Haart

We placed our property on the market with Haart when we were buying a property also on with them at the start of the year (Farnborough Branch). We had heard on the grapevine that where we were was not their backyard, but they assured us this would not make a difference.

At the start they seemed a little incompetent - spelling mistakes and completely incorrect errors on our sales literature and a couple of meetings where they did not turn up.

They were also reluctant to suggest an asking price for our property and placed the emphasis on me to suggest one. In the end they took what I guessed at price and the property went on the market.

It appeared online promptly but took a while longer to appear in the papers and their window.
Viewings were generally professional at the start - feedback was given within a day or so, but we had to chase sometimes. It also became apparent quite quickly that their policy was to get as many people through the door as possible - we therefore had people no interested who view for reasons that were obvious (i.e. no garage - the literature said this, so why did Haart push them to view?).

An offer was made, for below the asking price, which we negotiated via Haart to a figure we accepted. One of the reasons we accepted was that we were told the buyer was a cash buyer and in a position to move. This was confirmed in a letter from the Branch Manager. Imagine our surprise a week or so later when we were told that actually they had a property to sell first!
Nevertheless we pressed on, found a property and placed an offer ourselves, warning the vendor that it could be a while before we were ready to move due to our buyer.

A week or so after the offer, we were informed by the vendors estate agents (not Haart), that their client had been contacted by Haart direct, warning them that our sale was not likely to go through because of the position of the person offering on ours, and proposing that they rejected our offer and placed their property on the market with Haart. Needless to say, they rejected, but it left us in a sticky situation. In addition, the Haart Manager would not confirm (nor deny) that he had had this conversation.

Communication went quiet from Haart for a bit after this and in order to expedite a sale we placed our property on the market with a second Agent, which generated a bit more interest. In the meantime, the Haart Manager at the branch was replaced and we were pressured into contemplating reducing our price due to the market pressures. In several instances I was (indirectly) blamed for our property not being sold as the asking price had been my idea - despite the fact Haart would not suggest one.

We held firm as we are in no hurry to move and supposedly still had a tentative offer. However, Haart seemed to have no detailed knowledge of this offer towards the end of our agreement and we reached an empase.

The final straw was a viewing that occurred without us confirming with Haart that it was ok - the first we found was when they rung attempting to give feedback. When we queried why there was a viewing they ummm'd and erred and blamed it on a clerical error.

We have now taken our property of the market completely and will wait a year or so to see how the housing market pans out. However, when we attempt to sell again Haart won't be top of our list.

In conclusion, I would say Haart are run of the mill for estate agents in my experience - they want to sell your house, but want the sale quickly, rather than perhaps the word of mouth that can generate repeat business. In a sector where there can be little to separate one company from another, Haart has done enough (or not) with us to be viewed in a worse light that others we have dealt with.