Love

no issues

We chose Bentons to sell our family home in the west Leicestershire countryside. Compared to other agents I've dealt with, they gave a good level of service. They understood the nature of the property, our goals and our timescale. They returned my phone calls and emails, got us a good number of viewers and offers, and did all the viewings themselves except a few times when viewers asked to come at short notice. Their office appeared well run, with different staff roles reasonably clear and communication reasonably reliable. They responded to our feedback, never put undue pressure on us, and were always polite and courteous. We rarely felt lost or forgotten, and ultimately they found us good buyers who stuck with what became a very protracted conveyancing process. I would highly recommend the experience of selling through Bentons. The only reason I would not give them five stars is that I'm unsure whether their sale strategy achieved the maximum value. Because of the rural location and future development potential, we were advised to sell with an uplift clause to limit development. Our solicitor's guidance states that the details of uplift clauses need to be negotiated between surveyors and solicitors. As our surveyors, Bentons barely got involved in discussing the details of the uplift until a very late stage, possibly contributing to delayed completion, and undermining our confidence that they understood uplift. Also they advised us to start with a high asking price, which we dropped by 22% to achieve a sale. I was involved in selling a property in a similar value range the year before. Starting that time with a low asking price, we sold it much more quickly and at a higher price than we achieved this time. So I would not hesitate to recommend Bentons for the operation of their sales service. But I am unsure whether they made the right calls in advising how to get the best value from an unusual property.

Not always updated

I used the website, it was easy to navigate and provided me with the information I was seeking.