How to ensure a sale proceeds without delay

Sellers often ask how long will it take to move into a new home. If we lived in a perfect world an offer would be accepted and you'd be unpacking boxes six weeks later. Sadly this isn't a perfect world and there are many factors that they can influence the timeline of your property sale or purchase.

The first step is to make sure you have an estate agent and solicitor in place that are both aware of your time frame. It's also essential to check that your buyer has sorted out their finance. This is something that your estate agent should have checked before recommending you accept an offer from them, as a part of their vetting process, in order to make sure they are in a position to proceed with a sale. If this is not completed then this could be a real issue and therefore cause an unnecessary delay, or worse, result in a sale falling through.

Ideally a sale could be completed within six weeks if it's a simple straightforward sale with no chain and it is unusual for a house sale to take any longer than three months. If there is a chain there can be unexpected delays with other parties to the sale having their own challenges resulting in delays so you can expect your house sale to take typically between three and four months when this happens.

It is advisable to establish a completion date as soon as you can for all parties and to make this a part of the negotiations. Solicitors and surveyors will be busy especially during peak periods when sales are higher and therefore find themselves stretched which can hold things up. It's therefore important that you use a recommended solicitor that you feel confident will get things moving for you and help to speed up the process and mitigate any delays.

Solicitors who can appear to have no incentive to act quickly are one of the biggest causes of frustrations to clients so it's important to choose an agent that is on the case, chasing any missing paperwork and communicating frequently with all parties to minimise delays and therefore ensure a smooth transaction.

If you cannot rely on your estate agent to communicate between all parties in a timely manner then this will only cause delays and hassle leaving you with no option but to try to get things sorted out yourself. Avoid an understaffed estate agent and do not choose an agent based purely on price.

The most important thing you can do is to choose a great estate agent and a reliable solicitor other than that make sure that all the relevant property searches are up to date and have all of your paperwork prepared and ready with your funding in place in order to help the sale and purchase process progress quickly.

If you would like to talk to us about property in Guildford please feel free to call me on 01483 320207 or go to https://instantvaluation.newman.uk.com/ to discover how much your property is worth today.

Top tips to sell property successfully

There are three main principles that are most effective when selling a home. These are presentation, marketing and pricing.

The decisions that house sellers make around these principles can significantly influence the chance to sell their home above or below market value. How you prepare your home for viewers and hiring the right estate agent to market your home will not only ensure your property is sold sooner but can potentially add thousands of pounds to its value and sale price.

Presentation

Declutter

Get rid of all the excess stuff that you have accumulated over the years, using the garage or your loft to store bulkier items or better still perhaps store it at friend's or family's houses, for the short term.

Potential buyers should not need to use their imagination to realise what the property might look like if they were living there themselves. Make it easy for them to see the most of the fantastic living space you are offering. Ideally storage spaces and garages should be empty or well organized to emphasize their practicality to potential buyers.

Touch up

Give your walls and ceilings a fresh coat of neutral paint to make your home appear lighter and more spacious. This will enable viewers to gain a quick impression of how they could adapt the rooms to their needs and tastes. It will also make it easier for the buyers to move straight into your home and to use the rooms immediately, than if the walls are painted in loud colours or are too dark.

You want to create a great first impression from the garden gate to the front door and to create a memorable experience and lasting impression that moves a viewer towards becoming a buyer.

Fix and clean

Make any minor repairs to any damaged items that you might have been putting off. For example, fill holes in walls, repair cracked tiles, replace missing doorknobs and worn or stained carpets.

The majority of buyers want to be able to move in and without having to make repairs that were left behind. Clean everything until it sparkles. Remove limescale, clean or re-grout tiles. Eliminate bad odours. Hang out fresh towels in the bathroom.

How does the garden look?
Perhaps the bushes and shrubs require a trim. Clean patios and decking. Mow the lawn. All these jobs around the house may not directly add value to your property but it will make it more presentable so you are more likely to sell as potential buyers visualize the need for less work and more downtime in future years.

Light and airy

Mirrors make a room look surprisingly bigger and lighter especially in smaller rooms or hallways so have windows cleaned inside and out and replace any broken light bulbs to make the place feel light and airy. Ensure you have lamps on in any dark corners. This will make the property feel bigger and more attractive.

Make your property look better

Plants and flowers add colour, life and light to a room and they smell great. So does that fruit bowl full of different coloured fruits, on your kitchen table or counter.

Cater for all the senses

Bad smells are one of the biggest turn-offs for buyers. Rather than just covering them up fix the source of the smell. Unblock drains, wash out bins, open windows and air the kitchen from old cooking smells. Conversely good smells can make a property feel more enticing.

Marketing

How do you choose the right estate agent?

