Some houses simply cock a snook at the ailing market and sell within days. Anna Tyzack discovers just what makes buyers pounce
The London Telegraph
There was a contract race in Chelsea last week. “Two people wanted to pay above the guide price for a property on Radnor Walk, and the client said whoever could exchange first could have the house,” says estate agent Robert Green, from John D Wood. The race was on. Five hours later, at 7.32pm, documents arrived by courier, and the property was sold.
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| Sold: This cottage attracted 17 viewings and seven offers, and sold, in one week, for more than its asking price |
Offers had been received from six English bidders, and it was an English family, not a Russian oligarch who paid 10 per cent over the £1.85 million asking price for the period house. “Good-quality property in a good location is selling well. People are taking a long-term view,” says Green.
Chelsea, admittedly, is a special market. The unavoidable fact is that generally house prices are falling – in some places by as much as 30 per cent – and buyer confidence is low. “We have cottages on our books that have had one viewing since Christmas,” says Miranda Harding, from Hamptons in Gloucestershire. Fledgling estate agents across the country and in parts of London are being sent home for two afternoons a week; there are rumours that Humberts could fold.
In Chelsea, however, it is business as usual. Andrew Buchanan, of John D Wood, returns from lunch to find a healthy pile of offers on his desk. “People are more tempted by Chelsea at the moment as they think they will get a better deal,” he says. “And once they get tempted by the Chelsea sugar lump, they end up spending more than they had planned to.”
Certain properties outside Chelsea are also flying off the shelf. Take 9 Hall Park in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, for example, which went on the market earlier this month and was under offer for the asking price of £975,000 the next day. “It is on a lovely, tree-lined road, 15 minutes’ walk from the station, with trains to London Euston in 35 minutes,” says the agent. “People are just waiting for this kind of house to come along.”
Then there is Duntisbourne in the Cotswolds, on the market for £5 million in March, which after 70 viewings in the first week, sold for £8.5 million. “Houses like this are few and far between – maybe once in a lifetime does an opportunity to buy one become available,” says Henry Holland-Hibbert, at Strutt & Parker.
Wren Cottage attracted unprecedented interest from buyers in search of a romantic hideaway, according to RABennet (01386 840094), which sold it within a week.
Even in the £1 million to £2 million range, deemed the “bear pit” of the market, there has been activity. “I recently bought a house for a client for over £2 million that had been on the market for £1.5 million,” says Philip Selway, of The Buying Solution. “There were six potential buyers and it went to best and final offers. My client was a cash buyer but the other buyers were all in a similar position.”
Recent Savills research shows that properties over £2 million have risen in price this year. “There are plenty of positive signs, particularly at the top end of the market,” says Crispin Holborow, of Savills. So far this year his agency has sold five properties priced over £10 million, at an average of 26 per cent over the asking price, and 10 properties over £5 million, at an average of 14 per cent over the asking price. Holborow refers to them as the “blue diamonds”.
For some sellers, this year is proving to be more successful than 2007. Langham Farm on Exmoor, a stylishly renovated farmhouse with exceptional views, failed to sell last year for a guide price of £1.9 million to £2.2 million. It was relaunched by Knight Frank at the beginning of May with an asking price of £1.8 million. The following day a bidding war broke out between two buyers and an offer was accepted for more than last year’s guide price. “With different agents, a different approach and a new guide price, we found different buyers,” says William Morrison from Knight Frank. “There are some good cash buyers out there.”
But it can so easily go wrong – even with the right property. “Gazundering” (when a buyer reduces an accepted offer prior to exchange) is rife, according to Ed Mead of Douglas & Gordan – a traditional symptom of an ailing market. Interior designer Ann Boyd put her one-bedroom flat in Embankment Gardens, Chelsea on the market just before Christmas for £1.25 million. There was a storm of interest and within a matter of days Ms Boyd had accepted an offer from a neighbour. But when the day of exchange dawned, weeks later, the buyer offered £125,000 less than his previous bid. The sale eventually fell through; the ordeal had lasted three months.
“I should have kept the flat on the market until exchange,” she says. “But as he was local I felt safe. I’d got the movers booked, transferred the phone to my new flat. When I heard he was offering less money, I nearly passed out.” The property was relaunched on the market two weeks ago at a reduced asking price of £995,000 (Chesterton: 0207 582 5211) and has already received a large number of viewings and two offers.
“It’s a different set of buyers because we’ve dropped below the million-pound mark,” she says. “It’s not money that I had already – it is only a loss on paper. But this time I’m going to keep the flat on the market until exchange.”
