Well, apparently that's not too far from the truth. If 25% of people aged 18-44 can't remember not having their phone with them, there are probably very few times when they're not connected to the web in some way.

3. 72% of all internet users are now active on social media

4. 18-29 year olds have an 89% usage

5. The 30-49 bracket sits at 72%

6. 60 percent of 50 to 60 year olds are active on social media

7. In the 65 plus bracket, 43% are using social media

8. Time spent on Facebook per hour spent online by country. Here are the top three. USA citizens get the top gong at 16% followed by the Aussies at 14 minutes and the Brits at 13 minutes.

Our Resident #PhilSpencer has decided he's a #Blogger - by #BenNewman

Senior Negotiator, Ben Newman of #Spencers Estate Agents Blogs about the #Sheffield #Property Game

"Having decided that now is the time to get your house on the market, your next step is to select and instruct an Estate Agent, so what should you be looking for in the service provided?

"Most sellers have a good idea how they would like to see their property marketed based on their own experiences, after all it’s the part of the service that’s out there for all to see, but it is only a part of the overall picture. 

"You should also feel confident in your agent’s competence behind the scenes, from negotiating with interested parties to ensure you get the right buyer at the right price, to continuing sales progression until the sale completes legally.

"Whilst some sales complete without any major hitches, keeping a sale together until contracts are exchanged can be hard work.  Even in a relatively straight-forward sale your agent should keep you updated of the progress of the toing and froing between each parties' Solicitor and your buyer’s finance.  They should also not be too shy to give the appropriate person a nudge where required in order to keep the process moving along.  At the other end of the scale there a can be any number of bumps in the road during the sales process, for example what if your purchaser isn’t happy with their survey results?   It is the agent’s door they will be knocking at to renegotiate, so you need to be sure that your agent has the knowledge and negotiation skills to advise and respond on your behalf to any revised offer, and ensure any reduction is minimised if re-negotiation of the sale price is necessary.

"At the end of the day, regular communication is vital, and this can take up a considerable amount of time, so selecting an agent that hasn’t cut their fee to a level that they cannot afford to deliver a full service over and above the marketing and agreeing a sale of a property is a must.  At Spencers we pride ourselves in not only delivering an outstanding service once a sale has been agreed, but also in being at the cutting edge of marketing via social media platforms, and producing quality sales particulars incorporating professional photography.  If you would like to know more please feel free to pop into our Ecclesall Road offices or call to arrange a free market appraisal."

Thank you Ben Newman, Senior Negotiator, #Spencers #EstateAgents #Sheffield 

www.SpencersEstateAgents.co.uk 

What a glorious day for golf! #SheffieldChildrensHospital

Spencers Estate Agents and 

Mackenzie Spencer Corporate Solutions

What a great day we had (mainly because we didn't get soaking wet) at the golf day we helped to sponsor for the Sheffield Children's Hospital on Friday.

My brother and I have a great deal of love and respect for those at the Sheffield Children's as my niece has made a bit of a habit of hanging out there, so it was with great pride that we donated to help sponsor the day on Friday for the charity.

We would like to thank our guests who made it such fun and my special thanks to my new golf tutor Philip Prince, who may have a job for life!

Spencers in Sheffield - on the brighter side of life!

At Spencers we believe in being positive. There is little point doom and glooming through life with your head down and your feet dragging. Fortunately, we finally think the rest of the world is starting to join us in our campaign for looking on the brighter side of life.

From the constantly depressing depths of the media to a general desire to be grumpy, we have seen people jumping on a band wagon of destruction for the property market. Borrowing has been difficult and prices have dropped but since the Diamond Jubilee the good old fashioned British spirit to brush ‘oneself’ off and to pick ‘oneself’ up seems to be prevailing. I don’t know if the sight of our poor Queen on that God-awful boat with the rain dripping down her cheeks was the turning point or not, I only care that the rest of the nation suddenly seem to be saying “sod it” and getting on with moving.

We have seen a good increase so far this year of instructions of very good properties, achieving very good prices from buyers who have got themselves into proceedable, organised positions, and we are putting part of the success down to our incredibly positive outlook as well as our new branding, which has had the most wonderful feedback.

In difficult times in business it is easy to think that the best thing to do is to batten down the hatches, spend little, and cut back; that is so last year! 2013 is our 20^th year at our offices on Ecclesall Road and the party is going to be epic. Our rental department has reopened and we are doing really well with wonderful clients flocking through the doors wanting to deal with good people in a local independent agency.

