🏡 5 things you should not expect from your estate agent
A good estate agent can make a huge difference when you are selling your home — but it is also important to understand what an agent can and cannot control. Selling a property involves buyers, sellers, solicitors, lenders, surveyors and sometimes several other homes in a chain, so not every delay or complication sits in the agent’s hands.
That does not mean your agent should simply list the property and disappear. A proactive estate agent should advise you properly, communicate clearly, chase progress, manage expectations and help keep the sale together. But there are some parts of the process where even the best agent has influence rather than direct control.
For sellers in Herne Bay, Whitstable and the surrounding Kent area, understanding this early can make the moving process less stressful. It also helps you judge your agent fairly — not just by whether problems arise, but by how well they deal with them.
⚖️ 1) They cannot make solicitors move faster
Estate agents spend a great deal of time chasing solicitors, checking where matters have reached and passing messages between the different parties. However, they cannot force legal work to be completed more quickly.
Searches, enquiries, mortgage conditions, leasehold packs and title issues all sit within the legal process. A good agent can keep pressure on, spot delays early and make sure everyone knows what is outstanding, but they cannot jump a file to the front of a solicitor’s queue.
The best way to reduce delays is to prepare early. Sellers can help by instructing a solicitor promptly, completing paperwork quickly and gathering key documents before a buyer is found.
📅 2) They cannot guarantee a completion date before exchange
It is natural to want certainty once an offer has been accepted, especially if you are planning removals, schools, work commitments or an onward purchase. But until contracts are exchanged, the completion date is not legally fixed.
Your estate agent can help coordinate dates, speak to solicitors, update the chain and flag any concerns. What they cannot do is guarantee that every buyer, seller, lender and solicitor involved will be ready on a particular day.
This is especially important in chains. One delay further up or down the chain can affect everyone. A good agent will not promise certainty too early, but they should keep you properly informed as the likely timescale becomes clearer.
📈 3) They cannot make an unrealistic asking price work
An estate agent should give honest, evidence-based advice on price. That advice should take into account the property itself, recent comparable sales, current competition, buyer demand and local market conditions.
However, buyers ultimately decide what they are prepared to pay. If a property is priced too far ahead of the market, it can lose early momentum, attract fewer viewings and sometimes need a later price reduction to regain interest.
For homes in Herne Bay and the surrounding villages, small differences can matter. Sea views, parking, condition, school catchments, garden size, lease length and proximity to the station or seafront can all affect value. A realistic launch price is usually far stronger than an ambitious figure that the market does not support.
🤝 4) They cannot stop buyers or sellers changing their minds
Property transactions can be emotional. Buyers may become nervous after a survey, mortgage circumstances can change, sellers may have second thoughts, or an onward purchase may fall through.
An estate agent’s role is to reduce that risk by keeping communication open, managing concerns quickly and helping both sides stay focused on the agreed outcome. But before exchange of contracts, either party can usually withdraw from the transaction.
That does not mean the agent has failed. Often, the work you do not see is the work that keeps a sale alive — calming nerves, clarifying misunderstandings, chasing missing information and keeping everyone engaged.
🧾 5) They cannot ignore legal, financial or material information
A good estate agent is there to help the sale progress, but they must also act properly. They cannot hide important information, invent interest, misrepresent offers, ignore material facts or pressure buyers into using particular services.
Agents must treat buyers and sellers fairly, keep clear records, pass offers on correctly and ensure property information is accurate and not misleading. That includes matters such as tenure, lease details, service charges, restrictions, known defects and other information that may affect a buyer’s decision.
This is why a professional agent may ask detailed questions before marketing starts. It is not box-ticking for the sake of it — it helps avoid problems later and gives buyers greater confidence from the outset.
🏠 What a good estate agent should do
While there are limits to what an estate agent can control, there is still a great deal they should be doing on your behalf. They should give realistic pricing advice, present the property well, arrange and follow up viewings, negotiate properly, record offers, check buyer position and help manage the sale through to completion.
They should also communicate clearly, especially when things become difficult. Silence is one of the biggest frustrations for sellers, so regular updates and honest advice are essential.
For sellers in Herne Bay, Whitstable and the wider Kent area, choosing the right agent is not just about who suggests the highest asking price. It is about who gives the clearest advice, understands the local market and has the experience to manage the sale once a buyer has been found.
The main takeaway is simple: your estate agent cannot control every part of the moving process, but they should take ownership of the parts they can influence. That is where good communication, local knowledge and careful sales progression really matter.
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Source of inspiration: Rightmove’s article, “5 things you shouldn’t expect from your estate agent”. Read the original article here .
