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Subtle tricks of Estate Agents


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Property Market seems to be not only skewed but bunged up.We know why this is: all the fiscal policies that has led to this sorry state of affairs. Notwithstanding all the above. We moved from Dorset to ultra quiet North Norfolk 5 years ago, it was an impulsive move and the right property appeared whereas nothing was coming good down there at the time. However, it is too quiet here and the solitude too much. 2nd homes paradise and nothing much else except stunning rural beauty.

Unbeknownst to us the previous owner had been on and off the market since 2008 and apparently that 'history' is all logged on Righmove. We decided in 2014 to go on the market but my family persuaded us to try a little longer. Finally in 2015 we threw in the towel and immediately got a cash buyer who wanted us out fast. We were unable to meet their deadlines so although STC for only a few days. All that too shows on R/Move. Now we have another cash buyer and investor and surprise surprise cannot find an onward move. Renting has no appeal ( did that for 7 years and I could write a book on suing for gratuitously taken deposits and general grief associated with renting). The price we have got is the same as 2015 despite big increases here.

We have had lots of local agents around and they have all to a man said that it is worth 50k more than we've got on the table but we'll never get that due to the Rightmove history prejudicing us. They've said its 'blighted' the house. I said there are genuine and innocent reasons why its been on and off with us and has 2 failed sales. They replied people don't read reasons just the log.
It seems to me that this Rightmove log is almost a kind of cyber bullying like a negative service history on a car, which you can't change or alter even if it there are genuine reasons,leaving you banged to rights and unsaleable as a result or at a huge discount. Has anyone any views on this please?

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Frank Hovis

The extent to which I and the other people I know who have moved in the last few years reference internet history is:

When was it last sold?

How much was thus for?

And that's it.  If you start piping up with justification for a dodgy-looking history of which they were unaware then you have just given them a reason not to buy it.

It may well be different for the BTL / property portfolio people of this world but your average buyer who just wants a house for a fair price doesn't play these internet games.

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Solid reply, thank-you. Its just that the local agents are being funny about this history, saying its prejudiced the house.
In a small corner of the world, the words 'local' and 'rumour' take on new proportions. Unless we are being bullied.....

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I think in the end it all comes down to what else is available in the area for a similar price.  If on a brutally honest evaluation yours stacks up sensibly on that basis then you should try to be patient and ignore the spiv talk (it's not lost on me that this approach gets criticised on hpc regularly lolz!!).

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On a more general point North Norfolk is a stunning well kept secret, although coastal properties have got nose bleed expensive.  I know what you mean about trying to live there though - unless you were a writer, painter or something I think the isolation is too much for most people. I've always been pretty happy to leave after a few days break.

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One percent

I'm with Satre on this 'hell is other people'. I would love the isolation.  It's not like it would have been 60 or 70 years ago when few people had cars. 

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Frank Hovis

Hmmm, I thought I would when I lived in London but an isolated property in Devon or Cornwall, of which there are many and not pricey albeit inland, doesn't have the same appeal these days.

I helped out somebody with the council's getting people onto the electoral role exercise which involved finding properties in the middle of nowhere.  You'd have a postcode and then scout around for durt tracks, ideally with some bins at the end to signify occupation, and start heading down those.

Now the rare one was very nice and would be the creative types but in general it was just somewhere cheap and isolated where you could gear the banjos twanging faintly at the edge of hearing.  One odd one was a solid if smallish house which whilst in reasonable nick was not being lived in. Next to it was a small caravan, it turned out that was the house.

It was a very interesting thing to do as you would not see these places otherwise; but there was no romantic appeal.

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Some people may be heavily influenced by sales record, many won't - it will be a comparison with what else is on the market, basically you won't be selling to first lot as has been mentioned. Being rural and isolated it would be trickier to sell in a down market so maybe what you should be looking at is how much do you really want to move and can you get what you are looking for with the money at any sale price you have now and is the chain proceedable. If the answer is no then maybe try at higher price - say half way, another 25K and see what happens in the spring, make sure all descriptions and photos are as good as can be - spring garden shots always better than winter for example and see what happens in this selling period. 

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Not sure it matters, to most people. Round here a house can sell for 300k in 2014 and they stick it on the market again now for 500k and people seem to buy it. Property isn't like any other market. 

It'd matter to me but most people shove their fingers in their ears when it comes to buying houses nowadays. Easy cheap credit I suppose. 

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1 minute ago, Sgt Hartman said:

When dealing with EA's I always choose to assign to them a default setting of 'bullshit and lies'. It's been a rare occasion where this setting has changed at the end of the buying/selling process. 

Buying and selling a house has become hugely overcomplicated in the UK and I'd pin a lot of that at the door of agents who are trying to justify their existences. I think with the advent of the net, people are tiring of agents games. It's not unusual these days to bypass them completely and go direct to the seller.

 

 

I did! I went straight to the buyer whn I sold up and moved to North Britain!

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10 minutes ago, Frank Hovis said:

Hmmm, I thought I would when I lived in London but an isolated property in Devon or Cornwall, of which there are many and not pricey albeit inland, doesn't have the same appeal these days.

I helped out somebody with the council's getting people onto the electoral role exercise which involved finding properties in the middle of nowhere.  You'd have a postcode and then scout around for durt tracks, ideally with some bins at the end to signify occupation, and start heading down those.

Now the rare one was very nice and would be the creative types but in general it was just somewhere cheap and isolated where you could gear the banjos twanging faintly at the edge of hearing.  One odd one was a solid if smallish house which whilst in reasonable nick was not being lived in. Next to it was a small caravan, it turned out that was the house.