My dad, Jim Spencer, is still working with us and is currently learning social media expelling all myths that you can’t teach an old dog new tricks, watch out for the blog. What we have learned from being independent is that honesty is key to the longevity of your good reputation. Our clients bring in cakes, cards, wine and most importantly “Thank you” messages every week to acknowledge that we care about doing the very best job for them to get them the most out of their transaction and their assets.

So, if you are looking for good old-fashioned honest advice with an opportunity to become a long-standing client and friend of ours we would be very excited to meet you to discuss why Spencers Estate Agents have been thriving for the last 20 years and intend to do so for the next 20 too. Thank you very much to all of our loyal clients, we really do appreciate your business. 

The World's Loveliest Testimonial @SpencersAgents #Sheffield

WOW! This Testimonial in today was so lovely that we couldn't help but share it. Thank you.  

"We just wanted to write and thank you and the team at Spencers for the amazing work when selling our home.

 

From the first meeting we could tell that Spencers seemed a lot more professional than other agents we had used in the past, James gave a great first account of your company and was respectful of our home while offering honest advice of areas we could improve things. Your whole team seem to have a refreshingly genuine interest in helping people sell their homes and their enthusiasm was contagious.

 

Immediately after listing my property with Spencers we knew we had made the right decision. The photos and marketing literature were outstanding,presented our home accurately while highlighting the best points well, and within a few days we had a diary full of viewings. Without Sally and Maggie keeping me organised with regular updates I would never have managed to keep track and after a week we had multiple offers on the table. You, Sally and Ben did sterling work achieving the best price for our home resulting in an offer above the asking price which we were of course delighted with.

 

If we had not been wowed enough at this point you all really earned your stripes after the sale was agreed with advice, phone calls to solicitors, buyers and surveyors to get everything completed in record time despite some fairly major problems along the way.

 

Lots of my friends have had very different experiences with their property purchases and all tell me how lucky we have been that ours went so smoothly, I point out that luck had nothing to do with it rather the good sense we had asking Spencers to help us sell our home.

 

Thanks to you all we are now settled into our new home and while I have absolutely no intention of moving for a long, long time, if we ever do decide to sell Spencers will be the first people we call."

www.SpencersEstateAgents.co.uk  

Guest Blogger - Danny Bailey

What does the new Budget mean for the mortgage market?

The property ladder has become an unattainable aspiration in recent years for those trying to build up savings to afford the demand for large deposits; however, new plans within the budget are offering an avenue into home ownership making it a real possibility for many.

So what exactly does the new budget propose?

The budget outlines a multi-billion pound scheme which seeks to improve first-time home ownership prospects through low-deposit mortgages, and to encourage an increase in new housing. This new initiative has been termed Help to Buy.

Help to Buy is made up of two separate schemes; the first an equity loan and the second a mortgage guarantee.

Equity Loan

The equity loan scheme, which will be implemented on the 1^st of April 2013, allows both first-time buyers and existing homeowners to purchase a new build property worth up to £600,000. The first five years of the 20% equity loan are interest free.

To acquire this loan you will need:

·         A deposit of at least 5%

·         The remaining 75% borrowed from a mortgage lender

Research has estimated that these equity loans could potentially support 75,000 sales of new homes over the course of the next three years (Savills research).

Mortgage Guarantee

This scheme doesn't begin until January 2014. Like the equity loan, the mortgage guarantee scheme is available to existing homeowners and first-time buyers who with this can purchase a home worth up to £600,000 (both new build properties and existing homes).

The plan with this particular scheme is to create an incentive for lenders to provide more mortgages with low deposits by giving them a guarantee of a percentage of your loan.

It is estimated that the mortgage guarantee scheme could enable around “550,000 extra house sales over the next three years if it translates in to £130 billion of mortgage lending” (Savills research).

Would you like to find out if you can become one of these many new home owners? I can provide you with specialist financial advice on the best mortgage option for you.

Daniel Bailey

www.middletonfinance.co.uk

info@middletonfinance.co.uk

“Let Spencers change the future of Lettings”

“Let Spencers change the future of lettings”

Having recently joined Spencers Estate Agents Gemma Hynes  says the most appropriate two words for Spencers are “professional” and “innovative” and says that this especially relates to the eagerly anticipated opening of Spencers Rental department, which launches in April in our prestigious newly extended first floor offices at 463-469 Ecclesall Road.

