Who are Bettermove
Leeds-based Bettermove claims to offer bespoke quick sale solutions.
What services do Bettermove provide?
Bettermove’s website suggests they can either buy your property from you themselves or find a buyer for your property from their network of investors and pre-approved buyers.
What is the buying process for Bettermove?
Bettermove’s website outlines the following 5-step process for selling your property.
Step 1: Get in contact with Bettermove via telephone, WhatsApp, email or an online form.
Step 2: One of their team will get in contact to find out more about the property and your requirements.
Step 3: Bettermove will make an offer to buy your property or sell it on your behalf.
Step 4: They work to your timescales.
Step 5: The sale will complete and the money will be paid into your bank account.
How much below market value do Bettermove offer?
Bettermove’s website doesn’t explicitly state how much below market value they pay for property, but it does include an interactive tool that suggests you can expect to achieve around 90% of your property’s market value.
The tool feels a little misleading, however, as it appears to suggest that a typical estate agent will only be able to get you 87.5% of your property’s value. Property buying companies make a profit by buying property at a discount. They wouldn’t be able to make any profit on your property if they’re willing to pay more than you would achieve selling your property on the open market with a high street estate agent.
A genuine, reputable cash homebuying company will be transparent about how much they believe your property would sell for on the open market and provide evidence to support that figure. They will then discuss with you what level of discount they need to apply to your offer and why.
Pros & Cons of Bettermove
Bettermove - Positives
- UK-based company
- Members of The Property Ombudsman (TPO) and National Association of Property Buyers (NAPB)
- Bettermove have positive customer reviews that praise members of staff for being helpful and supportive
Bettermove - Negatives
- Customer reviews and company accounts suggest the majority of Bettermove’s business is selling properties on behalf of their owners rather than buying properties directly. A company is only able to offer you any guarantees around price and timescale if they are buying your property directly with their own cash funds.
- Some of Bettermove’s less positive reviews talk about properties taking a long time to sell (one reviewer said their sale took more than a year) or not selling at all. Bettermove market themselves as a quick property sale service, but if they’re not purchasing your property directly your sale will be as vulnerable to chain issues and delays as any other open market sale.
- A significant number of customer reviews complain that the promised network of investors never materialised, and their their property was simply advertised on Rightmove and Zoopla at a heavily reduced price. This created an online ‘footprint’ of the property being advertised at a reduced price and meant property owners were not able to advertise their properties at true market value if Bettermove were unsuccessful in finding a buyer for the property.
- Several customer reviews mention being tied in with contracts and option agreements. This is something that you should always avoid when selling to a property buying company. You can read more about these types of agreements here.
Is Bettermove legit? - Our verdict
Bettermove are members of the NAPB and TPO, which is a good sign. They also have some very positive customer reviews, but it seems most customers are reviewing an online estate agency service rather than a direct cash homebuying service. The company’s accounts also suggest that they are unable to buy a significant number of properties without relying on external funding from investors or mortgages.
As we’ve already mentioned, your property being sold to a third-party (investors or buyers on the open market) means you will have no certainty around timescales or what price you’ll achieve from the sale. Bettermove state on their website that they will agree a price with you and then anything they achieve from the sale above that amount is kept by them as payment for their services. However, more than one customer review suggested that this agreed amount was renegotiated when the company struggled to sell the property.
There’s also a lack of clarity around how much you can expect to achieve for your property with this method of sale. The website suggests their service enables you to sell your property for free, but this is a little misleading. Their model suggests there aren’t any fees to pay for their service, but selling your property at a discount does come at a cost to you so we would questions whether the service can be described as ‘free’. Their website also suggests they will pay more than you would achieve through a high street estate agent, which again feels a little misleading.
Are Bettermove any good?
Bettermove seem to have a significant number of happy customers based on their reviews, but unless you opt for their direct cash homebuying service it’s unclear how their service differs from other online estate agencies. One customer described their service as “just an estate agent at 3 times the cost.”
There are also questions regarding how quick their service is. Bettermove market themselves as a quick sale solution, but this doesn’t appear to have been the case for a number of customers. One said: “My property was sold by Bettermove during a one day viewings and then took 6 months of countless calls and chasing up to eventually get my contracts to completion”.
If you’re in need of a quick or guaranteed property sale, your best option is always going to be to sell to a genuine cash homebuying company who will buy your property directly with their own cash funds. Any company relying on investors, mortgages or third-party buyers is going to be vulnerable to chain-breaks, delays and renegotiations.
