Author: Loop Studio

Today I’m going to be talking you through how to set the right asking price for your property in Medway before you put it on the market.

Now the true value of your Medway property always comes down to what someone’s prepared to pay so the buyer’s opinion on the price of your property is the most important. You’ll have your own opinion of what you feel your property’s worth, the Medway estate agent that you’ll have around to value will have their opinion, also the surveyor for the for the bank will have their opinion on what the property is worth.

Ultimately it will come down to what someone’s prepared to pay. For example if you were to buy your property five years ago for £300,000 and you spent £25,000 on it that doesn’t necessarily mean that your property is therefore worth £325,000. It’s the same as if the news reports say that prices have gone up or down by a certain amount across the UK that doesn’t necessarily mean that your property has done the same. There are micro markets within areas and that will affect what what the prices are and of course effect the market conditions at that moment in time when you’re going to the market.

The Medway property market conditions are very important to take into consideration and your Medway estate agent will be able to advise you on that. You should be looking or your estate agent should be looking at comparable sales that have happened in the area so sales that have gone through recently or recently gone under offer. You should compare them in terms of how many bedrooms they have, the location that they’re in compared to yours and the comparison in size so square foot. Obviously these comparables are time sensitive so a property that sold six months ago may have been a completely different set of market conditions at that time that could affect its price that it sold for.

Also what properties are for sale at this moment in time, so what’s your competition like and if there’s other properties in Medway for sale, how do they compare to yours and if there are properties that are maybe one bedroom bigger or a detached rather than a semi detached then what’s the difference in that price. If a buyer can spend an extra five or ten thousand to get an extra bedroom or to go to a detached property rather than a semi-detached property then they’re going to likely do so you so you need to make sure you have a big enough gap in between to entice viewers through your door.

It’s always advisable to get 3 valuations from Medway Estate Agents that will give you peace of mind surrounding the the price to put it on the market for. For example if you have just one agent out and they may give you a completely wrong price or be too high or too low. If you have three, if one is saying much higher than the other that rings alarm bells. If that does happen try to ask the agent how they’ve arrived at that price, what comparable evidence do they have to support that price and if they are really confident then ask them to work on a two-week trial basis so they can show you what they can do and get them to perform for you before you sign into any agreement as this does happen if agents are desperate for for stock they may over over value your home in order to get it on the market and to secure your business.

Your marketing price versus your sold price can also sometimes be different, there needs to be a strategy in place decided by your Medway estate agent in order to achieve the best possible price and sometimes that can be asking price or offers in excess of that will drive viewers to your property and drive the price up purely because of the the competition element.

The Medway property market conditions at the time and the comparable properties that are for sale and your competition will have an effect on that. Your marketing price sole job is to get buyers through your door, it’s not necessarily the price that you want to achieve and its sole job is to drive interest to your property.

Medway buyers will make their decision very very quickly on whether they want to come and see your property so when they’re looking online they’ll make their decision in a split second based on four things, the photos that you’re showcasing, where the property is and its location, how many bedrooms it has and of course the last one is the price.

If you do overvalue your Medway property and put it on the market at too high price you’ll just deter viewers from coming to see it and they’ll be going to view other properties. All you’ll be doing is helping others sell. At that stage you’re going to be looking to bring the price down in order to get people through the door and you could then be chasing the market. Like bread and milk in supermarkets you don’t want them to sit there and go stale because otherwise you do have to reduce them in order in order to sell. Just like a supermarket if you do have to do a price improvement it’s not necessarily reducing your price it could be a strategy in order to get you sold. I’ve had it in many cases before where I had a flat that I reduced by £5,000 from £170,000 to offers in excess of £165,000 and we actually achieved £172,000 purely because of the interest that the price adjustment brought. So it’s not necessarily changing your mindset or your expectations, sometimes it can be a marketing strategy in order to achieve the result that you want.

If you are thinking about selling and are interested in a valuation I’d be happy to help. You can contact me on 07557783325 or tom.dix@exp.uk.com. For tips on how to select the right estate agent to sell your property click here.

