Let Hertfordshire’s Secret Estate Agent answer your property questions and give an insight into the world of estate agency...

I think the stamp duty holiday’s a con and any saving is going to be cancelled out by the massive amount of interest from rival movers pushing prices up. Do you agree?

Interesting point. The stamp duty concession has lit the blue touch paper and the spike in prices has paradoxically led to reducing the savings. It is double edged.

Have you ever ditched a client because you didn’t like their attitude?

Yes, just last week. Sometimes things just don’t work out and some relationships just aren’t compatible. I think it’s always best to go separate ways rather than part on worsening terms.

The agent and client need to work together and once this is tainted the writing is normally on the wall and the client is free to go to another agent and fall out with them.

What’s the St Albans rental market like at the moment? I heard it’s flooded with even more Londoners than usual looking to sample life in suburbia. Is this true?

The rental market is also fast moving and potential first-time buyers are not able to secure mortgages with low deposits so are continuing to rent to try and save the pennies.

Londoners have the option to rent first before buying and to research the area more thoroughly. There are very few long void periods for landlords and any new instruction to let tends to be snapped up pretty quickly.

What’s the next cutting edge marketing?

Definitely video, but hardly original. However, we have are just purchased some state-of-the-art hand-held cameras and are looking to carry out more personal video tours.

These will be a little more uncut but perhaps more engaging and irreverent with the estate agent the director and main actor/actress.

How long does it take to train up a new estate agent? What are common rookie errors?

Coincidentally we have just taken on a trainee sales negotiator with the market being so busy and the office is keen to invest time in the right training for her.

Once the induction is completed a lot of the training is on the job and listening to learned colleagues and becoming familiar with our current stock of properties.

There is no set timescale and most candidates are IT savvy which is an advantage and we then encourage mentoring and shadowing staff on valuations and viewings.

Rookie errors include cutting people off on the phone, going to the wrong property address and forgetting the tea and coffee orders.

Do you have a question for the Secret Estate Agent? Email jane.howdle@archant.co.uk or contact us via our Facebook or Twitter pages.