Musings from Manse and Garret London Property Buyers Agents

Source: Nationwide

Nationwide Building Society have released their latest house price data for  July, with news that they have registered the third consecutive rise in house prices and that house prices could end the year higher than where they started.  Given the sharp falls in prices last Autumn, year on year, house prices are down only 6%, down from -9% in June. 

Rightmove have confirmed what those of us who work in property every day were aware of: there is considerable number of buyers chasing limited stock and the number of buyers hasn’t dropped since beginning of the summer, as it usually does.

Looking at Nationwide’s figures for non-seasonally adjusted house prices, it is certainly true that  house prices have risen at a phenomenal rate this year.  The ‘average house’ has increased in value by 8% since February of this year, adding just under £10,000 to a house worth £150,000 at the beginning of this year.  However no-one expects the Autumn market to be as busy, although I have just done a viewing with an agent who is predicting a boom, but then there are many in our industry who will do so for reasons of self-interest, whether consciously or not.

The interesting thing from the Nationwide research is that as per the graph above, house prices are now on a par with the long term real house price trend, which should give comfort to buyers hoping to stay in their new homes for a number of years.

As for us, in our capacity as London Property Buyers Agents, I think we will see a relatively bumpy property market over the next six months at least.  A busy Spring Summer next year perhaps and stable Autunm and then potentially a more difficult 2011, depending on what the Tories do.  I do think the worst of the price falls will be over by the end of the year but I also sense a jittery market, so expect minor peaks and troughs.  Time will tell.

Technorati Tags: House Prices, London Property Buyers Agents, Rising house prices

Tags: House Prices, London Property Buyers Agents, Rising house prices

Musings of a London Property Buyers Agent

A disgruntled Leicester Estate Agent has placed an ad in a local newspaper, warning vendors and other agents of the underhand tactics of an investment purchaser, who tried to gazunder by dropping his offer at the last minute which meant a chain of three purchases fell apart.

According to Estate Agent Today, the advert reads: €œWe have had 3 house sales fall through this week due to the actions of SFS Investments of Barkby Road, Leicester. Be Warned!!!€

Michael Wolfe, a partner of Leicester Premier Estate Agents said, €œI was so upset for our vendors  when these clients reduced their prices, effectively pulling out of the sale.

€œOne of the clients has just had a baby, another one is heavily pregnant, and the other was already distressed at selling the family home following the death of her father.

€œThese €˜purchasers€™ are so emotionally detached from the buying process that they have no regard. They quite blatantly strung along these clients to the point where they had packed their belongings and were ready to move.€

He also criticised HIPs, adding, €œAs these particular clients have an in-house conveyancing arm and with HIPs putting the onus to provide all legal documentation on to the property owner, they are able to walk away from the transaction without having incurred a single penny in expense.”

We’ve seen a great deal in the press recently about the North South divide in respect of the recovery of the property market with reports that it’s still grim up North for anyone involved in property, but certainly in the South East, there seems to be less gazundering these days.  The market changed markedly between March and May of this year and after a slow start, as predicted, buyers are piling in concerned that they missed the bottom of the market. 
 
From our perspective as London Property Buyers Agents, while there is so little stock around, gazumping is more likely to happen than gazundering, particularly when buyers have negotiated a good deal and then can’t proceed quickly.  The moral of the story is get organised.  Send in a surveyor quickly, stick to your word and make sure the vendor sticks to theirs.  If it all goes pear-shaped, you could always name and shame!

Technorati Tags: London Buyer's Agents, London Property Buyers Agent, London Property Buyers Agents

Tags: London Buyer's Agents, London Property Buyers Agent, London Property Buyers Agents

Musings of a London Property Buyers Agent

Last year, a Bristol property developer failed to sell his latest £1 million house, even after reducing the price by £300,000 so he joined the swathes of developers, selling gimmicks with their overpriced homes, by offering a second hand Ferrari to the buyer.  Valuing the Ferrari at £100,000, he bought it specifically to entice buyers to offer, but after nine months on the market and huge local publicity in the Bristol Evening Post, the house has failed to sell.

Maybe it’s just because we’re based in London, but I would suggest that most people owning million pound property aren’t interested in Ferraris, but being more flash than class, the developer seems to be tarring all buyers of neo-Georgian property with the same brush!

But I digress.  To add insult to injury, we just priced a red Ferrari F430 Coupe with a 2005 plate and according to Parkers Guide, similar cars are on sale for £80K and £90K.  Which begs the question, if he is marketing an £80K car for £100K, does that mean his £1million pound house is only worth £800K?  Or less?

Credibility gone I think!

If you want to buy a million pound house which is worth £1million or more, come and talk to your favourite London Property Buyers Agents.  (That’s us), in case you had forgotten.

Technorati Tags: Buyers agents, Gimmicks, London Buyer's Agents, London Property Buyers Agents, Property sales gimmicks

Tags: Buyers agents, Gimmicks, London Buyer's Agents, London Property Buyers Agents, Property sales gimmicks