Here are some quick and cost-effective ways to improve your Walderslade home’s saleability. First impressions count, so when a buyer drives up to your home, is the grass cut? Have you de-weeded? You could even jet wash the drive or the patio out the back to make it look as clean and crisp as possible.

The paint on your walls can go a long way in making a room feel that little bit bigger or give it that little bit more character. Soft furnishings are also a really good way to make it as eye-catching as possible and things like cushions, bed spreads, new towels these are all things that can go a long way. If you have sideboards or shelves that you feel are a little bit decluttered get those decluttered before you have anyone around.

Lighting is one of the most important things so a new lamp or new bulbs in light fixtures can make a property feel that extra bit lighter and brighter and make sure all your bulbs are working.

There are other senses that buyers will take into consideration that they’ll remember when they come to view your Walderslade home. Is the property nice and warm? If it was in the summer is it nice and cool have you made use of your doors and windows making it feel light and airy? The smell is also important so avoid any strong smelling foods and a candle can go a long way to make your Walderslade home is smelling as nice as possible.

For more tips and advice to improve your Walderslade home’s saleability please call me today on 07557783325. For tips on how to make the most of your outdoor space click here.

One of the most common questions I get asked is how homeowners in Rochester should be selecting their estate agent. Many people don’t want to base it solely around the the value that’s given to them for their home and also the fee that the Estate Agent is charging. But what are the other things you should be considering when selecting an estate agent?

1. Who will you be dealing with throughout the process? Will the person you are meeting initially be seeing it through from start to finish or will you be passed from pillar to post within the office / company?
2. How long is their contract length? One of the biggest problems in Estate Agency is overpromising and underdelivering. Anyone can say anything to you to secure the business but estate agency is a results industry. Once you have signed a contract most Rochester Estate Agents will have tied you in for a certain period of time, during which you will be unable to market your home with another company if results are not being produced. Make sure you know what your signing.
3. How will they present your property? Marketing details are key to attracting buyers to book viewings. How do they present their properties and will this entice viewers through the door?
4. What exposure will they give your property? Where will they be advertising it?

These are just 4 of several questions I would recommend asking a Rochester Estate Agent before employing them. To find out the others and how I can help sell your property please give me a call today on 07557783325.

For more tips and advice about choosing the right estate agent in Rochester please click here.

So, what’s happening in the Medway housing market right now? Reports from Rightmove in August may lead their audience to believe house prices are dropping. However it’s the average price of properties coming to the market that actually dropped. This could simply be that more higher end properties came onto the market than in the previous month. They also suggest that this could be a result of the usual August slowdown and not directly impacted by an increase to interest rates. The 1.3% drop sits on trend with the 10 year average of properties coming to the market in August. Albeit slowing, house price growth is still positive at 8.3% according to Zoopla. The things with house prices is that they are very hard to track, unless you list the exact same property for sale every 6 months to see what it achieves. Sold/Completion prices are 3 to 4 months old, prices that properties are on the market for are not the prices they sell for. In August, just over 3500 properties were available for sale in Medway, 200 less than in July. This will have been due to the record number of properties listed for sale and sold during July, numbers not seen since early 2021. 1242 properties were listed for sale during August vs 1346 in July. More properties were sold in August than in any other month in 2022. This is proof that the market is still buoyant and sales are still being agreed despite mortgage rate rises. So if you are a seller and wondering if it’s still a good time to put your property on the market in Medway then demand for your property is still high. I would strongly recommend selling your property now if it’s a prime first time buyer property, these are the buyers that will effected the most with the rise of mortgage rates. The amount of properties being reduced increased by 6 in August vs July. More and more properties are being reduced that are on the market so if you are putting your property on the market, listen to the advice from your estate agent and be realistic. It’s better to have offers that you can reject rather than having no offers at all. One things for sure, there’s never a bad time to sell a property, there’s just a bad time to sell. This month Rightmove celebrated 20 years of their house price index, records show the average property asking price has increased by 134% over those 20 years. Thank you for reading and if you have any questions what so ever about the Medway property market, help with buying a property or would like me to represent you as your selling agent then please get in touch, I’d love to help.

