On Sat, 19 Jun 2004 14:02:27 +0100, "Owain"
wrote:

"Mike Mitchell" wrote
| Yet out of the blue I get a call
| this afternoon from the current agent only a couple of hours
| or so before close of business to say that they would like
| to arrange a viewing that has suddenly come up!
| Yeah, right. This is trick number 15 in the book of tricks.
| How do you mean? There *was* a viewer! An extended family, in fact.
| They came and viewed at the appointed time, and in fact spent longer
| than any previous viewer.

"Yes well they would wouldn't they"

It might be interesting to ask if they have a property to sell, and which
agent it is with, and what other properties they have viewed, or whether
they were just a handful of people the estate agent rounded up at the bus
station and bribed them with a free cornetto.

Why would the agent incur even more costs? He's already lost out to
the tune of several hundred pounds, probably. The cost of the initial
consulation (two partners), measuring up, photographs taken, proofs
printed, corrected, reprinted, adverts in local paper and on RightMove
and Vebra, cost of office space and secretarial staff, petrol for the
negotiator to attend viewing, erection of sign. In fact, it can't be
much fun being an estate agent. I think I'll pop down on Monday and
offer them all a free cornetto!

MM