SALES NEWS


MONDAY, AUGUST 3
A three-year-old petition, which was posted on the Downing Street website calling for the suspension of Stamp Duty, has now received a response from the Government. The petition was posted by Peter Young, managing director of John D Wood, and attracted 3,064 signatures in its support. In his petition, Wood says Stamp Duty is a "harmful tax" that should be suspended in order to re-energise the housing market. The Government refuses to say whether it will extend the current partial Stamp Duty holiday beyond the end of this year. It says: “Suspending Stamp Duty until 2012 would lead to a significant loss in the revenue that helps pay for essential services – things such as schools and hospitals. Nevertheless, the Government keeps stamp duty under review.”
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5
House prices increased by 1.1 per cent in July, the Halifax reports today. This is the second increase in the past three months, and the third in the first seven months of 2009. Prices in the three months to July compared to the previous three months – an indicator of the underlying trend – were 0.8 per cent higher. This slight increase was the first rise on this quarterly basis since October 2007. Prices fell by 0.8 per cent over the first seven months of 2009. The average house price in July was £159,623 compared to £160,861 in December 2008. House prices in July were 12.1 per cent lower on an annual basis.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 7
The RICS believes house prices will finish this year higher than in January, echoing what Nationwide said last week. But RICS says the market has not yet bottomed out, and prices could fall again next year. It says current price rises are driven by lack of stock. The RICS is forecasting an annual price rise of between one per cent and two per cent for this year, but says prices could drop next year by five per cent. The chief concern is rising unemployment. However they also predicted a 7.5 per cent fall in 2009, so perhaps it’s better to wait and see.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 14
Properties with poor Energy Performance Certificate ratings should be banned from the property market, according to the Energy Saving Trust. It is calling on the Government to introduce a law that would ban properties with F and G ratings from being sold or rented out from 2015 onwards. The quango, which employs 140 staff and costs £43m a year to run, was once slated as one of Britain’s most useless quangos, along with the likes of the British Potato Council.
MONDAY, AUGUST 17
Repossessions fell in the second quarter of the year, while cases of arrears levelled off, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders. The reason for fewer repossessions was primarily more forbearance by lenders. But the CML warns: “There can be no complacency about the potential scale of future payment problems. While the economy remains weak, and with unemployment still growing, arrears and possessions are likely to rise in the second half of the year.” The charity Shelter also warns of a second wave of repossessions as unemployment continues to climb.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 21
Traffic to the UK’s main property websites was up 9.25 per cent in July, compared with June, according to monitoring services Nielsen and comScore. The figures show that unique visits to the top 10 UK property websites jumped from 8.1m visits in June to over 8.9m in July, at a time that traditionally marks the beginning of a slow period in the residential property market.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 28
House prices have risen by 1.6 per cent this month, according to the Nationwide – flatly contradicting the latest Rightmove asking prices for properties new on the market, which have fallen by over two per cent this month. At £160,224, Nationwide says the average price of a typical UK property is still slightly lower than a year ago, but that the annual rate of change rose further in August, from -6.2 per cent to -2.7 per cent. The figure quoted by Nationwide, which bases its statistics on mortgage approvals, is also at serious odds with the Rightmove national average asking price for a property new on the market – nearly £223,000

SALE HIGHLIGHTS FOR THE MONTH

Well what a miserable summer we have had with many families having to bear the brunt of the weather - which at times was appalling. However, unlike the weather, August saw a steady and busy month for the office. Sales were up considerably on last year although as expected down on July, a trend that we always see in the month of August. Lettings saw a rapid upturn with normal business levels doubling - yes, that’s right, doubling. It’s hard to button the reason down on that one but we will keep an eye on where that trend may be going. Although many people took a well-deserved break at home, or if lucky abroad, interest from new enquiries was surprisingly high. So all in all, when we expected this month to be very quiet, it actually was quite busy.
ELSTREE
Simmons Estates now has more enquiries than ever before for Elstree, owing to us selling almost every home that has been on the market in the area since the beginning of the year. However, the consequence of this success is the severe lack of homes available, for this massive demand. We now have in excess of six high quality able buyers for any house type that becomes available in Elstree, at almost any price level. An example of this was a standard four-bedroom that came on the market in early August; it sold following bids from several buyers within a matter of just a few days. This month saw several exceptional homes sold in:

  • Park Crescent
  • Bishops Avenue
  • Potters Mews
  • Shiremead
  • Hollywood Court

Remember as Elstree’s Number One Agent you cannot do better than entrusting the sale of any prestigious home in the area to Simmons Estates..
BOREHAMWOOD:
This area still remains one of the most popular for buyers. The facts speak for themselves as this location saw the greatest rise in enquiries for August. We have seen a tremendous rise in both first- and second- time buyers registering from outside of the area, keen to locate a home in our location. I have no doubt with the continuing good news coming out regarding a steady improvement in the economy, this will continue. In fact when looking back at this month, the results are quite startling. Sales highlights this month included:

  • Melrose Avenue
  • Grace Close
  • Novello Way
  • Torworth Road
  • Sommerville Court
  • The Campions
  • Chandos Road

Do remember, if you are thinking of selling and want to get some honest advise from the areas leading selling agent, please give us a call.

MORTGAGE NEWS

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 12
House buyers are having to find larger and larger deposits, according to a mortgage business which chiefly works out of estate agency offices. MAB yesterday says that the average loan to value on mortgages fell below 70 per cent in the second quarter of this year. It says the average buyer needs a deposit of £51,000. MAB, which works from 400 locations, also said the problem is getting worse, not better. Its July figures showed that the average LTV is now 68 per cent.
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 26
House purchase loans made by banks ticked up slightly in July, going up from 35,564 loans in June to 38,141 – making it the highest monthly total for 17 months.
If you need advice, Simmons Estates Independent Mortgage Broker is able to search the whole of the market on your behalf.

LOOKING FORWARD:

As has been seen, the news continues to report both an improvement in the general economy and a substantive improvement in the housing sector. The later has led to reports of house prices rising. Truth is, many homes still languish on the market at the wrong price, if it’s sticking it’s probably priced too high, an old saying in my business but a very true one. Buyers know what prices should be, and won't be fooled by the desperate actions of agents out-pricing one another to gain instruction. I have always maintained a business position of: “If I don’t think I can sell it, I won't put it on my books.” This has, at times, created some ill-feeling with potential clients; however, after trying others, many have come back to me and successfully sold, at the right price. The others? Well, let’s just say there is still time. With a poor summer over, weather wise that is, we are looking forward to being busier than ever. I still feel a little cautious towards the recession recovery, as I have no doubt that we will still have bad news to deal with. However I am very comforted by the improvements that have been seen, and step forward into the second half of this year with a great deal of confidence.
Happy house hunting and I hope we have the chance to help you move.
Stephen Simmons
SIMMONS ESTATES
7 Shenley Road Borehamwood
Hertfordshire WD6 1DL
Telephone No: 020 8905 2255
Fax No: 020 8905 2205
EMAIL: info@simmonsestates.co.uk
WEBSITE:www.simmonsestates.co.uk/