Incidently, we sold this property and kept the chain together. We were thanked at least by the reviewers husband.

I am the aforementioned Sales Manager Nick Karamanlis. I am deeply upset and angry at some of the comments above. I have since spoken to the reviewer’s husband to vent my feelings on the matter. I am hoping we have cleared the air since but I feel I should respond and at least give my side of the story. I am not doing this to antagonise anyone or carry on any disagreement, only to give a response and hopefully move on.

First of all I can see of 25 separate viewings that have been booked in on the property (4 of which had a second viewing to bring it up to 29 in total) in the past 6 weeks. This is on average over 4 viewings a week. Whilst there are properties in this particular area that can achieve such figures in around a week or two (the vendor pointed out his friend has been fortunate to have) there is a completely different market and demand levels for differing stock. We have just completed an open day on a period property that had over 12 people in just one day. I explained on the valuation that this will not be the case on this property and it is something we have to be a little more proactive on. We then went on to utilise our database and even included the property in a local area magazine, of which only one property gets in for the month.

Since the valuation the market has not faired as well and I spoke to the vendor and gave him why I thought this was the case. I did not pinpoint any particular reasons. I mentioned that there was a double-dip recession announcement but also went on to say I had hoped this wasn't the main reason and just the horrible weather. There is no exact science and I was merely trying to offer reasons why it had been slow on the whole and not just with the vendors property. In fact we also went through a stage of having quite a few fall throughs throughout April. Even other local agents in the area were saying the same, regardless of what they may be telling the vendor.

I am completely transparent with what I say and have never shirked a call from the vendor. I always call people back straight away and will never bury my head in the sand. If there is a problem I would like to know so I can deal with it. I have apologised to the vendor if there was any part of our service they were unhappy with and rather than let me deal with any queries, I find my name plastered on this review in an unfair light. I have agreed that direct viewings are not acceptable and I have spoken with the negotiators on this. If I had known this was going on so much then I would have put a stop to it. On the same note, none of these viewings were refused. We conduct viewings until 7pm but, if I am being honest, I feel the negotiators took advantage of the fact the vendors would do direct viewings. I am not saying this is correct and I have said this to the vendor and apologised. This is a point I feel the vendor can criticise us on but at the same time I feel it would have been best to complain in the appropriate manner in order for me to rectify the situation.

My colleague maintains he did not see the vendor when waiting for his client that was late and did not think the vendor was in. This is the reason he did not call to say he was running late. He was only waiting by the gates in order to call his applicant and direct them in in case they missed it which is easy to do. The distance from the gate to the property is probably at least 100ft and therefore it is not easy to spot the vendor if they are standing by the window.

I have notes on the system of every point of feedback between the negotiators and the vendor. In fact at one point, one of my negotiators were speaking with the vendor nearly every day. We always chase for feedback, it is in our interest.

What I am very disappointed in is how my name has been mentioned in, quite frankly, a slanderous way. I will accept any blame if I feel I have been in the wrong but one thing I am not is a liar. I do not usually conduct viewings, only valuations but have taken two people around myself in order to help sell the property. On the last occasion I have written proof in the form of an email to show how keen the applicant was and even said he would be putting in an offer. He subsequently changed his mind for personal finance reasons and yet I have been accused of pretending to have offers on the table. There was never an offer and I never said so but I did convey his initial keenness on the property.

I spoke to the vendor on the 28th as I was just about to board a plane for a weeks holiday. The vendor asked me to break the contract a week early in order for them to instruct another agent as they desperately needed to sell their house due to a chain they were in. I am a reasonable person who has a baby of a similar age and wanted to give them the best chance of selling. I therefore agreed to allow them to start marketing a week early with another agent, something most agents will not do (especially as the contract was for 6 weeks and not the usual 8 or 12 weeks some agents hold you to) as long as they see out the final week with us. I then boarded the plane and in my absence the vendor's wife spoke to a negotiator who did not have the authority from me to adhere to this agreement. He took advice from the area sales manager who said they had to adhere to the 28 day notice period. Instead of disputing this I get this this review immediately. I had not been able to communicate with my colleagues in the short space of time between speaking to the vendor and this review being written. This can only be described as miscommunication at best, not another lie I have been accused of.
My area manager even gave the option of wavering the 28 day contract without speaking to me if we could have another week to give it a final push. The vendor decided to give us the full 28 days and I have since given the vendor the option of coming off our books immediately, which has not been taken. There was no dispute even though they were clearly frustrated. Instead of venting their disapproval through us, again, it all came out in the review.

I am working hard and tirelessly to make this office work and try to keep everyone happy. I know this cannot always be the case and I will address any problems instantly. However, I have had very few complaints in the last 10 years and am often praised for not being a "stereotypical agent"