Google’s new property search helps put your home on the map
Spicerhaart is one of the first estate agencies to sign up to Google’s new property search feature on Google Maps, giving customers a wealth of options when it comes to marketing their property online.
Viewers can search a local area using Google Maps, pinpoint the exact location of a property for sale with us and see what features are offered.
They can search on property price, whether it is for sale or rent, how many bedrooms and bathrooms it has, and whether it is detached, a semi or townhouse/unit.
By being one of the first to partner with Google’s property search, we can offer our customers so much more. Not only do they benefit from exposure on all the existing main property portals to which we subscribe, their properties will be seen by so many more people who search on Google.
As the most popular search engine in the UK, it will be so easy for people to pick the location where they want to live, then see the wealth of properties on offer in that area.
Andrew Foster, product manager for Google, says: "We know that many UK home buyers are already using Google Maps to help with their house-buying and renting decisions, especially driving directions and Street View. By making property listings available in Google Maps we can drive qualified buyers directly to listings.
"It's a simple and free way for property companies to make their listings even more discoverable, and have them seen on an easy-to-navigate map."
Labels: buy-to-let, Darlows, estate agency, estate agent, Felicity J Lord, haart, Haybrook, housing market, lettings, London property market, property market, Spicer McColl, Spicerhaart
Property market experiences post-election surge
With a coalition Government now in place and the election period over there is a reclaimed sense of stability in the housing market which has led to a surge of property coming onto our books.
It seems that confidence is returning with people no longer postponing their decision to buy and sell.
Since the formation of the new Government we have also experienced a flood of phone calls to our branches, plus a large increase in traffic to our website.
In particular, we are seeing a flurry of web-driven activity during the lunchtime period and between 7pm and 9.30pm. When we surveyed our customers recently, they told us one of the reasons they chose us to sell their property was because they can talk to us up to 10pm during the week.
Even the uncertainty over the future of Home Information Packs is failing to dent interest. Although the new Government has confirmed it will be scrapping them, it hasn’t yet announced the timescale to do so.
With the election behind us and the summer ahead, sellers now need to focus on smartening up their properties and making them stand out from the crowd.
For buyers, there are some good mortgage deals available and, with property prices rising again, it has never been a better time to get on or move up the property ladder.
Labels: buy-to-let, Darlows, estate agent, Felicity J Lord, haart, Haybrook, house prices, housing market, London property market, mortgages, property market, Spicer McColl, Spicerhaart
New stamp duty threshold is of national significance
The scrapping of stamp duty for first-time buyers who pay less than £250,000 for a property is set to strengthen the market.
First-time buyers are the lifeblood of the industry and the new stamp duty threshold will substantially increase the number coming onto the property market.
Already we have taken more enquiries from first-time buyers looking to get a foot on the property ladder. Although the average first-time buyer still needs a decent deposit before they can purchase a property, the fact that they no longer also have to save up one percent of the purchase price means that there will be many more properties available to them.
This new measure is of national significance and is good news for the industry and economy in general. It will particularly help those first-time buyers in London and the South East where property prices are generally much higher.
However large numbers of would-be first-time buyers are still being frozen out of the property market because they are unable to secure a deposit. We strongly believe the government should either help decrease the amount of deposit required or assist first-time buyers with securing funding through the Government-owned lending institutions.
Labels: estate agency, estate agent, estate agents, first time buyers, haart, housing market, properties, property market, property prices, Spicer McColl, Spicerhaart, stamp duty
Open House brings buyers flooding through the doors
Our new scheme aimed at creating a buzz amongst potential property buyers is proving to be a big hit.
With the new Open House initiative, vendors pay a one-off fee for a large-scale viewing event at their property. At one Open House this month, almost 30 potential purchasers visited a property for sale, leading to a winning offer of £14,000 over the asking price.
The events are arranged as soon as possible after the property goes on sale, with eye-catching flags flown outside the home on the day. Making an impact as soon as a property hits the market can be key to a swift sale and maximum interest from potential buyers.
The Open House events are part of a trio of Accelerated Marketing tools. Also included in the package is a minimum of a one quarter page advert in the seller’s local press.
Properties are also given a premium listing on the Rightmove website for as long as the property is on the market with us. Benefits include multiple photos of the property on the search page, an eye-catching background and a larger listing box.
Labels: estate agent, Felicity J Lord, haart, haart sales estate agent agency, Haybrook, housing market, properties, property market, property prices, Spicer McColl, Spicerhaart
More properties ‘Must be sold’ under the hammer
If you’re looking for a quick purchase or sale then auctions offer an ideal way to exchange and you can now snap up homes at prices of a decade ago at our next mustbesold.com auction event.
In the UK, property sales take on average 14-16 weeks to complete but many of those who buy at the next mustbesold.com auction will complete the sale within just a few weeks. The process is very fast-moving and that is why our mustbesold.com auctions are becoming increasingly popular with people looking to get on the property ladder, upgrade their home, or build up a buy-to-let portfolio.
In this credit crunch environment, people are keen to hunt out a bargain and snap up these homes at prices of a decade ago. Prices in the auction room accurately reflect the current housing market and are an up-to-date indicator of credit crunch property prices. This allows both buyers and vendors to exchange at a fair cost.
Properties up for grabs on 22 July include two-bedroom terraced houses in Lancashire for just £18,000, a three-bedroom semi-detached house in Coventry for just £50,000, and potential development land equating to approximately .0164 acres in Gwent. Full details can be viewed on the website www.mustbesold.com.
The next auction begins at 1.00pm on 22 July 2009 at the Hilton London Metropole, London. Mustbesold.com auctions offer the opportunity to watch the auction live online so those that are unable to attend are still able to monitor the bidding in real time. Please see www.mustbesold.com for more details.
Labels: buy-to-let, housing market, mustbesold.com, property auctions
Opportunities for buyers increase as mortgage approvals rise
Figures have shown a steady rise in the number of mortgage approvals from the UK’s major banks over the last six months, which means now is an ideal time for buyers to capitalise on lower house prices.
With rising demand for rented accommodation and increasing competitiveness within the lettings market, exiting that market to become a homeowner is now even more appealing.
The rising number of mortgage approvals are a strong signal of future activity in the housing market, which is particularly good news for first-time buyers who have been negotiating the poor market conditions for months, trying to get a foot on the first rung of the ladder.
Ownership brings security and for this reason, will always be sought after. The increase in mortgage approvals will show buyers that despite the downturn, they are able to buy and lenders are willing to lend.
Now is the perfect time to take advantage of low property prices and invest in your future.
Labels: estate agency, estate agent, house prices, housing market, mortgages
Talking up the market
Every day we open our papers and turn on our radios and TVs to hear about doom and gloom in the housing market. The truth is... it's not as bad as people are making out and, indeed, it's a good time to buy because prices have fallen in recent months.
Whenever the media releases one of these stories, they are making it worse and shaking consumer confidence, with the result that some transactions that are nearly complete are now falling through or being renegotiated.
What the media fail to realise is that if they continue to talk our market down, more estate agents will be forced to close and the media will lose out even more on their already dwindling income stream from property advertising. That in itself will impact on the print media in particular – who are already introducing their own cost-cutting measures as they too fight for survival.
So next time you see a columnist slating our industry and blaming us for the woes of society, I urge you to fight back. Theirs is the literature of ignorance and shows little understanding of what estate agency is about. We need to show those that pen words that contribute to our downfall they could in fact be contributing to their own downfall. It’s a vicious circle – and we’re all in this together.
Labels: housing market, property prices, Spicerhaart
