Confessions of an estate agent - 101 to be exact
Photo: BEN KIRCHNER
Greene & Co’s Managing Director David Pollock, and author of a new property guide, gives Christopher Middleton his top tips for buying and selling.
For many of us, buying or selling a house is war – both psychological and financial. We don’t so much purchase a house, as prise it out of the hands of the people who own it. We don’t so much sell a house, as surrender it to invaders. And right up until the last minute, the deal can be sabotaged by an act of panic or greed on either side.
“The whole business is a mass of contradictions,” says David Pollock, a north London estate agent who has been selling houses for the past 34 years. “The dynamic of people, money and property is fraught with emotion. That said, there is nearly always a key to a successful resolution, and that’s being able to see the situation from the other person’s point of view.”
And it’s not just hot air. “David is one of those rare breeds in his profession that actually makes an effort to understand the needs of both the buyer and the seller,” says Harry Handelsman of the Manhattan Loft Corporation.
“He succeeds because he looks at everyone’s position in the deal,” adds John Hitchcox, chairman of the upmarket developers Yoo. “As a result, he finds the best outcome for everyone.”
Cast in the role of peacemaker, then, Pollock has set out to bring Buyer and Seller tribes still closer together, by writing an outspoken, new book entitled 101 Things Your Estate Agent Should Tell You.
Read the full article in the Telegraph Property Section www.telegraph.co.uk/property/propertyadvice/8611016/Confessions-of-an-estate-agent.html
You can pick up a copy of ‘101 things an estate agent should tell you when buying or selling a property’ on Amazon now www.amazon.co.uk/Things-Estate-Should-Selling-Property/dp/0956734103
David Pollock, Greene & Co. Managing Director
Shortage of rental properties in Crouch End
Landlords can potentially get more money for rental property
Strong tenant demand and falling supply pushes prices higher according to the latest RICS Residential Lettings Survey for November 2010 - January 2011.
Rents rose at a rapid pace in the three months to the end of January, as falling supply of rental properties and strong tenant demand continued to drive prices upwards.
40 per cent more chartered surveyors reported rents rose rather than fell in the three months to January - which is the highest positive reading in the survey’s history. As rents increased, gross rental yields have also risen sharply – they have now increased in each of the last four surveys.
Supply of rental property to the market continued to decrease, with four per cent more surveyors reporting decreases, not increases, in the three months to January. Interestingly, the percentage of stock from private landlords has fallen from over 80 per cent before 2009 to around 70 per cent. This is indicative of the reduced role of the buy-to-let investor in the market over the past couple of years.
Looking ahead, surveyors remain positive that the market will remain buoyant; with 37 per cent more predicting rents will rise rather than fall over the three months to April 2011. All areas of the UK expect rents to increase, with relatively modest rises in the South West but much more notable increases in London.
Source RICS spokesperson, Jeremy Leaf
Are property prices coming down?
Since the abolishment of HIP’s some interesting things have been happening in the property market. According to Rightmove “the market is starting to turn due to increased competition among sellers and fewer potential buyers”. This could be a great time to buy, as each day more properties are coming on the market and prices are also dropping. Our Managing Director, David Pollock had this to say about the current market situation.
“The London market is a different market place to the whole of England. London is in a bubble and therefore it is always a little dangerous to base house buying and selling strategies on whole of UK indexes. Having said that the abolishment of HIPS in the long run will be great for the London and UK market but without doubt there is going to be a period of adjustment. Will prices in London go up, go down or stay the same. Is now a great, average or poor time to buy or sell? The experts don’t and cant seem to agree. My advise is see property firstly as a home and secondly as an investment, its when you do it the other way round that things start to go wrong.”
We will have to wait until the emergency budget is announced to see the true effect on the market as many fear that capital gains tax could be increased but we wont find out until everything is revealed tomorrow.
Findaproperty.com Rental Index
“Rental market strengthens further as stock levels plummet by 10%”
Some interesting news from Findaproperty.com again this month on the state of the rental market. Being found in sought after areas such as West Hampstead and Maida Vale, Greene and Co’s rental threshhold has held itself steady, but with properties flooding to the market more and more Landlords have had to accept lower rental offers. So, although the rental market remained fairly stable, prices dropped substantially just to secure a good tenant.
Director of Findaproperty.com Michael O Flynn comments: “The national rental market is looking much more healthy than it did six months ago. The clear out of stock is continuing in fairly dramatic fashion as the sales market improves and a seasonal surge in demand helps mop up excess supply, particularly at the lower end of the market.
“Consequently, rents are on a clear upward trend and long term buy-to-let landlords in London and the South East in particular have reason to feel optimistic that the market is making a sustained recovery.”
The stock of rental properties on the market dropped sharply in October (-10.2%) - the most significant monthly fall in the history of the index - bringing supply back to the level last seen almost a year ago.
Rents rose marginally (+0.1%) to £830 pcm in October - the sixth consecutive month of stable or rising prices - remaining 3.8% lower than a year ago.
Gross yields dip from 4.56% in October as rising house prices put pressure on rental returns
London and the South East lead the rental market recovery while the majority of regions suffer falling rental values
Could this be the start of some better news for landlords trying to rent their properties?
Students beware of bogus landlords
The BBC reported on Saturday about bogus landlords trying to trick students out of money. The scam usually involves bargain ads posted on free listing websites in student cities.
Victims are told that the “landlord” will only let them view the property if they give their bank account details. Their money is then stolen, the BBC reports. “Things to watch out for are adverts where there are no telephone numbers or where the only e-mail address is a free one - a Hotmail or Google e-mail address - where you’re not sure really who you are dealing with,” said Det Sgt Chris Felton.
I was looking for somewhere to rent about a year ago and came across a similar thing. My friend and I found a beautiful two bedroom apartment overlooking the river near London Bridge. After seeing the pictures, we couldn’t believe our luck. After emailing the landlord, we were told he was disabled and blind and had to travel from Scotland which was very difficult for him. In order to make the journey of benefit to him, could we pay him a deposit. Obviously, at this point alarm bells rang and we didn’t pursue the flat.
So, I think the general warning to students is to keep your wits about you.
Read the full BBC article here
Rightmove releases new iPhone application
Rightmove make finding your new home even easier! You can simply download their app to your iPhone and start your search from there.
Where do you want to live?
Just found this cool little tool on Nestoria. It can help you find the prefect area to live in based on your communte to work. This can be a particular concern, especially for Londoners, and getting to work in the easiest and quickest way is a big consideration when looking for a new home.
It merges Nestoria’s property listings with average travel times by train and tube, which means you can see the locations and the properties for sale or rent in the areas that match with your work location. It also shows you the average property prices in that area.
It can open your eyes to possibilities you hadn’t considered before. Why not give it a go: Where can I live?
What’s happening in the rental Market?
The Find a Property blog issued some interesting information about the rental market today. Could rental prices be on the way up again? What does this mean for the sales market? Have a look at their findings and judge for yourself!
