Most homeowners aged 50 or over do not reckon that estate agents provide value for money, according to house sales website mousesale.

An independent survey commissioned by the company found that of 500 individuals questioned, only 8% believed estate agents represent money well spent and 95% would consider selling their property themselves as a good saving and investment move.

Mousesale founder Richard Garland said: “The over-50s demographic is very important because it holds the vast majority of the nation’s wealth, including property, which represents a sizeable UK investment.

“It creates housing trends rather than just reacting to them, and our survey shows that people in this age bracket do not feel estate agents are providing value. Given an alternative they would opt for it.

“At the moment, the majority are not aware of the online alternative to estate agents but when awareness becomes universal then there will be a wholesale shift away from the high street house seller.”

The survey found that 3% of respondents were planning to move in the next two years and that a move was under consideration by another 11%. The most common reasons cited by the respondents for wanting to move were consolidating the financial future and making sure they made the most of their saving and investment (42%), the current property being larger than necessary (31%) and the wish to move to a warmer climate (12%).