New Year, New Approach?

A new year always invites reflection.  For many property owners, 2025 has been a year of patience - waiting for viewings to turn into offers, waiting for tenants to commit, waiting for momentum that never quite arrived.  If your property has been on the market for months with little progress, or your rental has struggled to secure the right occupier, it’s fair to ask a simple question as the year turns: is it time for a different approach?

The market itself hasn’t been dormant.  Buyers are buying, tenants are moving, and deals are being agreed.  Yet some properties remain unsold or unlet - not because they’re unappealing, but because the strategy behind them hasn’t evolved.

The Trap Many Vendors and Landlords Fall Into

One of the most common patterns we see is well-intentioned but counterproductive.  A property doesn’t sell or let as expected, frustration grows, and the response is to add more agents.

At first glance, this feels logical.  More agents should mean more exposure, more effort, and better results.  In reality, the opposite often happens.

When multiple agents are instructed, responsibility becomes diluted.  No single agent truly “owns” the property.  Marketing becomes inconsistent, pricing advice varies, and urgency drops.  Buyers see the same property advertised several times, with different descriptions, different images which quietly undermines confidence.

Instead of creating competition between agents, it often creates hesitation among buyers and tenants - and a listing that appears everywhere can start to feel like a property no one else wants.

The result?  More agents, more portals, more conversations - and fewer meaningful outcomes.

Why Less Can Deliver More

A focused, accountable approach almost always outperforms a scattered one.  This is why sole agency, when done properly, consistently produces stronger results.

With sole agency, there is clarity.  One strategy.  One price narrative.  One team fully invested in achieving the best outcome - not just a result, but the right result.

At Richardsons, we’ve seen time and again that properties perform better when there is alignment between agent and client.  It allows for decisive action, consistent marketing, and a clear message to the market.  Buyers respond to confidence and clarity - not confusion.

A Different Way of Working

Our philosophy is simple: quality over quantity.

While some agencies currently carry well over 200 properties on the market, only 15–20 of those may actually be under offer at any given time.  That imbalance tells its own story.  It raises an important question about how much strategic focus, communication and proactive effort can realistically be applied to each instruction.

Richardsons takes a more proactive approach.  We deliberatly restrict our stocklist to a manageable number of instructions - to help motivated vendors like you achieve their desired outcomes.

During 2025, we successfully sold 68% of all properties we listed*, achieving an average of 97.64% of asking price**.  Those results weren’t driven by heavy discounting or rushed agreements.  They came from thoughtful pricing, strong presentation, and early, targeted engagement with buyers who were genuinely motivated.

What Sets Richardsons Apart

A fresh approach should mean more than a change of name on the listing.  It should bring tangible differences in how your property is handled.

✅ Strategy First
Before a property goes live, we define who it’s for, how it should be positioned, and how interest will be converted into action.  Every instruction has a plan.

✅ Straightforward Pricing Advice
Overpricing is one of the biggest obstacles to success.  We’re honest about market conditions and buyer behaviour from day one, helping protect both momentum and final price.

✅ Professional Presentation
All our listings utilise professional magazine-quality imagery undertaken by our outsourced professional photographer.  In addition, all listings carry a RICS regulated marketing floorplan as standard.  This enables buyer to fully immerse themselves in the property online before visiting.

✅ Active Buyer Matching
We don’t rely solely on portals.  Our team proactively matches buyers to properties, often generating interest before a listing becomes widely visible.

✅ Consistent Communication
Our clients aren’t left guessing.  Clear feedback, regular updates and transparent conversations ensure there are no surprises along the way.

✅ Focused Workload
By limiting volume, we stay personally involved.  Your property doesn’t get lost in a sea of listings - it gets attention.

For Landlords Feeling Stuck

The same principles apply to lettings.  Extended void periods or repeated viewings without commitment often signal a deeper issue - whether that’s pricing, presentation, targeting, or simply a lack of proactive management.

Adding more agents rarely fixes that.  Clear responsibility, a defined tenant profile and decisive action usually does.

Our lettings team applies the same structured, hands-on approach as our sales department, ensuring properties are marketed intelligently and lets are agreed efficiently, with the right tenants in place.

A New Year Reset

Changing agent isn’t about admitting defeat.  It’s about recognising when a different strategy could unlock a better result.

If your property has drifted through 2025 with limited success, the question isn’t whether it will sell or let - it’s whether the current approach is still working in your favour.

At Richardsons, we offer a fresh perspective built on focus, accountability and proven outcomes.  Sometimes, the biggest change doesn’t come from doing more - but from doing things differently.

* Figure shows the number of sales completed or currently under offer as a percentage of properties advertised by Richardsons from 01/01/25 to 17/12/25.

** Figure shows the average sale price as a percentage of asking price for all sales either completed or currently under offer from 01/01/25 to 17/12/25.

Figures correct at time of writing.  Evidence available upon request.