Choose an agent who can demonstrate the most extensive marketing techniques and tools to attract the highest number of potential buyers. After all more viewers equals more offers which leads to a higher sale price. The photos taken and used need to be professional to showcase your home in the best possible way. Ask agents to show examples of their still images and virtual reality photography. 360-degree viewings are becoming more popular. Floor plans are a must.

One very important marketing tool is that is becoming more popular is video. Ask would-be agents to show you the videos they have recently produced and used to promote or sell other properties. Video is a great way to advertise the lifestyle that living in your home will provide. This will go far beyond the static pictures and imagination required to picture what a home is really like.

In this new age of social media more and more buyers are discovering property for sale on platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Linkedin. Videos are the new commodity required to sell houses. If a picture paints a thousand words then the video brings a thousand pictures to life.

Showing the property

If you have hired a great estate agent let them show the property to viewers instead of you doing this yourself. It is a part of a professional estate agent's job to know the things to say and what to highlight. A great agent should have the techniques to deal with objections and ability to move viewers towards making offers.

Pricing

On the topic of pricing choose the agent who demonstrates the most experience, research, evidence and facts when it comes to setting the price of your house. Work with the agent who knows the most about your area. There is a wealth of information an agent should show you on the homes for sale nearby that you are currently competing against; plus evidence of sold homes in your area, with size comparisons, as well as their own local results.

Do not simply be impressed by the agent that proposes the highest asking price of your property. The price at which a house is listed is extremely important. Local Rightmove statistics show that over 40% of properties have had their listing price reduced before they sell often due to being overpriced in the first place. Rightmove also demonstrates that if a home does not sell within the first four weeks of being listed the interest level drops, levels out and then often does not sell at all.

Subsequently an agent typically suggests a price reduction to gain further attention. Time is lost when this happens. Would-be buyers see that the price has been reduced and can be forgiven for thinking the home has not sold due to a lack of interest or that there is something wrong with it. This is then often reflected in fewer offers received and when it eventually does sell the price achieved can be less than should have been if the property had been priced correctly at the initial valuation.

If you would like to talk to us about property in Guildford please feel free to call me on 01483 320207 or go to https://instantvaluation.newman.uk.com/ to discover how much your property is worth today.

Family living in the centre of Guildford

This spacious property is a 3 bedroom detached house and I like it because it is situated within a 2 minute walk of Guildford's historic High Street. It also retains some period features including an inglenook fireplace and wood beams in the lounge area.

Period features and an inglenook fireplace

Delightful conservatory connects the kitchen to the garden

There is a conservatory that connects the kitchen into the spacious, manicured garden which will be a wonderful retreat after a long day out at work.

Our friends at Chantries are marketing the property so why not arrange a viewing at the following website - https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-84614432.html

If you would like a chat about property prices in Guildford or want to discover where you will find your next residential or investment property in Guildford call 01483 320207 or email richard.hodgson@newman.uk.com

In the meantime why not visit https://instantvaluation.newman.uk.com/ to perform an online valuation for your home to discover how much it might be worth in today's market.

Guildford v Jacobs Well

While speaking with a number of house owners in Jacobs Well recently it appeared that they had moved away from Guildford town centre to enjoy living in larger properties but comparatively less expensive.

This made me wonder what are the actual figures and is Jacobs Well definitely a place to be considered as a potentially cheaper home?

Jacobs Well has a population of just 1,171 and is situated on the northern edge of town surrounded by woods and not far from the River Wey and Sutton Green (the former home of John Paul Getty, the billionaire). There is a small shopping parade in one of the residential roads and the centre of all social activities is the village hall.

Having previously lived in terraced properties these house owners would have sold their 2 bed semi detached properties, in Guildford, for around £424,900 whilst their new 3 bed semi-detached bungalow in Jacobs Well could be acquired for a £400,000, or slightly less, so was around 5% less expensive.

If they were to return to Guildford town centre to purchase a 3 bed semi-detached house in the area where they had previously lived this would typically cost £550,000, considerably more than their new bungalow in Jacobs Well.

So it seems that while the house owners might have saved a little by purchasing in Jacobs Well, it is really the comparative saving they have made by acquiring a property with 3 bedrooms rather than their existing 2 bedrooms, that has saved them money. More importantly they now enjoy the country life and the benefits that this has brought to them.

If you would like to talk to us about property in Guildford please feel free to call me on 01483 600840 or go to https://instantvaluation.newman.uk.com/ to discover how much your property is worth today.

Character property in Ganghill

There is a straight path leading through the extensive lawn direct to the front door of this magnificent, character property.

Comprising 5 bedrooms, living room, drawing rooms, study and kitchen opening out into the orangery, it will offer accommodation for a large family and buyers wanting to enjoy spacious living. The orangery opens out to a large garden with an outdoor swimming pool.

