Arvind

Mar 6, 2025

Professional and knowledgeable EA

I recently used Martyn Gerrard in Whetstone to buy my first property. As a FTB, I found the whole process a bit daunting and overwhelming at times. Going off my personal experience, there are so many properties out there and when you do eventually start arranging viewings all these questions initially pop into your head: is this the right house for me? What are the faults? What should I even be looking out for? I viewed what felt like a million houses for months with various estate agents and had widely different experiences with all of them. Some were sketchy to say the least in their sales tactics to drum up interest and try and force your hand, others constantly hounding you "encouraging" you to put in an offer, others straight up "withheld information" about the condition of the property. One EA was just plain rude (not just to me, but my family who accompanied me to the viewing) gave blunt answers and snapped at legitimate questions and concerns I had, and lacked basic manners which was really disheartening. I was told by friends who had bought before not to expect anything because as a buyer, the estate agent is not on your side, which is I suppose in theory is true. But, thankfully, Martyn Gerrard were completely different to this which I appreciated given the bad experiences I previously had. I was really impressed by the company's all round professionalism and competence. The estate agent I worked with was James Gough, who was completely different from the EA's I had dealt with previously. When I first viewed the property I eventually purchased I went along with my family and James was nothing but kind, courteous and professional with all of us, especially to my parents. He took his time and showed us around the property and highlighted the good and bad points and even though he was busy, he stayed behind for almost 30 mins after our slot had ended to answer all the questions my family and I had, as openly as possible, not just about the house but about the housing market in general, interest rates, stamp duty, FTB concerns - which I really appreciated given that some other EA's wouldn't give me the time of day in that regard. Above all, I really appreciated James's honesty which was what gave me the assurance to proceed with the transaction. Honourable mention to Stewart and Adriano at Martyn Gerrard too for their support. For the reasons above, I would recommend using Martyn Gerrard.