Author: Andrew Monachan

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De-clutter

If you are to maximise your price, it is more important than ever to ensure that  your property is a highly saleable proposition, rather than one that makes another house look good by comparison.

Of course, there are several basics that should be in place. The price needs to be as attractive as the décor, and you should aim to be flexible on things like fixtures, viewing times and completion dates. You also need to be with a pro-active estate agency – not just one who simply lists your house and then waits for the market to deliver a buyer to your door.

But there are other things that you can do, which can have a significant bearing on whether a buyer will purchase your property instead of the one down the street.

A recent survey supports our own view that clutter in an otherwise charming property can thwart an early sale. Over 76% of estate agents questioned said that de-cluttering your home is among the top three most important things a seller can do, and is an inexpensive way of dramatically increasing the perception of space. 68% of agents said that a thorough interior clean was important, followed by 48% who said that the garden should be tidied.

If you have lived in your property for a while, you can become oblivious to what is clutter and what is an asset to the presentation of the property. So it’s a good idea to ask a friend to help you sort the wheat from the chaff, and we are of course happy to offer straight-talking good advice if required.

But don’t just bung your superfluous possessions it in the garage. Why not be rigorous and take a few carloads to one of our local charity shops? It can be a liberating exercise as well as a social benefit! 

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Is it worth extending?

We are often invited to advise local homeowners on the expected “uplift” in the value of their property if they make certain alterations.

On the surface, it is logical to assume that an extension will add significant value to your property, and this is often the case, especially post-pandemic. However, we would urge caution when justifying the cost of improvements versus the expected increase in value.

There is little point in improving your property unless it significantly increases its saleability. In other words, once extended, will more people want to buy it, and if so will they pay substantially more than the combined cost of the unimproved property plus the cost of improvements?

The key questions to ask are “will there be a good balance of living to sleeping accommodation?” and “will the property be elevated into the next category of buyer?” For example, it is generally better to add a loft extension to a two bedroom cottage than it is to add a conservatory. This is because the three bedroom property will now appeal to the wider family market, whereas a two bedroom house with a conservatory will still only appeal to its original two-bedroom market.

Likewise, it is not always a good idea to become the biggest/best house in the street and the average price in the area can have a moderating effect on the value of yours.

One thing is for certain – the larger the pool of buyers, the higher the price, and the better the sale.

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Accompanied Viewings

The layman’s view of an estate agent is simply someone who shows prospective buyers round properties. Whilst understandable, this simplistic perspective belies the fact that the well-trained agent knows how to maximize the viewing opportunity with the specific objective of prompting a sale.

 

Whilst “showing someone round” might appear straightforward, vendors who do this themselves as opposed to allowing their agent to do so may be missing out on opportunities on several fronts.

Firstly, a good agent recognises that they cannot “force” someone to buy a property. However, they can encourage buyers to buy a specific property in comparison to others on the market, based on a good understanding of the buyer’s specific needs, and importantly of those areas in which compromise might be found. Most buyers compromise on something! A specific vendor only wants to sell their property and generally has no idea of the buyer’s needs in the context of their stated preferences.

 

There is also a process involved as well as a degree of psychology. Most people prefer to view a property at least twice before committing. The first viewing is really to “get a feel” for the property – “could we be happy here?” Yet vendors often try to impress with logical/factual statements that would be better kept for a second viewing.

 

Additionally, buyers prefer to discuss their plans for a property out of the earshot of the vendor and accompanied viewings allow them the space to do so.

 

Finally, a good agent is trained to spot buying signs and knows how to act on them, thereby helping the buyer to make a decision that genuinely is in the best interests of buyer and seller alike, resulting in a successful sale that will indeed go through to a satisfactory completion. If this is what you’re after then why not contact us on enquiries@propertybureau.co.uk

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Quality Buyers

The phrase “Willing and Able” is seldom heard today, as it no longer appears on estate agency documentation. However, it remains important to discover if a prospective buyer for your property is indeed willing and able to proceed, should they express interest in your home.

