So, despite predictions that the housing market might fall off a cliff, once the June deadline for Stamp Duty had passed, there does not appear to be an end to the house price market boom in sight just yet. July was another very strong month and it remains a strong sellers market with 40% of properties selling in excess of the asking price. There remains strong competition for properties with each property on the market having an average of 19 potential buyers.
So what does PLG take away from this that is useful for their clients…?
For a start, being a cash buyer can only be good in such a rapidly moving sellers’ market. Most of PLG’s clients are cash buyers, having money from settlements to spend on a forever home which means that they are in an excellent position to move swiftly to completion. In our experience it is interesting how many buyers seem to class themselves as ‘Cash Buyers’ when they still have a mortgage to secure. Lending criteria might not be as tight as it was but getting a mortgage is still far from straight forward for many people which means the strength of our client’s position still needs to be emphasised properly to ensure offers are given full consideration when competing with several other offers.
Many are not in a chain which again can make them an attractive purchaser to a seller. So PLG use years of experience in highlighting these advantages to sellers when in such a fast moving market, as they know how to make a PLG client stand out from the crowd as an attractive purchaser. If that perfect forever house comes on the market, we want to be sure that the client is at the front of the queue to take the next step. At PLG though we know that there are often some hoops we have to jump through if we are acting for clients who have a deputy in place or who are not able to visit the property themselves. We find that technology can really help here so that we can arrange a viewing quickly, taking family members along if possible, and prepare a really detailed video which highlights the areas of most importance to our client. We believe in having very open discussions with the deputy throughout and therefore ensure that we are in a position to move swiftly when the right property is found. This is essential to ensure that a PLG client has the best chance possible of beating the other competition to a desirable property in this sellers’ market.
It may well be that as the tapering of stamp duty continues and ultimately ends, the property market will also rebalance. But we believe that the high turnaround of properties during this period has honed skills in efficiency and the use of technology to move matters forward. It has made PLG smarter and more efficient which will ultimately benefit our clients whatever the state of the market.