With energy bills increasing and the cost of living rising, your Medway home’s energy efficiency is becoming increasingly important. Here’s some simple ways you can easily save money, help the planet and get your Medway property ready for sale.

When improving your energy efficiency at home most people just think about the big jobs such as new double glazing, a new boiler, insulation and even solar panels but there are some quick and easy ways.

• Switch into energy efficient LED light bulbs is a great place to start by doing this it’s suggested you could save up to £240 a year on bills.
• When it comes to your heating we all love a warm home but just by reducing your thermostat one degree will help reduce your bills and you’ll hardly notice a difference in the temperature.
• Make sure to bleed your radiators every now and then to ensure air is not taking up valuable hot water space in your radiators.
• Plan the layout of your room to maximize heat circulation, don’t cover radiators with large furniture.
• Blocking draughts and using your radiator thermostats are a great way to keep heat in the rooms you use the most and stop it from escaping.
• To the kitchen now and when cooking make sure to cover your pans, this will help reduce cooking time and in turn save energy and when you’re making a hot drink only boil the water you need rather than a full kettle.
• Most dishwashers and washing machines have eco settings so be sure to use them.
• Leaving your tech on standby when not in use is a waste, a way to waste energy and money. You can use smart plugs to set a schedule for when they come on and off.

I hope these tips have helped, another great way to reduce your bills is to make sure you have the best deals available to check yours today click here to see how much you could potentially save.

One of the most common questions I get asked by homeowners is do I need a for sale board to sell my property? My answer is 100% yes. A for sale board is free 24-hour advertising for your property and  it’s for your benefit. If it gets you one extra viewing it’s done its job. A lot of people get worried about the neighbours seeing the property up for sale but trust me in the world that we live in with the internet and what people look at they’re going to know it’s for sale unless we’re doing an off market campaign. If you’re on a no through road you may think what’s the use of having a for sale board, nobody drives down, but what I do know is that the best buyers in between viewings if they’re visiting an area for the day will be driving around the roads that they like the look of looking for a property for sale. Also your neighbours may know somebody who’s looking to move to that particular road if they live there themselves, they may love it and they may be looking to move family or friends there so they will let them know that your property is for sale. How many times have you noticed a removal van outside one of your neighbours property and you never knew it was for sale. This is something that the for sale board can do for you. If your Walderslade property is vacant and you’re worried about security a for sale board actually helps with this. If you don’t have a for sale board and the property is empty people are more likely to be looking around. If we have a for sale board then people know that any time throughout the day there could be activity in the house and it could be that someone would turn up at any moment so this will help with the security as well.

Want to know more about making the most of your outdoor space in your Walderslade property? Click here to find out more.

Here’s how you can make the most competitive offer that you can when you view the property that you want to buy in Rochester.

First things first, as a buyer you must be prepared. You must be prepared financially and also legally. Ensure that you have an agreement in principle in place that you have access to to be able to send over to the selling agent and also you engage with a solicitor as well or have an idea of who you’re going to be using. Also make sure you have scanned documents on file that you can send over to the estate agent, things like your ID, your proof of address and your bank statements to prove your deposit. That way once you make an offer you can send that straight through to the the estate agent selling the property so they know that you’re you’re keen, you’re hungry and also you’re in a position that you can proceed straight away.

Secondly it’s down to you to research your local market that you’re buying in to get an idea of how quickly properties are selling and what sort of prices they’re they’re selling for. This will come with experience as you’re viewing more properties and keeping your eye on the market. Also take into consideration how long the property has been on the market and also how many viewings have taken place. If the property’s only been on the market two days and had 10 viewings on a Saturday afternoon then it’s likely that the offers are going to come in thick and fast and it’s very unlikely that you would be able to secure the property for any lower than it’s asking price. If it’s been on the market for six months for example and it may have been reduced a few times then there may be an opportunity there for you to to make a lower offer. These are the questions that you need to be asking the selling agent to give you an idea of exactly how it’s going to go. Also ask the selling agent how their offer negotiation process works so is it just one offer that you’re able to make or do you have two opportunities or three opportunities so you know where to put your offers in at so you’re not going to regret making a lower offer and somebody else buying it or you’re not going to regret paying too much when you didn’t need to so always make sure to ask the selling agent how they’re going to be working the negotiations.