 

This is especially the case today, when people are finding it harder to get a mortgage than they did last time they bought. But apart from the obvious financial issues governing the buyer’s “ability” to proceed, there are several other things a good agent will seek to discover when deciding whether or not any offer from the buyer is worth recommending to the vendor (although all are bound to be submitted to the vendor by law)

 

One of the best questions we ask our buyers is “What has prompted your move?” The answer to this often goes right to the heart of why they are moving. Only then can we offer them properties which will satisfy that need.

 

Another critical question is “when do you hope to move?” If they say “sometime in the next 12 months” the chance of them buying soon is low. Most good buyers know what they need to achieve and they usually have a date in mind. This date is often linked to school term times, a new job starting, baby due, etc, or it may be to satisfy an acute frustration such as journey time to work. Only when the agent knows what sort of timeframe the buyer has in mind can he/she begin to gauge the buyer’s motivation and hence their willingness to move.

 

Additionally finding out where they are in the moving cycle can also help us to help you as a vendor. Have they sold their own house yet? If so, what do they understand by the term “sold”!

 

There’s more than meets the eye to qualifying buyers, and if you’d like your own sale handled with kid gloves, you know who to call!

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Valuation

Valuation is possibly the most contentious aspect of estate agency, and emotions run high when discussing most people’s most valuable asset. It is natural that the vendor of a property will want as much as possible for it, as does the agent.
However, vendors should be careful about opinions over value, especially when everyone seems to have one – friends, relatives, taxi drivers and blokes in pubs!

The actual value of a property is of course the maximum figure that at least one able buyer would be prepared to pay. Frankly, the only person to know what this figure could be is an estate agent who is comprehensively familiar with the current market and involved with qualified buyers daily. It may be that potential imminent movement in the market can also be anticipated, although this is a skill few possess.

Certainly on-line value calculators are misleading and plain wrong in many cases as they simply cannot take account of the foibles of local buyer activity and competing properties available for sale, both of which change from week to week.

When choosing the right estate agent for you it’s certainly worth finding out how accurate their valuations are. A good agent should be able to tell you what percentage of their original asking price they actually achieve on average for their clients, as well as how long they took to find a buyer against national averages.

Needless to say, we’d be happy to provide you with some expert advice on the likely sale value of your home. This would be based on extensive research coupled with an intuition that comes from deep local experience as evidenced by our consistently proven results. Please feel free to contact us today. You might be pleasantly surprised!

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Good Advice

Straight-talking sincere advice can be invaluable in a world where too many people would just tell you what you want to hear! For example, the oldest trick in the book is for an agent to suggest an inflated suggested asking price in order to impress you enough to secure your business, only for tears to follow down the line when the property has gone stale on the market and the price has to be dramatically reduced in order to secure a sale.

So good advice is key. A good estate agent recognises their responsibility not only to address any questions posed by the vendor, but sometimes, where appropriate, to go beyond the obvious. This is because there is often more than meets the eye to an otherwise straightforward market appraisal.

For example, a vendor might want a quick sale in order to relieve a financial problem. Yet it may be that the property could be let out readily and would immediately start to produce the income needed to solve the problem without the need for a sale.

Most people of course are keen to maximise their sale price and this is also your agent’s objective. So let your agent advise you as there may be value in unexpected areas. Perhaps re-configuring the way in which your rooms are used in order to better fit with current lifestyles could increase the value of your property – if anyone knows what’s hot and what’s not it’s your local estate agent!

So if you’d like some impartial advice, delivered with your best interests at heart, and with no obligation whatsoever, please feel free to contact us today.

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Don’t wait for Spring

As we find ourselves in the middle of the dark winter months and further restrictions, some would suggest waiting until spring before putting your property on the market. After all, spring is traditionally associated with a time of change and this has always influenced the property market in the past.

However, it might be worth looking at this from another angle as serious buyers do not give up over the winter and can even become frustrated by lack of choice as many properties are withdrawn for the season in the mistaken belief that nobody will be looking at this time of year.

