Property indices have been friend and foe to estate agents over the years, but the recent turbulent market has created sharp contradictions which have caused me on many occasions to question their reliability and accuracy.

According to Knight Frank’s recent Property Sentiment Index, property prices fell for the 20th consecutive month, yet Rightmove’s latest House Price Index shows asking prices seeing their sharpest rise in ten years. This kind of contradiction reported across the country only creates confusion with the general public and uncertainty in the market.

The property market is built on confidence and, like every other economic market, is easily influenced by positive or negative market sentiment.
All of the monthly indices utilise different sources of data and represent different stages of the buying process, something that the public doesn’t necessarily appreciate.

Whether it’s asking prices (Rightmove), industry or general public market sentiment (RICS / Knight Frank), mortgage approvals (Nationwide, Halifax) or transaction prices (HM Land Registry / LSL Academetrics), the wealth of indices and their vast inconsistencies have a huge impact on the market.

Although a national perspective is useful for property investors and industry professionals, it is important to remember that for most people reading these headlines, their property is their home and their main asset.

Yes, buying a property will probably be one of the largest investments most people will ever make, but I am constantly reminding buyers that this will be their home first and foremost. This sounds very simple and straightforward, but I think households across the country have lost sight of that.

Micro-markets exist not only in every town and city but even street by street, and it’s our job at the sharp end to understand these markets and advise clients appropriately. Defending the latest news agenda is something we are quite used to doing.

If a buyer falls in love with a property and buys it, does it matter that in six months or a year’s time, the price might have dipped by 0.5%? No, I would hope they will stay there, add value and enjoy their home for a number of years before starting to worry about the market again.
As experts in the housing market we should be advising our clients to take these indices with a pinch of salt and concentrate on the basics of what makes a property a good investment and mostly importantly a home.

* David Pollock has published his first book, ‘101 Things Your Estate Agent Should Tell You’. Click here to buy on Amazon.

Source: www.estateagenttoday.co.uk

Greene & Co. was awarded as Best Small Estate Agency at The Estate Agency of the Year Awards in association with The Sunday Times and The Times and sponsored by Zoopla.co.uk.

On Thursday 8th December, over 500 leading estate agents and conveyancing lawyers descended upon The Lancaster London Hotel opposite Hyde Park for The Estate Agency of The Year Awards ceremony. The winners received their awards from celebrity guest, Ben Fogle who charmed the audience with some inspiring tales of his adventures.

The awards ceremony was the culminating event of a rigorous and thorough judging process carried out over a four month period by a panel of industry experts who assessed initial entry submissions before conducting an extensive review of the entrants which included hundreds of telephone interviews and mystery shopping exercises. The whole judging process was overseen by The Property Ombudsman; Christopher Hamer.

For the past nine years, the awards have become increasingly competitive with the standard of entries rising ever higher. These awards are firmly established as the most sought-after and difficult to win in estate agency. Over 5,000 offices were represented this year, but only the very best of the best were crowned as winners.

Greene & Co., winners of the Best Small Estate Agency were delighted to receive the award.

A website listing all the winning companies with comments from the judges as to why they won can be found at www.estateagencyoftheyear.com

Peter Knight, Chairman of the event organisers Estate Agency Events commented “At a time when the property market throughout much of the UK continues to struggle, choosing the right estate agent has never been more pertinent. The winners of these awards represent the top 10% of an industry where standards are hugely variable. Consumers should have confidence that a firm displaying a winner’s medal from these awards are a cut above the rest.”

The main awards were sponsored by Zoopla.co.uk, the UK’s most comprehensive property website whilst the specialist categories were sponsored by some of the industry’s leading suppliers including Audio Agent, ARPM, Clear Conveyancing, FWBS, Key Agent, Law Firm Services, Moneypenny, Mortgage Talk, MoveWithUs, MyHomeMove, Ravensworth, Reapit, Roomservice by CORT and WhatHouse.co.uk

For further information, please contact marketing@greene.co.uk.

Almost 2 million homeowners are now paying less for their mortgages than when they first bought their properties, according to new research carried out by Caroline Purdey, the market analyst for the Council of Mortgage Lenders.

The savings are due to a record low Bank of England base rate of 0.5% for the past 32 months; helping 1.8 million owners save an average of £2,600 a year by switching to their lender’s Standard Variable Rate after their fixed rate deal ended.

According to the CML, even if interest rates were to rise next year, around 85% of these borrowers would still be paying less each month than their original payment by the end of 2012, and around 58% would still be paying less than their original payment throughout 2014.

Simon Clarke, of independent mortgage brokers Jacobs Payne & Parry, commented: “The low interest rate environment has been an enormous support for homeowners in the turbulent economic climate of the past three to four years.

Many people who may have suffered financially, have kept a roof over their heads due to the fact their monthly mortgage payments have been so low that there have been relatively few repossessions, despite the magnitude of the current crisis, shows just how much of a support low Standard Variable Rates have provided. If Standard Variable Rates had been higher, far more people would have fallen into arrears and worse”

Our very own David Pollock, MD of Greene & Co. added: “Homeowners with an ounce of nous will have been overpaying on their mortgages and paying off some of their equity at a much quicker rate. The savings will stand them in good stead when the market recovers. As long as base rates remain low, this is a win-win situation”

For now, however, many borrowers are adopting a “wait and see” approach as markets expect the base rate to rise from 0.5% to around 0.9% by the end of 2012 and 2% by the end of 2014.

Source: http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/278739/2m-save-a-fortune-on-their-mortgage

New tenant demand again outpaced supply of rental property in the three months to July, as many continued to turn to the lettings sector, says the latest RICS Residential Lettings Survey.

As a result of this, rents continued to increase although the survey indicates that the pace of growth moderated slightly, with 34 per cent more surveyors reporting a rise in rents rather than a fall (compared with 42 per cent in the previous three month period). Significantly, the imbalance between demand and supply is thought likely to persist with the survey results suggesting that further gains in rents are likely over the coming months.
One of the main drivers of the strong demand for rental property continues to be would-be buyers who have moved to the lettings market after struggling to find mortgage finance, or first-time buyers unable to meet lenders’ deposit requirements. As a result, 25 per cent more chartered surveyors reported a rise in demand than a fall.

However, it is significant that the challenging economic environment is also leading to more tenants relying on assistance from the government. Social lettings are now at their highest level since the series began in 1999, at 13 per cent of all new lets (up from eight per cent). Meanwhile, lettings to private renters continue to make up the majority of lettings, at 66 per cent.

New landlord instructions – which indicate the flow of rental property coming to the market – continue to edge upwards albeit only modestly, with just five per cent more respondents reporting a rise in new instructions than a fall. Surveyors report that where tenancies are coming up for renewal, some landlords – particularly those in London and the South East – are now choosing to put their properties on the sales market, leaving fewer rental properties available.

The combination of strong tenant demand and a limited stock of good quality properties on offer is pushing rents ever higher across much of the country. This is the case both for houses and flats. Moreover, with mortgage finance for first time buyers likely to remain in short supply for some time to come, this imbalance is set to persist. The inevitable outcome is that rents will continue to increase.”

James Scott-Lee, RICS spokesperson

Source: RICS Residential Lettings Survey www.rics.org