Andersons Property blog

Planning our way in 2012

No-one involved in the property sector believes that 2012 will be anything other than another challenging year but based on our experiences in the second half of 2011 we certainly go forward with more confidence than for several years. Indeed figures released by the Tayside Solicitors Property Centre echoed this, with sales statistics for the final quarter of 2011 being the best of the year and showing a like for like increase of around 30% by value on the corresponding quarter of 2010. (£88.2m compared with £68.1m in 2010). We are also encouraged that the average transaction price in Tayside fell which also reflects our experience that (finally) there is a little bit of activity at the first time buyer end of the market. However there is a long way to go on that front. It goes without saying however that our national media have reported this fall in average transaction price as a drop in property values. It seems any excuse for negativity is to be seized upon by the headline writers!

Our early sales and activity statistics for January and early February are very positive and substantially better than at any time since 2007. While the lack of Arctic weather conditions has been a factor we also hope that it is indicative of a stronger market. Properties for sale with us were viewed 337,593 times on the Rightmove property portal in January which resulted in 51 telephone and email enquiries either for these properties or to register on our mailing list data bank. This is around 20 times higher than last January and whilst not all enquiries or internet ‘hits’ lead to sales it is further evidence of increasing activity in the property market.

As we go into the spring market there are also a few changes here at Andersons. New sellers will now have the option of a floorplan on their sales particulars. Probably one of the most regular comments we get is that viewers cannot remember the layout of a house after viewing so a simple floorplan should assist them. A recent survey by an on-line property portal suggests that online property schedules with a floorplan were 21% more likely to be viewed by prospective viewers than those without. As part of our sales particulars “makeover” we will be aiming to make them more concise and we are also considering an “eco friendly” on-line only brochure. As ever this will be driven by sellers’ requirements but we think it is a positive step and will give sellers more choice to select the marketing option which best suits them.

Our sales team has also been enhanced by experienced sales negotiator Yvonne Harley who joins Sam, Shona and Yvonne in our property department although Sam has left for a period of maternity leave for which we wish her all the best!

Urban Myth 978; Home Report Shelf-Life.

One of the most frequent misconceptions we face is the notion that “Home Reports only last for 12 weeks”. Well they don’t. Under the terms of the original Home Report legislation it is clearly stated that a Home Report has no shelf life. However the 12 week period is a relevant one. Firstly, for a Home Report to be valid the property involved must come onto the market within 12 weeks of it being carried out. Secondly the valuation element of the report may have to be updated if the purchaser is using it for their mortgage and this will usually cost around £100. In this event there is no obligation on the seller to pay for this, however, in the current climate most sellers agree to pay it once a satisfactory sale price has been agreed. So if you are contemplating marketing your property but were worried about having to refresh the Home Report every few months worry no more. There is one other bit of advice in the event that you do receive an offer. If the offering solicitor has requested that the report is refreshed because it is older than 12 weeks ask your selling agent to confirm with the offering solicitor that this is really necessary. Many solicitors just put it in the offer now as a standard clause when, on many occasions, it may not be required. If there is no mortgage required or (more commonly) where the buyer’s lender use their own surveyor to confirm the valuation then a refresh is not really essential. This is especially the case if your Home Report is only a few weeks past the 12 week period. It always pays to ask!

September saw many encouraging signs in the Kinross-shire property market. See the article in “News” below or visit our property blog.

Anyone trying to sell a property in the current market will soon tell you that it is not easy and yet as we emerge from the summer months there have been encouraging signs which can give us reason for cautious optimism as we head towards 2012. Certainly here at Andersons there has been a vast increase in the volume of sales. In the 5 week period from the start of September our Estate Agency Department sold over £6 million* worth of properties in Kinross-Shire. In addition we were involved in the conveyancing of a further £2.8 million worth of other property sales also in and around Kinross. This is easily the highest concentrated volume of property sales in this area for several years. While it should be emphasised that this is against a backdrop of unprecedented numbers of property on the market (here and in the rest of the country) it is still a very welcome sign of increasing confidence and activity as we head into the winter months.

Is this the start of a recovery? Well it is certainly far too soon to say that, and there are still many excellent properties on the market which remain unsold, but there are positive indicators. The biggest encouragement for us has been the re-emergence of that all too rare species…first time buyers. We know from speaking with a range of financial advisors that first time mortgages of 90% are now available. While a 10% deposit is still a hefty amount we have also seen many instances of parents releasing equity in their own properties to assist their off-spring onto the property ladder. First time buyers are the key to a good property market and while surely no-one wants a return to the spiralling house prices of the 80’s and 90’s all the recent indicators and surveys predict a rise in property values over the coming few years. We will keep trying to do our bit to build on the current momentum. Let us hope the banks and governments do the same.

If you would like information regarding mortgage or re-mortgage advice contact our solicitors, Campbell Watson or Lorna Miller, by phone or email .

* Completed sales and accepted offers from September 3rd 2011 to October 6th 2011

Only someone living in the most perfectly sealed vacuum would have failed to notice that the property market has suffered its worst period in living memory. I worked in estate agency at the time of the last property slump in the 90′s and this has been far worse. The media are constantly telling us what is happening in the property market but there seems a complete lack of consistency in what they are saying. We have seen literature from other agents and property bodies with contradictory messages. So what is the truth?

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If your house is for sale you will be all too aware that there are not too many viewers going about. We see it all the time, clients putting their house onto the market and waiting for viewers and interest in their own property before they will venture forth to view other properties. This is perfectly understandable as no-one wants to view a property, fall in love with it and not be able to offer because they have no interest in their own. However as the market does now seem to be slowly recovering and in the certain knowledge that even among the properties currently on the market in Kinross-Shire there must be small chains of interest ( A likes house C, C likes house B and B likes house A etc) maybe the time is now right to embrace the recovery and start to view houses. We certainly think so!

We all know about the pitfalls of social networking sites with numerous celebs and sports stars posting comments they seem to regret in the cold light of day. As English cricketer Kevin Pieterson knows to his cost it probably is not too sensible to “tweet” minutes after you have discovered you have just been dropped! However the benefits outweigh the negatives and in the current property market it is crucial to embrace all the technology available so after a succesful trial period you are now able to access Andersons via Facebook and Twitter to see the latest properties on the market, price changes etc. Just don’t ask me to explain it!

Obviously we continue to use more conventional outlets such as the solicitor centres, the national property portals now including rightmove (watch out for their new national tv advertising campaign) and of course our best two outlets, our own website and shop window!