A day in the life of a London estate agent

Michael Swait, director of Sandfords in Marylebone, tells us about a typical day as a London estate agent.

I absolutely love working in Marylebone and the best thing about my typical day is that I get to be a part of a village that has such a strong community. I have always walked to all my appointments, even when it’s raining, and this is a great way to get to know the local businesses and residents. The atmosphere of the area has meant that I have developed some good relationships with not only clients but also the people who live and work in Marylebone.

So, it’s Monday morning, and after a great weekend with my little girl, I am up and ready for the day ahead. After a mad dash to drop her at nursery, I head to the station to catch my train. I walk from here and pick up a coffee from Carluccio’s on the way, a much needed boost of caffeine after being up half the night with a teething toddler!

There are no two days the same, and this is part of the reason I wanted to be an estate agent in the first place. Marylebone has become increasingly popular with international investors who are lured by its charm, central location and continental atmosphere, and working with people from all over the world is rapidly becoming part of my daily routine. Dealing with potential buyers with such different cultural backgrounds and meeting their property needs is very interesting and rewarding!

Back to my Monday morning, and our weekly management meeting which takes place at our Regents Park office. We discuss each office’s figures, any new properties, give our individual updates on existing listings and transactions, and talk about any other business required. Once we have finished the meeting, my day as an estate agent truly begins.

My first call as I step foot into the office is in fact from a buying agent I regularly deal with who is property hunting for one of his many high net worth clients. The brief is for a 2,500 sq ft mews house with a budget up to £7 million, Marylebone prime or possibly into Mayfair.  I’ve a couple of options that I can show him and get onto my clients to make the viewing bookings.

The rest of my morning is spent mostly on the phone catching up with clients and solicitors to check the stages of numerous sales transactions, before taking a few calls from other potential buyers. One call in particular has come through from a doctor who has recently been employed at the Harley Street Clinic, and is looking for a family home nearby. There are some beautiful properties around Harley Street, Devonshire Place and Wimpole Street so I am sure there will be something that they will love in this area.

My second call is from a wealthy overseas family in China who are looking to invest in property in Marylebone. They have a daughter who is about to start studying at Westminster University and they want to relocate here for the duration of her university course and then potentially rent it out afterwards for investment purposes.

After playing catch up and booking in appointments for the rest of the week, I realise that I have a valuation at midday and need to get going. Off I set, on foot of course, to Portland Place where I am meeting a retired banker who now wishes to release his London flat’s significant value, after which he hopes to move out to the home counties for a bit of a slower pace. Sounds awful!

Find out more at www.sandfords.com ; 020 7224 4994