Macroeconomics factors determine the success of estate agents in the UK far more than they determine the success of businesses in other industries. TO what extent do you agree with this statement? (40)

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Samuel Ma

Macroeconomics factors determine the success of estate agents in the UK far more than they determine the success of businesses in other industries. TO what extent do you agree with this statement? (40)

Estate agents are agents who trade houses. The success of them depends on the demand for housing. In a recession, house price may fall, which lead to the wealth effect, people wealth begins to fall as well, so demand falls. There are also other factors too, for example, firms would like to cut costs too, so they will lower the wages, and even make employees redundant. The chain effect which makes people have less disposable income or even unemployed. The stock market would also be collapsed. As people have less income (money), a reduction in confidence and credit become less affordable (interest sensitive, loans are harder to obtain), so people will spend less. According to the income elasticity of demand of housing, as housing are luxury goods, the fall in income leads the quantity demand of housing decrease as well. These all mean that the estate agents will lose income from commissions due to the fall in housing demand, so may lead to branches closure and redundancies of agents.

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The success of the estate agents can also depend on the availability of housing. In a recession, seller would rather to wait until the house price recover to a certain price, so that the selling price will be increased too. The higher the house price, the better the deal, so the greater the deal, the more the commission the agents may get for return.

The estate agents may diversify in order to be more success in a competitive market, instead of selling the houses, it can rent them in a lower price to attract more customers, so they ...

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