In an uncertain market, it is very difficult to determine the genuine buyers from the “tyre-kickers”. “Last year, 25 per cent of buyers were time-wasters, fiddling around, trying to find a bargain but 75 per cent were hot to go,” says Buchanan. “Now the tables have turned – 75 per cent aren’t in a position to buy. People are finding it tougher to get a mortgage. We’ve got to focus on the 25 per cent that are committed buyers with finances in place.”
Like sheep, these teacher’s pet buyers are flocking to the “best in class” properties, be it a tiny cottage, a family house or a mansion. Thus homes that tick all the right boxes, the “recession-proof” variety, are continuing to fetch exceptional prices. “There will always be people who want to get on with their lives, without waiting for the market to do this or that,” says Selway. The difficulty lies in selling a house which is an acquired taste, or has something wrong with it. “People are much fussier when the market is weaker,” says Buchanan. “It’s a fact of life that you have to choose a price that will generate interest from good bidders.”
But what if your conservative price tag is still not attracting viewings? “You need to change something – even if it’s just a perception,” says Holborow. He recommends offering any outbuildings for sale in separate lots. “The house will suddenly appear half a million cheaper and appeal to a buyer from a different price bracket. But, of course, in the end they will want the outbuildings, too.” Bringing in another agent, obtaining planning consents and finding alternative uses for a property can also help achieve a sale. But if it still won’t budge, the price is probably to blame. “The price is always the lowest common domininator,” says Ed McCulloch from John D Wood. “If all else fails, it’s generally the price that’s wrong.”
How to sell
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Make sure your property is beautifully presented, even if it means repainting, buying new plants and replacing the rotten window sill. Do not attempt to sell a flat unfurnished.
“Price conservatively,” says David Parnoe, from Savills. Generating competition is the key to a sale – buyers do not like competing in a vacuum. Have two agents value your property and dispel your own inflated ideas about what it is worth.
A solicitor should have prepared all the relevant paperwork before your property is launched on the market. “When you’ve said ‘yes’ to an offer, you should be ready to sign on the dotted line,” says Robert Green. “Otherwise the buyer has the chance to change their mind. Until this point, they will not necessarily have incurred solicitor’s costs, so they will still be looking at other properties.”
Choose an agent with as much exposure as possible. Make sure your property is marketed fully before you start considering offers.
The best bidder is not always the best buyer. Ask your solicitor to check that a bidder’s finances are in place, and that they are in a position to proceed. With cash buyers, check where the funds are coming from and ask for proof that cash is held on deposit.
Continue marketing your property until you have exchanged contracts.
Sealed bids might not be the best selling formula in the current market – buyers need to know what the competition is.
Bidding good buy…
1 Duntisbourne, Glos
What: 18th-century, seven-bedroom property with lodge, staff flat, stables, tennis court, pool and 70 acres.
Guide price: £5 million
Sold: £8.5 million (70 viewings in the first week)
Why: A rare example of its type. Top-end buyers will pay over the odds rather than compromise. Strutt & Parker: 01285 653101.
2 9 Hall Park, Berkhamsted, Herts
What: A five-bedroom house with garden on a tree-lined road, within walking distance of Berkhamsted station (35 minutes to Euston).
Asking price: £975,000
Sold: £975,000 (18 viewings in first 24 hours; asking price offer received on first day)
Why: Fine & Country, Berkhamsted: “People are just waiting for this kind of house to come along.” Fine & Country: 01442 877627.
3 Hamfield House, Painswick, Glos
Asking price:£950,000
Sold: £1.15 million (two asking price offers on first day, sealed bids four weeks later)
What: A 19th-century gentleman’s residence, with stone portico, decorative fanlight, and window shutters. Four bedrooms and landscaped gardens.
Why: Miranda Harding, Hamptons International:”It ticks every box.” Hamptons: 01452 812354.
4 10 Milverton Terrace, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire
Asking price: £795,000
Sold: £900,000 (six viewings, three offers, sold in two weeks)
What: A Grade II- listed townhouse. Reception hall, converted basement and five bedrooms.
Why: Stephen Parry, Knight Frank: “An excellent example of its type that met all the criteria.” Knight Frank: 01789 297735.
5 Mount Carmel, Norham, Northumberland
What: A traditional stone steading building with consent for conversion into a two- storey family dwelling, in an attractive rural setting.
Asking price: £125,000 Sold: £130,000 (the buyer made an offer directly from the site)
Why: Smiths Gore: “The sale moved swiftly because it was possibly one of the last opportunities in the area to acquire a steading conversion.” Smiths Gore: 01289 333030.
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