Joy for new estate agents in Portchester Castle Estate Agents as they are ranked number one in coveted award scheme
AN INDEPENDENT estate agency that took over a former bank in Portchester earlier this year has been named as one of the best in the country.
Castles Estate Agents, directed by Charles Tuson and Gary Agar, was ranked number one in the British Property Awards – even though it has only been open five months.
Charles and Gary, two lifelong friends, opened the estate agents in Castle Street in February, taking over and renovating the former Natwest bank.
Charles, who had been an estate agent in the local area for more than 10 years before setting up his own business, said he was delighted to have been recognised in the national awards, especially as the winners are chosen after a mystery shop.
The British Property Awards were created by a team of previous estate agency owners who believe the industry is unfairly judged by some consumers.
Charles said: ‘They mystery shopped all the agents in the area, about 20 in total, and they decided we were the best and ranked us as the number one agent.
‘We are over the moon and it is a massive achievement to win over our competitors considering we have only been open five months and some of them have been here more than 30 years.'
Charles said his team were ‘chuffed to bits’ when they found out they had won,
He said they are proud to have achieved their original goal of bringing a ‘breath of life into the area’ by using a more modern approach compared to the more traditional methods used by other estate agents.
Charles said: 'We don’t really have any competitors because we are in our own lane.’
He said they have used social media to advertise and reach a wider audience, as well as providing consistent communication with their customers.
Charles said opening during the pandemic has brought challenges, and they have had to adapt to wearing masks and social distancing in the office.
They have also seen demand outweigh supply as more people look to move due to home working or take up government incentives such as the stamp duty relief.
He said they are hoping for another successful five months and that they have their sights set on winning the same award again next year.