Kitchen offers open access to the orangery

Back garden with swimming pool to delight the children

This exceptional property is situated in Ganghill, a quiet street with well maintained grass borders and at whose entrance stand a couple of ornamental stone features with tiled roofs. It is therefore located close to George Abbott school and Burpham village and within easy reach of Stoke Park and town centre.

Located a 10 minute bus ride from London Road station it is also convenient for those wanting to commute to London.

The property is being marketed by our friends at Knight Frank. Further details are available at https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-81655544.html

If you would like a chat about property prices in Guildford or want to discover where you will find your next residential or investment property in Guildford call 01483 320207.

For a free instant online property valuation click here.

Selling tips - the key features that make up a dream garden

Garden space often plays a key part in a property sale. But what are the key dream features that people would want adorning their gardens, if money was no object?

Garden specialist Oeco Garden Rooms put this question to 1,234 homeowners, who were given six luxury items to choose from. Those surveyed could also go off-piste and write down their own answers if their dream feature was not included.

A personal swimming pool topped the list, with 59% opting for this as their number one item. This was closely followed by a garden room/office (52%), while 50% said they would like a hot tub.

An outdoor kitchen/pizza oven, which has become particularly trendy and desirable in recent years as a foodie revolution has swept across Britain, was in third place, while a water feature/fountain was the ideal item for 41% of participants.

A sauna, something that is especially popular in Northern European countries where temperatures plunge during winter, completed the top 6, with 32% of the vote.

Of the off-piste, written down answers, the most popular responses were ‘hiring a full-time gardener’ to keep a garden in tip-top condition, ‘building a home gym’ and having ‘tennis courts’ or ‘football pitches’.

While some of the dream features are beyond the wishes of most people – only a relatively small number of homes in the UK have a swimming pool or personal football pitch, for example - some are slightly more realistic.

A delightful country cottage garden

A water feature/fountain, for example, wouldn't necessarily cost the world to install, and wouldn't need to be ridiculously extravagant, luxurious or expensive. A fountain would be likely to cost more, but a water feature could be purchased for reasonable prices if you made sure to shop around.

What's more, while building a home gym would be costly, a makeshift one – in your garage/shed – would be far more affordable. Gym equipment can be purchased for reasonable prices second hand, dumbbells don't tend to cost much, and gym mats and exercise balls won't blow a hole in your pocket, either.

Pizza ovens, meanwhile, are probably a more realistic option than a whole new outdoor kitchen. They can range from £200 to £900, depending on the size, make and quality of the oven. Not cheap, then, but nowhere near as expensive as a swimming pool, a tennis court or a hot tub. Wood-fired pizzas are all the rage at the moment – as trendy as courgette spaghetti and butternut squash pasta – so if you are eager to add value to your home and increase your chances of selling in the future, an outdoor pizza oven would be a wise move.

In this country, the months in which you can use an outdoor oven are, of course, more limited thanks to our famously unpredictable weather. That said, they come into their own in the spring, summer and sometimes even autumn months. In addition, they will have appeal to hip young professionals and those who fancy themselves as the next Jamie Oliver or Tom Kerridge.

More than anything, your garden needs to be bright, attractive, well-maintained, tasteful and colourful. If you ever come to sell your home, your garden will be a key selling point – so it needs to look the part. Most buyers won't be expecting any of the dream feature set out above, but if you happen to have a pizza oven, a home gym, a spectacular water feature or a garden room/office, make this a central part of your sales strategy. It could just make all the difference.

Gardens have to be versatile places – a place for entertainment, a place to unwind and a place to hold BBQs, dinner parties and family gatherings. That, on the whole, is more important than dream features. But, if you possess dream features, all the better. And don't be afraid to shout out about them.

If you would like to talk to us about property in Guildford please feel free to call me on 01483 600840 or go to https://instantvaluation.newman.uk.com/ to discover how much your property is worth today.

Well appointed house close to Stoke Park

This property is situated in a quiet wooded street located within easy reach of both state and private schools, opposite to Stoke Park and close to the town centre. It will therefore offer a wonderful family home with potential for extending subject to planning approval.

The state of the art kitchen has been extended to become the centre of the house with bi-fold doors opening out to a magnificent garden. There 4 bedrooms including one with en-suite and the decor is clean and modern. There is ample parking room too.

Kitchen with bi-fold doors leading out to a magnificent garden

Located 10 minutes walk from London Road station it is also convenient for those wanting to commute to London.

The property is being marketed by our friends at Collins and with the asking price recently reduced by £70,000 will sell quickly. Further details are available at https://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-for-sale/property-62730192.html

If you would like a chat about property prices in Guildford or want to discover where you will find your next residential or investment property in Guildford call 01483 320207.

For a free instant online property valuation click here.