This month we caught up with with Peter Lane & Partners to provide valuable insights into buying and selling homes.

Is spring a good time to consider selling/buying a home?

If you have the benefit of being able to make that move when the time suits you, then the spring and summer months can help to showcase your property at its best. However, many factors trigger the thought of buying or selling a property. With regards to selling a property, these will include requiring more space (upsizing) or the opposite where there is a need to reduce the space (downsizing) as a larger house is no longer required, also properties become vacant for whatever reason. These situations will occur throughout the year, so waiting for spring to arrive is not advised in most cases.

With regards to buying, the spring and the summer months will no doubt have their advantages, but once again, the best time to buy is when you are ready.

Roger Stoneman, Director

Why is an up-to-date appraisal a good idea?

An up-to-date appraisal is essential for any potential seller to fully understand the current market conditions, and to ascertain a realistic selling price to best position their property against the rest of the market. Market conditions can be extremely fast-moving at times and realistically any valuation given would be out of date within a relatively short period. Every 3 months you’d need to update your information.

Matt Ashman, Senior Valuer

How often will you communicate with me about the progress of the sale, and what channels do you use to stay in touch?

We have a dedicated aftersales team who will expertly progress your sale through to exchange and completion. Our aftersales progressors liaise regularly with solicitors, our vendors and buyers, and updates will be provided weekly in the early stages of the transaction, with frequency increasing as necessary as progress is made. Our main channels of communication throughout the transaction will be via telephone calls and email.

Laura Murphy, Sales Negotiator

I’m waiting for my dream home to come on the market, what can I do to prepare?

Firstly, register with local estate agents and explain to them what you’re looking for. Most agents will have a “preview” list which means you should get to hear about properties coming to the market before Rightmove does! View as many houses as possible as your search requirements may change over time – but remember, be open to compromise.

If you need to secure funding for your purchase, speak to a mortgage broker who has access to the whole of the market (such as Bright Advice) as they will often have access to the best mortgage rates available to you. Be sure to budget for all costs involved such as solicitors/conveyancer’s fees, removal fees, Stamp Duty and any agency fees.

If you will need to sell your home to be able to purchase your dream home, being “Market Ready” is key. Speak to your local estate agent to have your house valued (this will help you understand your purchase budget too), they can take photos and prepare the marketing brochure so when you do find your dream home, you can market your property immediately.

Tracy Sullivan, Sales Negotiator 

How will you market my home? Including the online and offline channels that you use?

We could write an essay on this question but our marketing is the result of a carefully considered strategy, combining both the benefits of an online focussed market, with quality exposure on all the major property portals (Rightmove etc) with a more traditional methodology, where we still make the effort to get to know our buyers and to try and understand specifically what it is they want to buy.

Fundamentally, agents are there to simply match buyers to houses and that is something we do extremely well. We remember our buyers and know our properties well. There is always a quality edge to our visuals and presentation and we invest heavily in professional photography and videography to best present our properties for sale. We also include content across all of the major social media platforms.

Colin Turner, Senior Valuer

What steps can I take to make the home selling process as smooth and stress-free as possible?

In short, take as much advice as you can. As experienced local estate agents, we can provide an up-to-date appraisal of your home in the current market and advise on how to get the best price. We also have established contacts with solicitors/conveyancers and mortgage experts to ensure you have all the information you need to make informed decisions as you move forward.

If you do decide to sell, we’ll provide you with regular updates and constructive feedback after viewings and, when a sale is agreed, we will continue to liaise with all sides so you are always aware of how things are progressing.

Paul Kinally, Local Partner

Why may speaking to an estate agent help me find a home better than the property websites?

Not everything we have is advertised. Always speak to an agent, as we have properties that are market ready but not yet wanting to be advertised on Rightmove or other property portals that we can tell you about. It is all about knowing exactly what your wants and needs are from your new home, whether school catchments are important, or if you will be working from home etc.

Cath Hoof, Sales Negotiator