On The Market

Yesterday signalled 100 days since the launch of OnTheMarket.com. Politicians like to talk about the first 100 days and given most had written the portal off before it even launched it’s not only very much still here but is growing fast. D&G have been involved since I attended the very first meeting in a darkened basement restaurant several years ago. No one seriously expected anything to happen as getting agents to agree on anything is nigh on impossible, they are true entrepreneurs necessarily looking after number one and not the collective. As was proved with the formation of Agents’ Mutual and the funding of the launch of OnTheMarket.com, on time, on January 26th this year we can work together. Luckily the initial six or so have now been joined by over 5000 of the acknowledged c. 16000 agents in the UK which is staggering, and it’s growing every day.

There’s no ulterior motive other than to remember and reiterate that property portals are there to simply advertise agents’ properties, clearly and to the seller’s advantage. Advertising and a hunger for revenue has turned the existing portals into sticky money generators that seem to have forgotten their core brief, oh yes, they have been charging us a fortune to put the properties on their sites that attract those who pay them for these other services.

100 days on and the goal of being able to service our own advertising requirement ourselves without lining investors’ pockets - remember OnTheMarket is a mutual with all agents equal – is on track and on budget. We are proud to have been a part of it.