Hanley's "Roving Eye"

Hanley's estate agents in Highworth make quite an impression in the current edition of the Swindon Advertiser with this editorial coverage:


As always, we're delighted to receieve copies of press articles whenever using Metropix helps get you a mention. Just drop us a line via one of the methods the Contact Us page.

Another month another tip - Kitchens

This is where we try to help you draw more quickly and easily, by offering a useful tip every month or so.

For many, floor plans look their best when they have the kitchen and bathroom furniture included, and it shouldn't take more than a few seconds to add them. If it's taking you longer, then read on!

To add the worktops, with a sink and maybe a hob, the quickest method is to drag a "worktop" onto a wall, double click the blue dot (or right click if that's your preference) and extend the "width" to the size you want. "Sinks" and "hobs" can just be dropped on top of the worktop – simple! We think this is much easier than placing a sink or hob on the plan, and then carefully placing multiple blocks either side... but then we also believe you should be able to draw however you like!

It's official: agents are hardworking!

It’s official. Estate agents regularly work far longer than the 9–5 norm. Not only that, but a substantial proportion of them are sometimes still hard at it when most ordinary people are tucked up in bed!

These are some of the intriguing findings in an analysis of our customers' working patterns.

According to the figures, agents with more than 4 offices routinely do 21% of their work outside normal office hours. But smaller agents do even better (or worse, depending on your point of view!). Firms with fewer than 4 offices do a truly Herculean 28% of their work before 9am or after 5pm.

However, perhaps the most remarkable finding concerns those agents who work very antisocial hours indeed. According to the survey, one in six are still busy putting homes on the market between 11pm and 6 in the morning.

“Remarkably, we discovered that no fewer than 16% of agents using our technology, either to draw plans online or to order 3D walkthroughs, were logging on literally in the middle of the night!” says Metropix Director Brian Farrell.

The survey also threw up some interesting regional variations. So, while agents in Bristol, Gloucester, Oxfordshire and Cheshire apparently manage to squeeze in all but 15-18% of their work between 9 and 5, their opposite numbers in West Yorkshire, London, West Sussex and Middlesex still have between 29 and 35% of their work to do outside those hours.

However the prize for the country’s hardest-working property professionals, according to our data, goes to Essex. Perhaps not surprisingly, agents in the county held up during the 1980s as the epitome of the new Thatcherite work ethic do an incredible 40% of their work outside normal hours – 5% more than their nearest rivals.

Although the figures only relate to this year, it is probable that agents are working longer hours than in the past, says Brian Farrell. “Society as a whole is more hard working these days. The trend towards Sunday opening and longer opening hours generally is partly a reflection of this. At the same time, the combination of more difficult market conditions and increased competition obviously means that agents need to work harder to gain an edge and secure both listings and sales. That’s in turn is one of the reasons why tools like our floorplans and 3D walkthroughs are becoming so popular.”

Sadly, we are unable to provide comparable figures for solicitors...

3D Walkthroughs on Rightmove

Our 3D Walkthroughs have been displayed on Rightmove for some time, but their presentation on the site has now been enhanced:


The "Walkthrough Tour" link (indicated by our arrow) differentiates the 3D Walkthrough from a conventional virtual tour, and shows clearly the wide range of marketing tools utilised by the agent. In this example, the agent is CJ Hole in the Bristol area -- here's a link to the page, but bear in mind that the property may have been sold and removed from Rightmove by the time you read this!

Metropix in the Evening Standard

Alison Cork featured us in her Really Useful Column, in Wednesday's London Evening Standard:


Thanks Alison!