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Reader question - Thisismoney

ended 20. June 2025

Thisismoney have a reader question about someone paying an incentive to estate agents when selling - and we're looking for views and advice on this (and the stronger, the better).

The question is: “We’re about to list our home for sale – we’ve agreed a flat fee with the estate agent firm upon completion. Can we incentivise him to sell our home quicker and prioritise? I’m tempted to say £1,000 cash off the books to make our home his number one focus and get the price we want. Or is this unethical?”

Your answers ASAP please.

8 responses from the Newspage community

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Kundan Bhaduri
Entrepreneur, Investor and Landlord at The Kushman Group
Incentivising your estate agent is not only smart, it is business 101. If you're selling what is likely your most valuable asset, why wouldn't you motivate your agent to prioritise your property over the dozens of others they are juggling? I have sold multiple properties over the past decade and have always built in a clean, transparent incentive structure on top of a flat fee. The message is simple: hit my price within a reasonable timeframe, and there’s a real reward for you. Call it a performance bonus, call it aligned interests—but whatever you do, call it legal and put it in writing. The key is not to slip cash under the table but to structure a professional, disclosed arrangement that gives the agent every reason to work a little harder for your sale than for someone else’s. You are not asking them to cheat—you're just introducing capitalism into estate agency. It works wonders, trust me.
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Adam Stiles
Managing Director at Helix Financial Partners
If the estate agent you've chosen to market your property is any good, you shouldn't have to worry about receiving a good service. Paying them £1,000 won't make a blind bit of difference to them. All you're doing it throwing £1,000 away. Ultimately if they've priced the property correctly, it will sell. If they've promised you an inflated price, £1,000 or £10,000 won't make any difference at all as the market will dictate what you sell your property for. Find an agent you feel confident will look after you, and mean it. Choose one which is realistic on price with a plan.
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Rob Peters
Principal at Simple Fast Mortgage
This is a big no. Not only is it unethical, but offering a cash bribe, especially off the books, could put the agent in breach of industry regulation, tax law and even money laundering rules. If this ever came to light, it could land both you and the agent in serious hot water. If your agent needs an under-the-table cash incentive to do their job properly, you’ve picked the wrong agent. Be professional. Be transparent. Incentivise if you want, but always be above board.
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Rohit Kohli
Director at The Mortgage Stop
Surely if you have done your research on your property and area you are selling and on the estate agent themselves, you will know if they have valued the property at a price to sell or at a price that wins them business. If you have concerns that your estate agent won't focus on selling your home, you have probably picked the wrong estate agent.
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Craig Fish
Director at Lodestone Mortgages
You shouldn’t have to grease palms to get your home sold. If the agent knows their job, they’ll be motivated to earn their fee by delivering results. The smartest way to achieve a quick, strong sale is to price your home competitively and create a buzz. Think open days with multiple buyers vying to make offers. No extra incentives , cash or otherwise, should be necessary.
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Tony Redondo
Founder at Cosmos Currency Exchange
Offering a cash incentive “off the books” to an estate agent to prioritise your home sale is not only unethical but also illegal in the UK under the Bribery Act 2010. Cash bribes are a desperate move that screams distrust in your agent. If you feel the need to bribe, you’ve hired the wrong firm. Pick a reputable agent with a proven track record, set clear expectations, and use above-board incentives to align interests. Anything else is a shortcut to trouble. Instead, negotiate a legal, transparent incentive within the contract, like a tiered commission (e.g., 1% for sales under £350,000, 1.25% above). This motivates agents to secure higher prices or faster sales while staying compliant.
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Bob Singh
Founder at Chess Mortgages
As a former estate agent I can confidently say this strategy will fail. If any professional has to incentivised to do what’s they’re supposed to do in the first place you’ll be disappointed.

Pay a decent fee and choose your agent wisely.

A clearly defined incentive to achieve a target price or time frame is a good idea but offering cash is not a good idea and could be deemed a bribe.

Estate agents are not regulated and work under a Code so if and when they are regulated these types of scenarios should be seen as a breach of professional ethics.

As a mortgage broker we don’t charge extra if the offer is generated faster - a fixed fee is agreed to get the job accomplished
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Sean Horton
Managing Director at Respect Mortgages
I'm pretty confident that paying him £1000 to prioritise your property will be money wasted. But "£1,000 cash off the books"? Encouraging income tax fraud is likely to cost you a lot more.