If a cash homebuying service won’t work for you, your next best option is likely to be pricing your property competitively with a local high street estate agent. Whilst this won’t offer the speed or certainty of selling to a genuine cash homebuying company, their local knowledge will ensure you achieve a good price for your property.
Might work for some but wasted my time
Was offered a price, signed agreement and then had a call same day to say there was mistake that the offer is now £8k less than originally quoted despite having this in writing
Your figure would not reduce you do not walk way with anything less than what you sign for on the sale agreement (£395K). Our sale agreements confirm figures, so you legally can’t walk away with anything less than what you sign for.
However they just proved themselves wrong
Terrible Company. I signed a Contact for £122,00, then they turned around and told me there investors would only offer £112,00. Rediculous and I wouldn’t use any of these Companies who buy your House, because there only interested in getting what they want.!!!!! Avoid this Company!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Initially very helpful, I wanted to sell quickly and get a cash offer which I was informed would be down from market value (no problems as that’s why I’d arrived here) . Figure confirmed, they just needed to validate value with 3 local experts…I was then informed this value was about 20% down in a very low offer…but if this valuation was accepted then the asking price would need to come down to reflect this.
So of course you want to get best deal….so it’s on The open market (again) …
Bettermove promise a fixed price (you sign a contract to this) then they need ‘movement’ so the seller is asked to drop price by around 15%.
Viewings cancelled that weren’t meant to be!
I could go on but you get the picture, tread carefully!
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Bettermove customer reviews
Bettermove Reviews Trustpilot
Trustpilot Score: 4.7 / 5
The biggest complaints seem to be that the promised network of investors never materialised, and properties were just listed on Rightmove and Zoopla at a discounted price. This, they claim, damaged their future property sale prospects.
There are also questions around how quick an option Bettermove provide, with several customer reviews stating that their sale took significantly longer than expected. One customer said their sale took more than a year to complete.
A company will only be able to offer you any certainty around price and timescales if they are buying your property directly with their own cash funds.
Bettermove have responded to 33% of negative reviews left in the last 12 months, typically replying in 1 week or less. They have requested the removal of 14 reviews during that time, but Trustpilot found in favour of the reviewer in 8 of those cases. The remaining 6 cases were removed because the reviewer did not respond to Trustpilot.
Bettermove Reviews Google
Google Score: 0 / 5
Bettermove Google review score: We couldn’t find any Google reviews for Bettermove.
Bettermove Reviews Martin Lewis
Bettermove have been featured on Martin Lewis’ advice forum regarding threats from a credit agency and concerns about the legitimacy of buyers being asked to pay a reservation fee. This may raise concerns for homeowners.
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Compare Bettermove with Quick Move Now
| Quick Move Now | Bettermove | |
|---|---|---|
| Established since | 1998 | Bettermove was bought by its current owners in February 2019. |
| Annual turnover | £20.3 million | As a small company, Bettermove do not have to publish their annual turnover. The financial information they have made public suggests they do not have the funds available to buy any significant number of properties without sourcing third-party funding from investors or mortgages. |
| Members of any professional associations or redress schemes? | Yes, Quick Move Now are members of The Property Ombudsman (TPO) and the National Association of Property Buyers (NAPB) | Yes, Bettermove are members of The Property Ombudsman (TPO) and the National Association of Property Buyers (NAPB). |
| Is the company registration number available on the website? | Yes | Yes |
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Frequently Asked Questions About Bettermove
It’s unclear how Bettermove value properties.
No, Bettermove’s website claims there are no fees or hidden costs associated with their services.
Yes, Bettermove say they will cover your legal bills.
If you accept their cash offer, Bettermove claim they can complete a sale in as little as a week. If you choose for Bettermove to find you a buyer, it’s very difficult for them to offer you any sort of certainty around timescales. One customer who wrote a review of the company said their sale took over a year!
Bettermove claim that they either buy your property directly or find you a buyer. The claim to have a network of pre-approved cash buyers, but also say they will list your property on portals such as Rightmove.
It’s unclear from Bettermove’s website how they make money. They say there are no fees or costs for the seller, so it can only be assumed that they take a cut from the buyer.
The property buying industry is unregulated. Companies can become voluntary members of professional organisations and redress schemes, which is a positive sign. Bettermove are members of The Property Ombudsman and the National Association of Property Buyers.
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