You can take advantage of this temporary imbalance of supply and demand by being one of the properties that is actually new on the market! Whilst viewing activity may be slightly less frenetic, you can be assured that every viewing will count, as you will only be dealing with serious buyers. And serious buyers are usually less concerned by a sad-looking garden, or poor daylight. Indeed, cosy lighting and a real fire will often enhance your chances of a successful winter sale.

Many sellers will inevitably wait until the spring and post lockdown before putting their property on the market – which could flood the market and potentially thwart prices. However, even in the current position viewings are allowed -confused and frustrated buyers are looking today.  

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November Property Checklist

Household emergencies generally occur during the depths of winter, but we recommend that homeowners undertake a pre-winter checklist now to prevent unforeseen property headaches in the months to come, especially remembering last year’s weather! Here are some pointers:

  • Don’t wait until the really cold weather arrives to discover that the central heating is not working. Time your central heating to click on for one minute a day throughout the year to avoid it seizing.

 

  • A sudden cold snap can burst water pipes, causing flooding. Make sure you know the location of the stop-cock. Ensure your pipes and tank are properly lagged but do not insulate underneath your tank. If you are going away, leave the heating on low and leave your loft hatch open.

 

  • Storms can bring down branches causing damage to roofs, so it’s worth doing some pruning now rather than having to call out the tree-surgeon, roofer and insurance assessor in an emergency.

 

  • Check your gutters are clear, as the weight of waterlogged and frozen leaves can cause them to leak or collapse.

 

  • Assess your roof for loose tiles that can easily become dislodged during high winds, causing damage to property, cars and possibly injury to people.

 

  • Avoid getting smoked out as you light the first fire of winter by checking that birds have not made a nest in the chimney.

 

  • Outside lighting not only enhances safety but also deters burglars, who are more active during the winter.

 

  • Ensure your garden furniture, barbeque, toys, etc are securely stored as they can be stolen if left outside, and damaged or prove hazardous in bad weather.

 

All the above can usually be done over a weekend, which is time well spent if the stress and expense of a winter emergency are to be avoided.

 

enquiries@propertybureau.co.uk

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Location Location

Location is clearly the most fundamental aspect of property. But what is it about location that attracts? This is a complex question that means different things to different people, and is usually driven by the motivation for the move. Many agents overlook the driving forces behind a decision to move, yet it holds the key to why people buy, and where.  

For example, many people move because they need more space, perhaps because of a growing family and the requirement for more bedrooms and a larger garden. Clearly space comes at a premium, and it may be that in order to satisfy this requirement a cheaper location may have to be considered if the finances are to balance. Then of course there is the issue of school catchment areas, which in itself can have the effect of significantly price-loading an area.

Perhaps the move is prompted by a job promotion which has enabled the buyer to fulfil the aspiration of living in a “better” area. But what does better mean? Leafier, attractive architecture, great views, low crime, good restaurants? The good agent finds out. 

Naturally, convenience has a major bearing on choice of location. Proximity to shops or work, transport links, recreational facilities and security all play their part. Good value for one buyer might represent poor value for another, hence the reason that some people are prepared to pay substantially to be close to work, whilst others are prepared to commute for several hours.

It is this complex and fascinating combination of locational needs and desires which makes our job as estate agents so interesting. The accuracy of our interpretation of buyer preferences is key not only to our valuations, but also to our ability to help people move to a home that will delight them. 

Whether you’re buying or selling, we’d love to help you move too so please feel free to contact us anytime at your convenience.

enquiries@propertybureau.co.uk

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Covid-19 Statement

During the covid-19 virus crisis we are operating mainly from home but are continuing our services to landlords, inclding, dealing with urgent property management issues and rent collection.

On the estate agency side we can offer advice over the phone and discuss values and marketing proposals to get a head start on the market when lock down restrictions are eased.

Please do not hesitate to contact our offices on the usual phone numbers or enquiries@propertybureau.co.uk

Please see below some useful links for help for landlords and tenants.

https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-landlord-and-letting-agent-faqs/

https://scottishlandlords.com/news-and-campaigns/news/covid-19-current-information/

https://www.mygov.scot/private-rental-rights/