Rochford, Stafford and Croydon

ROCHFORD, ESSEX

Hugo Rodrigues
Acasa Estate Agents

Our local market is doing well. While we are not seeing a lot of actual buyers out there, there are still plenty of potential buyers. We are finding that buyers who are not 100 per cent sure about moving are not looking at present, which means we are only dealing with buyers who are serious and committed to moving, which is why we are achieving so many offers and sales.

When I am speaking to vendors whose homes are on the market with other agents, they seem to be frustrated in the lack of viewings. A big part of this is that they are not getting feedback or updates from their agents, I always say to my vendors would they like viewers or buyers?

With the great transport links – London is only 55 minutes away – we are still seeing a great number of buyers moving out of London due to the high prices and congestion, and also there are plenty of families who want a safer environment for their children to grow up.

THE BREXIT EFFECT

The main thing affecting the local market is the ‘B’ word – by that I mean Brexit. Many potential sellers/buyers are still concerned over the uncertainty of what will happen, as it has been dragging on so long. Some have given up and just decided to continue life as normal, which is great, but there still is a big percentage that are waiting to see the outcome.

As local agents specialising in sales and rentals it’s always a surprise to me when I go to a valuation and the lack of information that has given from some agents in regards to the requirements needed in order to sell or rent their property even down to simple things like the EPC, just this morning I had a valuation was the third agent round and no one had mentioned the EPC – it amazes me.

STAFFORD, STAFFORDSHIRE

Steve Dourish, Director
Dourish & Day

Dourish & Day is the leading estate agency operating in Stafford and the village of Penkridge. The agency was founded in March 2017 in Stafford and the Penkridge office opened in July 2018.

We are an independently run, independently minded Estate Agency. We pride ourselves on our expert knowledge in all aspects of buying and selling property, founded on a deep knowledge of Staffordshire with over 40 years of combined experience.

We are a team of quick thinkers and good listeners who do that rare thing; treat customers like individuals, not transactions!

We know that great service isn’t just about experience and expertise, it’s also about keeping the promises that we make.

We deal with all property types from terraced homes requiring modernisation at £50,000 up to large country homes in excess of £1 million. We also specialise in rented properties, being one of the first agents in the UK to never charge tenant fees.

When we opened our business, we wanted to ensure that we were accessible and we’re available from 9.00am to 9.00pm 7 days a week where our clients speak to one of experienced team members.

A BUOYANT MARKET

The local market is very buoyant often with several properties per month having multiple offers and being sold by informal tender. Stafford is situated very well for the commuter market with the M6 motorway and the mainline railway station in Stafford. They provide excellent links to Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Telford, Stoke on Trent and South Cheshire. As a result, we are seeing more buyers coming into the vicinity including a high proportion of southern buyers. Some properties are selling to our hot applicants within 24 hours of marketing. Locally, our sales have remained very strong in 2019 and we’ve not been hit with market factors like Brexit as agents in the capital have experienced.

Over 95 per cent of our property stock is on a sole agency basis. The majority of our multiple agency contracts are from corporate clients. Average transaction time between sales agreed to exchange is 14 weeks. To try to combat this, we recently introduced a sales progression team, allowing us to focus on dealing with chains and Solicitors to try and push to get the sale through to completion.

CROYDON, SURREY

Marcel Ruane, Senior Branch Manager
Cray & Norton

Born and bred in Croydon it is fair for me to say that the area has had bad press over the years! People have an image of Croydon as a place full of 1950 – 1960s concrete carbuncles, but if they came to Croydon I think they would be pleasantly surprised. The area is undergoing a £5 billion redevelopment, with a Westfield shopping centre and new residential developments have been springing up.

From East Croydon station you can be in central London in 20 minutes, which makes the area appealing to buyers and tenants.

The majority of the housing stock in Croydon is 1920s / 1930s two- and three-bedroom houses, though the recent redevelopment has introduced a plethora of modern apartments to the market. With the uncertainty surrounding Brexit, the market has been challenging and price sensitive, but buyers and tenants have a wide choice of properties to choose from. The first half of 2019 has been pretty buoyant with good levels of activity on both sales and lettings. With the Borough of Croydon being one of the more affordable in London, activity is always pretty high, though the influx of the new modern developments has definitely had an effect on the marketing of the standard conversion flats and purpose-built blocks in the area.

FIRST TIME BUYERS!

Activity from investors has declined due to the changes in taxation, but we have seen a steady increase in first time buyer activity. It is great to see people making their first steps on to the property ladder. The majority of our transactions recently have been two- and three-bedroom houses in the Addiscombe area, which has a High Street that offers a variety of shops plus the benefit of the only tramline in London.

Cray & Norton is an independent family run agency that specialises in both residential sales and lettings. We are proud that many of our clients come from recommendations in the local area and customer care is central in everything we do. We have been open for over 13 years now and are seen as a viable alternative to the larger corporate agents in the local area.

Pictured property: Dalmally Road, Addiscombe – £405,000 A two double bedroom house in a popular residential road.