Property listed as POA or Price on Application – Image courtesy of Rightmove
You may be searching for your next property, and when you’re searching on Rightmove you’ve come across the term “POA” and you may be wondering what it means.
POA on property sites like Rightmove means Price On Application, which is where the owner has requested to keep the price secret. But you can work out a rough price by looking at the prices of properties above an below the property listed as POA. (see below).
How to roughly work out the price of properties labelled POA (Price On Application) Image courtesy of Rightmove.co.uk
In the above image you’ll see that the property listed as POA sits between two properties, one listed at £5,500,000 and the other listed at £5,000,000. It may be the POA property is secretly listed as £5,500,000 and similar to the property above it, or it may be listed at £5,000,000, or somewhere in-between.
So unless the estate agent hasn’t secretly listed this property at under or over its true value to place it in the £5m range of properties on Rightmove, you can quickly work out what it’s list price is.
Why do estate agents use POA when listing properties on Rightmove?
Estate agents use POA or Price on Application to keep the price secret to entice inquisitive buyers to contact the agent to enquire about the property and its price. The estate agent will ask the buyers for contact details and for information about the type of properties they are interested to buy.
Once the estate has your details they can stay in touch as they have you on their database.
Estate agents also use POA as some sellers don’t want their neighbours or family to know how much they are selling their property for, and want to keep it a secret.
What does POA mean in money?
In money terms “POA” properties usually lies somewhere between the price of the property above and below the property listed as POA. For example, if the property above the POA property is listed at £250,000, and the one below is listed at £275,000, the POA property’s price will be say £265,000.
Does POA work?
Price on application is a waste of time and doesn’t really work, as most savvy buyers can estimate the price by looking at where the POA property sits in the list of properties with prices on Rightmove. Also, some buyers pass-over properties listed as POA, as they don’t want to call the agent.
When POA can work is if the estate agent enters the ‘secret price‘ at lower than its what its been valued at, which means the property will get listed with other cheaper properties, which will attract more interest. But this may backfire if the agent lists it too low, as the buyers who show an interest won’t be able to afford the property when they enquire.
Using POA will also backfire on the estate agent, and as a consequence on the seller, as some buyers ignore POA, because they think they won’t be able to afford the price and therefore don’t bother enquiring for fear of being embarrassed at not being able to afford the price.
What is POA in renting?
POA in renting means price on application for the level of rent for the property concerned. For POA in rentals, tenants will need to contact the letting agent for details about the rent levels.
What are the pros and cons of using POA in property?
The pros of using POA in property
POA hides downward price trends.*
Your property’s price is hidden from friends and family.
Can work well for quirky properties.
* If you want to lean how to spot price trends on Rightmove, please take a read of this article which links to a great Google Chrome extension – Can you see price history on Rightmove. This is a great extension if you are looking for a property bargain or if you are investing in property.
The cons of using POA in property
Some buyers ignore properties listed as POA, which limits your market of buyers.
POA can deter some buyers from enquiring for fear they can’t afford the house.
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What Does POA Mean In Property On Rightmove & Zoopla?
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Article written by Russell Bowyer who has been investing in property since purchasing his first commercial property in the 1990's for his own Chartered Accountancy business. But his first property investment project was to turn an old dilapidated restaurant into a large 5-bed home, which he purchased for £117,500 and sold for £450,000 (to see an "after" photo of the house before it was sold see here: About). Russell owns a number of investment properties, which includes houses, flats and HMO's. More recently he has turned his creative side to investing in property using lease options. His largest lease option deal to date was to acquire 12 properties worth over £2 million for just £12, which means he paid just £1 to acquire each property!