It was a very interesting thing to do as you would not see these places otherwise; but there was no romantic appeal.

My office is on a farm in Kent. Only about 40 miles from London. there are 5 caravans dotted around behind hedgerows etc all occupied by farm workers and their families full time. I've since noticed this going on at most farms. 

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One percent
7 minutes ago, Sgt Hartman said:

When dealing with EA's I always choose to assign to them a default setting of 'bullshit and lies'. It's been a rare occasion where this setting has changed at the end of the buying/selling process. 

Buying and selling a house has become hugely overcomplicated in the UK and I'd pin a lot of that at the door of agents who are trying to justify their existences. I think with the advent of the net, people are tiring of agents games. It's not unusual these days to bypass them completely and go direct to the seller.

 

 

How can you tell when an estate agent is lying?  His (for it is normally a he) lips move.

 

 

ill get me coat 

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Frank Hovis
1 minute ago, spunko2010 said:

My office is on a farm in Kent. Only about 40 miles from London. there are 5 caravans dotted around behind hedgerows etc all occupied by farm workers and their families full time. I've since noticed this going on at most farms. 

That was certainly some of them, at one address there was one postbox at the gate but three wooden lodges all clearly occupied as homes.

There's a lot of council tax going uncollected; though that wasn't our concern as in a way so typical of councils the voting register and the council tax register are entirely separate databases that aren't reconciled.

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11 hours ago, Frank Hovis said:

That was certainly some of them, at one address there was one postbox at the gate but three wooden lodges all clearly occupied as homes.

There's a lot of council tax going uncollected; though that wasn't our concern as in a way so typical of councils the voting register and the council tax register are entirely separate databases that aren't reconciled.

I have no qualms about them not paying council tax personally, for the most part they don't use the services and are on very low (probably illegal) incomes. A lot of them seem to have no heating or running water so god only knows how they cope with kids etc living there.

 

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On 02/04/2017 at 10:50, One percent said:

How can you tell when an estate agent is lying?  His (for it is normally a he) lips move.

If you're in France (like me), here's a top tip for spotting a rentals estate agent who's trying to con you: he (or she) is smiling, friendly, and genuinely interested in you.

Anything other than the standard "Gallic Disdain" should be treated with extreme caution.

(Rule re-confirmed recently when we went to visit a flat, the agent was fascinated by my wife's hispanic roots... luckily, the psycho neighbour stepped out of his flat and started ranting at us in the corridor about "ALL THE NOISE AND I'M GOING TO MAKE A COMPLAINT!!!" xD Yeah, the estate agent had something to hide)

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On 03/04/2017 at 18:14, DeepLurker said:

If you're in France (like me), here's a top tip for spotting a rentals estate agent who's trying to con you: he (or she) is smiling, friendly, and genuinely interested in you.

Anything other than the standard "Gallic Disdain" should be treated with extreme caution.

(Rule re-confirmed recently when we went to visit a flat, the agent was fascinated by my wife's hispanic roots... luckily, the psycho neighbour stepped out of his flat and started ranting at us in the corridor about "ALL THE NOISE AND I'M GOING TO MAKE A COMPLAINT!!!" xD Yeah, the estate agent had something to hide)

This doesn't work in the UK sadly. Most EAs (in fact most people) will only half-listen to what you're saying in order to try to shape the conversation into how they want it. Very few people nowadays actually listen and don't talk over you. Very few listen. If you can find a friend who listens to what you're actually saying, treasure them!

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  • 6 years later...
One percent
5 minutes ago, One percent said:
Address: Apartment 2, Moss Brow House, Sandsend Road,
Whitby, YO21 3SR
Type: Flat
Tenure: Leasehold
New build: No
Estimated value: £307,500
Links: Map icon Price map Wikipedia icon (Whitby)
Transaction type: Standard price paid transaction

Registered sales:

Date Sold Price Paid Nominal
change
Real
change
23 Sep 2020 £250,000 28.2% -17.0%
21 Mar 2005 £195,000 * n/a n/a
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One percent
11 minutes ago, spygirl said:
Address: Apartment 2, Moss Brow House, Sandsend Road,
Whitby, YO21 3SR
Type: Flat
Tenure: Leasehold
New build: No
Estimated value: £307,500
Links: Map icon Price map Wikipedia icon (Whitby)
Transaction type: Standard price paid transaction

Registered sales:

Date Sold Price Paid Nominal
change
Real
change
23 Sep 2020 £250,000 28.2% -17.0%
21 Mar 2005 £195,000 * n/a n/a

Towels on bed, i think it’s a holiday let. The wind chill factor today is brutal. It must be costing them a fortune to keep it from freezing up solid. It’s a tad exposed.   

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One percent
1 hour ago, Wight Flight said:

I don't think so. From the details ...

 

That means nowt. My mate has a flat in scabby and the flat above her is fhl even though the lease strictly forbids it. Solicitor has told her it’s not enforceable. 

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Frank Hovis
15 hours ago, One percent said:

That means nowt. My mate has a flat in scabby and the flat above her is fhl even though the lease strictly forbids it. Solicitor has told her it’s not enforceable. 

 

Yes, it's like "no work vans or caravans" clauses on a new build estate.

Developers put them in to make people think it's a cut above but nobody is going to enforce them.

Or "no cycling" signs in parks, back when there were parkies to enforce this rule they had weight, now they're little more than a suggestion like a "please don't litter" sign.

 

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