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Home owners in UK underestimate the work involved in selling a home
Nearly a third of home owners in the UK view estate agents as poor value for money but they dramatically under estimate the work involved in selling a house, new research has found. Overall, the survey, which analysed the perceptions of UK home owners across a variety of property related topics, including the services consumers expect as part of an estate agent's fee, preferences for online property portals and the public perception of estate agents, concluded that there is a need for more transparency in a rapidly changing property market. Only 18% of home owners regarded estate agents as helpful but 20% viewed them as knowledgeable. However, 35% thought they are too pushy and 30% perceived them as poor value for money. When choosing an agent, the fee is the most important deciding factor with 56% rating this as their top consideration, according to the research from estate agent comparison site netanagent. The survey found that a personal recommendation is a close second and local knowledge and responsiveness also ranking highly. It also found that home owners expect a lot for their money with 25% expecting to pay as little as 0.5% to 1% fee to cover all estate agency services, in comparison to the national average of 1.1%. The firm suggests that this reveals a clear need for better education by estate agents amongst consumers about what a fee covers and the work that goes into selling a property. As part of the fee, 52% expect photography to be included while 49% expect their property to be listed on property portals. Some 10% expect the running of open days to be included as standard, along with 6% expecting video marketing services and 10% virtual tours to all be part of the fee. The research also shows a major shift in how people are prepared to sell property. Some 85% are willing to consider using an online estate agent. The report says this is symptomatic of a changing market, with traditional high street agents not always the first port of call when selling a house. Despite this trend, there is still a clear appreciation for the services offered by traditional agents, with reasons to not use an online agent including a desire to speak to people face to face when dealing with big decisions and for local people to sell a house in the local area. With the increased competition in the marketplace from online agents, the survey reveals that 96% of home owners would consider comparing estate agents' fees and services online if they could, to help decide which agent to use when selling a property. Findings from the survey also reveal that the most popular time for home owners to conduct estate agent research is in the evening, with 38% doing so between 6pm and 9pm, outside of traditional opening hours for many high street agents. When looking for property online, only 13% of respondents visit OnTheMarket to… Continue reading
Conveyancing activity in UK saw ups and downs in second quarter of 2016
Conveyancing activity in the UK residential housing market increased in the second quarter of 2016 with changes to stamp duty pushing up transactions by 24% year on year, the latest data shows. Sales jumped from 230,430 to 286,425 as completions were registered following the rush to beat the Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) changes for buy to let properties and second homes in April 2016, according to the latest edition of the Conveyancing Market Tracker from Search Acumen, the search provider. Completions recorded in the second quarter of 2016 were some 30% higher than two years ago and 59% higher than three years previously and compared with the first quarter of 2016 the three months preceding the SDLT reform there was a rise of 4% as conveyancers dealt with the reverberations across the housing market and the rush of transactions were logged as completed by Land Registry. The tracker report, which uses Land Registry data to examine competitive pressures in the conveyancing market, shows the top five firms led the way in terms of growth compared to the rest of the market, with completed activity rising 17% over the quarter and 41% over the year to reach an average of 3,523 transactions per firm over the three month period. However, outside the top five, the most significant quarterly growth was seen among those firms ranked 501 or lower. In the second quarter their average volume of transactions rose by 5% from the previous quarter. Year on year, those firms ranked 501 to 1,000 experienced 23% growth while those outside the top 1,000 recorded 19% growth. A combination of the SDLT aftershock and pre-Brexit activity meant that conveyancers experienced a rollercoaster ride from month to month during the second quarter. April saw the largest number of businesses responsible for completed transactions at Land Registry in any month since September 2014. The total of 4,374 was 4% higher than a year earlier, when 4,201 firms were active, and suggests the stamp duty rush brought more occasional players back to the market. Volumes of completed conveyancing transactions were also at their highest in April since monthly records began five years earlier in April 2011. Over the month, activity jumped 26% to 114,425 in April from 90,476 in March. Despite an inevitable slowdown the following month, both May and June also saw year on year rises of 14% with firms completing 81,583 and 90,477 transactions respectively, as activity picked up again despite the uncertainty ahead of the UK’s referendum on its EU membership. ‘Few sectors have been left untouched by the tumultuous events of the past few months, and the impact of the EU referendum on the political and economic landscape. Our analysis shows the conveyancing industry has been tried and tested in recent months, and the pressure shows no sign of easing as our country begins to work out what… Continue reading
Central London office leasing bounces back after referendum vote
The amount of central London office space leased by businesses bounced back from a pre-referendum dip to reach 980,400 square feet in July, according to the latest research. This 24% above the level seen in June and the strongest monthly average since March this year, according to global real estate advisor CBRE. Appetite for London office space was validated by three deals over 50,000 square feet in July, including a major move by Wells Fargo for 220,700 square feet of space in the City of London. The report points out that this move has been widely seen as a vote of confidence from the banking and finance sector after the UK voted to leave the European Union. The sector accounted for 31% of take-up in July, followed by the business services sector at 22% and creative industries at 17%. However, July’s office take-up in central London remained below the 10 year average of 1.1 million square feet per month, but above trend leasing activity in the City and Southbank which CBRE says suggests that businesses still see London as an attractive place to locate. ‘Much has been said about the health of the London office market this year, but clearly demand for office space remains buoyant. Businesses are still confident about London’s significant advantages as a global business centre, even when the UK is outside the EU. This continued demand, mostly driven by key lease events, in a market with low supply, is maintaining headline rents at the same rate as in May and June,’ said Emma Crawford, head of London Leasing at CBRE. ‘Of course the jump in leasing activity is good news for the market, and whilst this is not universal across all sub-sectors of the London market, even with heightened economic and political uncertainty, longer term prospects remain promising,’ she added. The data also shows that available office space increased by 2% over the month to stand at 13.6 million square feet but remained 7% below the 10 year average, as secondhand, completed and pipeline space continues to enter the market. The development pipeline is strong, but much is pre-let, with 46% of the 5.1 million square feet of space expected to complete before the end of the year already pre-committed to occupiers. Office space under offer fell by 14% over the course of the month to stand at three million square feet as a number of large deals completed. This is 7% above the 10 year average of 2.8 million square feet which CBRE says is another indicator of strong demand. A separate CBRE report shows that rental values across the UK’s commercial property market were steady in July, while capital values fell by 3.3%. But it points out that the fall in capital values was widely expected and pulled year on year growth down to 0.4%. The report explains that heightened economic uncertainty, especially for financial services firms, hit offices in the City of London, shrinking capital values… Continue reading
