Message from our MD

2009 Reflection

2009 has been a tough year for us all! We are happy to report that the overwhelming majority of our customers have survived the storm, but 2009 hasn’t been without its casualties. Our experiences have shown that larger agents took the step to lose their quieter branches whilst some weaker agents closed their doors for good. The majority of these closures happened prior to Easter and since then agents have worked hard to keep their heads above water. Through the period we have offered products and services to try and help. We renegotiated the price of our phone integration license, offered commissions on HIPs and conveyancing as well as offering ideas to help agents to improve their efficiencies and reduce costs. During this period we continued to pour more resources into the development of our product to move it further forward.

You may be aware that in 2009 dezrez started its own conveyancing practice – Hipz-legal. For a number of years we have offered conveyancing through third party solicitors, but felt we were restricted by their working practices. Having no control over the quality of the work once we passed it on to solicitors resulted in frustration. Owning our own conveyancing practice means we can look after customers from start to finish in the way we think they should be treated. Agents have found the whole process works very well. As well as good service the agent is able to customise commission levels and receive real time information to their dezrez system on case progress. This month we paid our top referring agent over £5000 in commission. Its agents grabbing opportunities like that who survive the tough times!

The later part of 2009 has ended on a positive note with some of the agents that downsized once again branching out and opening mothballed offices. Some have seen opportunities and moved into new territories where their competitors have failed. Many agents have reassessed their spending listening to the message that “software can save you money”. Proactive agents have shed costly staff and invested in our product making them more productive. As a result dezrez has continued to grow its agency base. In addition to established agents we have been surprised how many new agents have entered the market. The mindset of these agents is “if you can make money now you can make money anytime!”

The latter part of the year has left us very optimistic for 2010, we are hopeful that positive economic news about a recovery will lead to a general increase in confidence from sellers. Agents have told us over and over that “stock” is the biggest problem they face. An increase in confidence should mean that people are more willing to take the step to market and ease the stock situation. In terms of product development we are working on some very exciting functionality for 2010, expect to see dezrez take another big step ahead of its competitors. Whatever the market throws at us, it’s our aim to keep you one step ahead of your competitors by keeping one step ahead of ours.

We wish you all the best for 2010. Have a great Christmas and a happy new year.

Wilf Lewis