Chris Maitland enjoys the freedom of being his own boss while having the support of the world’s biggest estate agency.
He is a new breed of independent business owner following the Keller Williams model.
The US firm has only been selling in the UK for the last four years or so - but its name is set to grow.
Chris, who lives and works out of the West End, says the flexibility he has is his biggest strength when working with clients.
“There is no influence or coercion on me,” says Chris.
“There is nothing worse than knowing that you have to achieve this target or that target.
“I gave a nurse a reduced rate recently because of the economic climate.
'Flexibility'
“There is no corporate structure that I have to adhere to - it is very much I’ll make the decision on how this goes and what’s best for the client.
“Every client is different at the end of the day. Different scenario, different circumstances.
“It gives you the flexibility to do that yourself.”
Chris says he wants to improve the reputation of the industry by providing a personal, flexible service.
The Keller Williams model does away with expensive High Street shops and costly overheads.
Agents take a higher commission on each sale than their mainstream counterparts.
It means Chris is fully incentivised to give clients his full attention.
Because he has a lower volume of clients, it means he can offer a higher level of service.
Selling journey
And that means he is happy to take calls into the evening and at the weekends, and respond via text and WhatsApp whenever it suits people.
He says it helps that clients only have to deal with him and no one else throughout their selling journey.
Chris says: “I’m not the cheapest and don't intend to be, but I am local and when using me as an estate agent I'm the only person a seller will speak to.
“There are no remote call centres in England and no one answering calls in the office that you don't know.
“I do all the handling enquiries, all the company viewings, the home report, photos, and every stage of the sales process.”
Chris arrived in Glasgow and the West End as a student from his home town Stirling in 2002.
A graduate of the University of Glasgow, he spent more than ten years in the oil and gas industry - seven of them on rotation in Basra.
“I loved the job but working in Iraq was tough.
'I’m not the cheapest and don't intend to be, but I am local and when using me as an estate agent I'm the only person a seller will speak to.'There are no remote call centres in England and no one answering calls in the office that you don't know'
Chris Maitland
“It was very hard to get things done, and the country has still got more than it’s fair share of problems.”
He said: “All the time I worked in Iraq, I never met an Iraqi in Scotland.
“But I met a guy recently in Glasgow who was from Basra.”
Chris, who has experience of renovating property, wants to become a go-to property professional for his clients.
Chris is reluctant to make forecasts about where the market is going, in what is uncharted territory.
“At the moment, though, it is a great time to sell and we can see that from the prices that are being achieved.”
* You can contact Chris Maitland on 07736 724 382 or email chris.maitland@kwuk.com. Chris is also on Instagram and Facebook.