Having worked in the highly demanding Leeds market for over eight years for one of the country’s most successful award winning Independent Estate Agents, Gemma knows plenty about the key to success in the property industry and remarked that Spencers “have it in abundance”. This is why when Gemma relocated back to her home town she knew that there was “only one estate agent for me”. 

Gemma says “the Directors and the team here have the enthusiasm and passion which sets them apart from the rest and will make Sheffield take note of how letting should be done. The plans for the future are not only exciting but aspirational and I am very honoured to be a part of this. We cannot wait for you all to see.”

For more details call Gemma or Nicola on 0114 2683682 or email them to pop in and see the fabulous show flat at their offices Nicola@SpencersEtateAgents.co.uk or Gemma@SpencersEstateAgents.co.uk

The Dangers of Social Media

So you think that you are in control of your company Facebook page? Your company Twitter account? You know who posts what and when and have got a pretty good handle now on why you all do it and what building your brand in the right environment will do for your business. 

Why then have I been dragged to Edinburgh this week to appear as a witness in a Facebook trial? Not because of Spencers Facebook page, or because of the actions of my colleagues at the firm I worked at in Edinburgh, not due to anything remotely associated with Jeremy Kyle, but because it was I who clicked the little "Report Abuse" button. 

Back in August 2011 when a portion of England's youth and those with a sense of entitlement decided they had a right to loot and destroy and embarrass their families around the country, when livelihoods were destroyed, historic premises were burned to the ground, and parents hid their faces in shame, someone somewhere decided that he would poke fun at it. 

I have no need to repeat his unacceptable language or his disgusting racism. Anyone would have been offended by what he had to say on his company Facebook page, which was linked with ours for business reasons. So I reported it. 

Unbeknown to probably all of us, the FBI and the CID work closely in cases of extreme abuse, violence incitement, and racism to bring to trial anyone who deems these faceless, keyboard tapping crimes acceptable. 

When I first heard that I had to travel to Edinburgh from Sheffield to appear as a witness, I felt awkward and upset that I could have created a problem for this person, that they could end up with a criminal record for their opinions, thoughts, and their message. But I have my own strong opinions on various things myself yet don't feel the need to attempt to recruit others to my cause; how arrogant! 

You may argue that there are those who are super-sensitive, or easily offended, I am neither of those things. I do not care to upset myself by people wanting to swear, curse, argue or to believe in their own religious or political slants. Freedom of Speech is often quoted by those with strong opinions as their right. That long have people fought for the freedom to speak openly about their opinions; does this mean that we all want to hear them though? Not really. Not when some people want to preach idiocy, racism, prejudice, violence, extremism. Freedom of Speech in a civilised society does not give carte-blanche for people to say whatever they want whenever they want with zero consideration.

My day in the Edinburgh Court started with me as the criminal; having to empty my pockets, stand with the families of the accused, get scanned through a metal detector, have my bag searched, hand over my phone charger, have my body frisked. I was then pointed in the direction of the Prosecution Witness Room. The room with the largest sign outside, where all the families of the accused stand outside and sneer and intimidate you. 

I stood out like a sore thumb as a witness. I had dressed very smartly with no Adidas stripes, clean shoes, a skirt, and a smart blouse. My hair was washed and my make up considered, as opposed to tattooed. You think I'm some sort of snob, but didn't you know that freedom of speech is my right?

I could describe a thousand things about my "holding bay" experience; like a lady sat next to me, there as a witness against her fiancé who asked for help as she couldn't read and isn't a Christian so didn't want to pledge an oath that she would tell the truth as she didn't think she would.

A steady stream of an accused's family kept marching through past the 60 year old lady on reception to threaten a man giving witness in an assault charge. Until there was only really me and him left. He was frail with a walking stick bearing many scars from his beating as well as having weathered face from a long paper round. I didn't really fancy our chances to tell you the truth but I smiled and nodded and attempted a look that showed my alliance but that didn't invite further conversation. 

The man that cost the tax payer for my trains, hotel, food, time, and adrenaline, changed his plea to guilty when he heard that I had shown up as a witness against him, which meant that I never actually got to look into the eyes of this faceless Internet troll to see if he is actually just like me. Someone with strong opinions and a strong sense of who I am and what I believe in. Unfortunately for him, I don't believe in his racist violent views and, as he changed his plea to guilty, maybe neither did he really. Saying what you like for a reaction may not always be your right and actually Big Brother might be watching.