Why good presentation is the key to selling your home
Despite challenging market conditions this autumn, house sellers should not be discouraged provided they enhance their property’s unique selling points.
It is now more important than ever that sellers invest both time and money in ensuring their property’s key features are highlighted to potential buyers.
In this tough market, excellent presentation has never been more crucial. It is all about improving marketability and ensuring a property stands out. It is often hard to view your property through a buyer’s eyes and this is where the advice and objectivity of a good estate agent comes into play.
We recommend that potential sellers rectify any problems which could detract buyers immediately.
Basic repairs and redecoration should be carried out where necessary and gardens and outside spaces should be immaculate. Internally, clutter should be removed, rooms restored back to their original purpose (for example a spare bedroom might currently be used for storage) and old shabby furniture replaced.
We also advise that as the kitchen is now frequently seen by buyers as one of the most important rooms in a home, it is often worth investing in improvements.
Small details such as fresh flowers and a lick of paint count, and simple inexpensive renovations such as repairing peeling windows can add instant kerb appeal. If a property appears unkempt and uncared for, buyers will be put off immediately.
It is also vital to ensure that the property is priced correctly, and again this is where the skill and knowledge of a good estate agent such as us is so crucial.
We are always honest with vendors and our aim is to ensure that they sell their property at the best price possible and quickly.
Nicely presented properties always attract interest and even in this climate, sellers can still achieve a good price.
Labels: Darlows, estate agency, Felicity J Lord, haart, Haybrook, property market, property prices, Spicer McColl, Spicerhaart
Properties will sell at the right price
House sellers can avoid the property slump by pricing their homes at a realistic level.
Data from the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors has showed that house prices in August in England and Wales fell to their lowest level since May 2009.
But homeowners should not be too alarmed at the figures - their homes will still sell if they are priced at a reasonable, realistic level.
Our experience suggests that over-pricing may mean buyers don’t bother to view and will look elsewhere instead. So with good advice, sellers can pitch at the right price and enjoy a smooth sale, even in the current climate.
It’s very much a buyers’ market. The next six months is a really good time to buy, with lots of properties coming on the books.
Labels: Darlows, estate agency, estate agents, Felicity J Lord, haart, Haybrook, properties, property market, property prices, 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
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
