NEGATIVE EQUITY

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ESTATE AGENT SHUTS OFFICE BUT VOWS TO KEEP SELLING
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11:40 - 14 July 2008

Falling house prices, fewer buyers and rising costs have taken their toll on a long-standing city estate agent who has closed his shop.

Probert's, one of Exeter's few independent estate agents, has gone into receivership.The firm was run by Gerald Probert, who has been in the estate agency business for 44 years.

Mr Probert said: "Sales were dropping off and the premises in Paris Street were just not sustainable.

"It was a large office and there were only three of us in the end. We could have operated in premises a quarter of the size. If we had done that for the past 12 months, then we would have made great savings.

"The trusted property supplement in the Express & Echo still brings in inquiries but having expensive central offices, at least for the moment, is no longer as important as it used to be."

Mr Probert still believes there is a future in the industry as he will now set up a less traditional business, using the internet more.

"I will be targeting some of the redundant staff to join me," he said. "I'm going to be creating a network of people who will be self-employed and selling to commission. It will still enable them to have a job. I'll be keeping on one member of staff covering administration and I've also got two people who are very interested in being negotiators.

"I and other agents will all be working from home. We can go to people's homes which I think will make it easier for them. We will not be restricted to office hours. People can get hold of us 24/7."

But Simon Cooper, chairman of the Exeter Estate Agents' Association, said: "Sellers want to use an agent with a shop or office. A minor proportion of houses are sold by internet-based businesses."

Estate agents were and are partly to blaim for the crisis that has not hit this country yet. The price of a house has far outstripped its material cost and greed then played another part.