To find out more about the process of buying a property click here. 

I am proud to be a member of Propertymark, the professional body for property agents working in residential and commercial, sales, lettings and auctioneering.

Propertymark has teamed up with TV personality and property expert Phil Spencer’s Move iQ, to help consumers understand the importance of instructing a regulated and qualified agent.

As co-presenter of C4’s Location Location Location, Phil is one of the best-known faces on British television. He founded Move iQ in the firm belief that everyone should have access to impartial property advice and to share his experience and knowledge with anyone buying or renting; selling or owning property within regional markets across the UK.

Estate and lettings agents are not all the same. We display the Propertymark Protected logo to show that I am independently regulated and have to meet qualification standards and adhere to a Code of Conduct. This is my professional body and I’m really proud of how that benefits our clients.

Phil Spencer, Move iQ said: “We are delighted at Move iQ to be working with Propertymark to help raise consumer awareness about what it means to be a qualified and regulated property professional in the UK.

“Standards matter and we fully support Propertymark in pushing this forward.”

Find a Propertymark member agent near you by using Propertymark’s find an expert tool: https://www.propertymark.co.uk/find-an-expert.html

For more tips on selecting the right Medway Estate Agent for you click here. 

I’ve been to see some clients recently who are looking to sell their house in Chatham and move. Their main obstacle in this and something that they’re worried about is will they be able to find somewhere. They’re looking online and they’re not seeing much that they like themselves because there is such a lack of stock on the market. Most people are therefore reluctant to put their Chatham property on the market so what we’ve decided to do which is what they’re really happy with is go with my launch service. This means that we get everything ready in order for us to go on the market at a click of a button. All the marketing is done and all approved by them. Once they see a property that they really like and they go to view and want to offer, it’s just a case of clicking a button and they are on the market. We don’t have to waste any time with getting the photos done, getting the energy performance certificate done which sometimes can take up to a week and therefore they’ll lose that property that they’ve seen. So getting ready to launch means that they can go out there and look for a property and when that property does come along or it does come on the market then we can just click a button and they’re on the market and ready to sell. If you’re interested in this service as well then please give me a call on 0757783325 and I look forward to helping you move.

Are you looking to buy, sell or just generally interested in the property market? If so, here’s your Medway Housing Market Update for August 2022.

In July, available properties for sale in Medway reached their highest since May 2021. Across the UK however available property for sale is 40% lower than at the same time in 2019. This therefore means buyers have more choice available to them. We will therefore see an increase in the length of time properties are taking to sell. Rightmove report the average time to secure a buyer in the UK is at 32 days. This is still a low amount of days on the market compared to the national five year average, therefore the best way to describe this market is going from boiling to hot.

We have also seen an increase in the amount of properties being reduced to compete for buyer attention. In Medway, 394 properties were reduced in comparison to just 215 in March of this year. This is further backed up by Zoopla who comment “House prices have hit a record high in April 2022, but the property market is showing signs of slowing as homes take longer to sell and more asking prices are reduced.”

Buyer demand shows no signs of slowing with sales increasing in the Medway Towns from June to July. Attractively priced properties are being snapped up by buyers quickly and those that are not selling are on top of the market and helping other properties to sell by making them look more attractive.

Rightmove comment “Buyer demand is up 26% on June 2019’s levels, though down 7% on last year’s frenzied market”. The recent changes to mortgage lenders stress test will also mean more buyers will be able to come into the market to buy property. If you would like to find out what’s possible for you with a mortgage then please contact me today and I can put you in touch with a local advisor. With the average house price and house price growth continuing to rise, many homeowners without realising may have built up a significant amount of equity. If you’re not tempted to move by the record prices being achieved, you could benefit from an equity check to explore the possibilities of releasing money to help with the cost of living, pay off other debt or invest in other property. If you would like a free equity check get in touch today. Overall Zoopla predict house prices by the end of 2022 to grow 5% higher than at the end of 2021. If you would like any advice about buying or selling in the Medway property market then please get in touch with me today on 07557783325.