Any Questions...?
Here you’ll find answers to our most frequently asked questions.
Why do you charge a fee to send a letter to a homeowner?
We charge buyers £4.95 to send a letter. We think this is pretty low. It serves two main purposes. Firstly, it covers some of the costs of running the service, which include website hosting & maintenance fees, and the costs of printing and mailing your letter(s).
Secondly, it deters people from sending hundreds of letters, potentially to the same address, which could annoy homeowners.
Do you charge sellers a fee to respond to a buyer's letter?
No. That feels a bit wrong given the letter they received was unsolicited in the first place. It would also create what marketing people call “friction” in the process – if a seller has to pay something, no matter how small, it might discourage them from otherwise responding.
Using our service then, genuinely means the seller pays absolutely no fees to make contact with a buyer.
Can I send letters to several different properties?
Absolutely! We would encourage you to do so. We make no secret of the fact that the average response rate to a letter is around 25% (or to put it another way, 1 in 4 letters will receive a reply). Therefore, if you love a particular street or neighbourhood, you might want to send letters to multiple addresses to give yourself the best possible chance of a homeowner responding.
Do you offer bulk discounts?
Yes, we do. Please reach out via the “Contact” page if you’re planning on sending more than 10 letters and we’ll see what we can do to make things as easy and cost effective as possible.
Can I see details of the letters I've sent previously?
Yes, you can. Simply visit the “My Account” page where you’ll find a list of all the letters you’ve previously sent.
Can I customise the letter?
Not currently. We’ve optimised the standard letter text to give it the best chance of receiving a response from the homeowner.
What bits of my personal data will you share with the homeowner?
We don’t share any of your details with the homeowner on the letter itself. If the homeowner is interested in your offer, they have to confirm this interest on our website (by entering a secure code we provide to them on the letter). Only then will we exchange your details, by sharing each of your names and email addresses with each other.
What if I don't know the full postal address of the property I'm interested in?
Not a problem. When you come to enter the property details, you can simply enter a partial address (e.g. house number / street name, postcode, etc.) and our site will provide you with suggested addresses that meet that criteria. Our “Resources” page also includes a link to the Royal Mail’s excellent Address Finder service which does something very similar.
Couldn't I just do this myself & send a letter direct to the homeowner?
Well, yes, you could. You’d have to share your personal details in that letter (so the buyer could contact you if they were interested) and you probably don’t want to do that unless you know the homeowner would welcome an offer (which at first you don’t).
We also take care of writing, printing and mailing your letter (including optimising the wording to give it the best possible chance of success), the postage costs, and dealing with any returns.
Do you really want all that hassle just to save yourself £4.95 when you’re thinking of spending hundreds of thousands of pounds, potentially millions, on a house?
Where do you deliver to?
Currently we deliver to the UK. However, watch this space. We have ambitious plans to expand to Canada, Ireland, the US and Australia in the very near future.
Can I send multiple letters in the same transaction?
Yes, you can. You can send up to 10 letters with a single purchase.
If you wish to send more than 10 letters, you can do a repeat purchase. Alternatively, just get in touch and we’ll make it simple for you to do so (we will also be able to offer you a discount).
Can I track delivery of my letter?
Not currently, but we’re working on providing this to our buyers. For now, if you want to know for sure that a letter has been delivered, get in touch via the “Contact” page, quote your order number, and we will be able to check the letter’s status for you.
It’s paper mail, so clearly we can’t tell if it’s actually been opened and read, unless the buyer responds via Offers Incognito.
Will the homeowner be able to see my personal details on the letter?
Not on the letter, no. This is one of the key benefits of our service – it maintains your confidentiality unless the homeowner is interested.
The letter provides the homeowner with a unique code. If they enter this into the “Homeowners” section of our site, your details will be automatically shared with each other by email. Even then, we will only share your names and email addresses – no other details.
Are there any limits to the number of letters I can send?
No. We do not enforce any limits on the total number of letters you can send, although you are restricted to 10 in a single purchase. If you’re going to be sending more than 10, just do a repeat purchase. Alternatively, please get in touch via the “Contact” page and we can discuss how best to do that easily. We can help you with a bulk mailing at a discount.
What level of response should I expect?
Our research and experience suggests an average response rate of around 25%, i.e. 1 in 4 of your letters should receive a favourable response from the homeowner. Of course, your actual response rate may be better or worse than this.
How will I know if the homeowner is interested in further discussions?
They will indicate this by entering a unique code from the letter into our website. We will validate the code, then send you both an email confirming the match. That email will include the other party’s name and your email address. At that point, it’s over to you to make contact with one another and start discussions.
I've not heard anything back. Can I send a reminder letter?
We don’t currently offer a reminder facility. We believe if there was interest, the homeowner would respond to your original letter. Sending a reminder to someone who has decided not to respond could be annoying. There’s nothing to physically stop you sending a second letter via the site, but we can’t vouch for how it would be received by the homeowner.
Isn't this just junk mail?
Our letters are highly targeted (by you) to a single address. Because they’re not addressed to a named individual, there are no data protection or legal considerations.
If, for whatever reason, a letter isn’t delivered, we’ll automatically track this and issue you with a refund. Similarly, if the homeowner returns the letter to us (e.g. by writing “Return to Sender” on the envelope), we pay the return postage and we’ll also refund you.
I'm a property developer. Can I use this service?
No. Our service is designed to connect individual buyers with individual homeowners. One of the benefits of our service to homeowners is we don’t expose them to estate agents or commercial buyers. Sorry.
What are the benefits of using this service?
Whether you’re a buyer or a homeowner, the benefits of using our service are numerous and very real.
For all full list, please visit our imaginatively named “Benefits” page which you can also find linked at the top of this one.
I've ordered a letter but haven't received email confirmation.
You should receive an initial email to confirm receipt of the order and a second one subsequently to confirm the letter has gone out. Our emails comply with some pretty strict and nerdy industry standards (SPF, DKIM and DMARC) to help ensure they’re delivered correctly.
Please check your Spam folder. If they’re not in there, just contact us ASAP and we’ll get right on to it.