30/03/2008 by admin.

Almost every homeowner in Britain has engaged the services of an estate agent at some time or other. Many surveys put estate agents alongside politicians and journalists as those they perceive as the least trustworthy professions. A reputation only hindered by recent ITV satires and undercover documentaries of the industries.

So what’s the truth? Firstly, there is no substitute for reputation. Asking your friends and neighbours about their experience, both as buyers and sellers will always be helpful. Since MunroLock opened our clients have come back to us time and time again and recommended us to their friends.

Secondly, there is a professional association, The National Association of Estate Agents. The NAEA has 10,000 members and is ‘committed to raising professional standards, across all aspects of the property market for the benefit of member agents, and ultimately the home moving public’.

Those that work at estate agents have a duty of care to their clients, stringent procedures to follow, if they ignore these procedures, they could face a criminal record. It is important that those agents who do not comply to these regulations are reported and dealt with. I frequently see things like the over-valuing of properties still happening in this area.

However, Estate Agents should have no reason to be forever tainted with such negative perceptions. After all, few of us come into contact with politicians and journalists at all, but we do need estate agents, and do so when we are undertaking a very important and financially critical transaction – buying or selling our home.

So, yes, you can put your faith in the - right – estate agent.

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30/03/2008 by admin.

The outcome of the recent budget was that there is not much help for first time buyers and they are all wondering how and when they will be able to afford a mortgage and purchase their new home. A time that should be exciting is now a stressful, worrying and drawn out process of saving for a deposit of 10% - 12% of the property price which if you are on a low salary, can take a long time especially if you are buying on your own. You also have to look at getting a mortgage and a lot of buyers are also waiting till the interest rate drops before they look to buy a property. Some lenders give money to people who can not afford the re payments and in the long term may loose the roof over their head. There are other options, such as buying with friends or getting a bargain at an auction but some have complications and are not suitable for everyone. So be prepared, be sensible and make sure you have enough funds in place and speak to our independent mortgage advisor Mark Veness of Approved Mortgages and Loans who will no doubt be able to get you a great rate.

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20/03/2008 by admin.

Having grown up in the idyllic and spectacular scenery of Somerset, about six months ago I made the decision to leave my family and close friends to move the Bromley in Kent. Whilst most people I speak to say I must be a tad ‘round the bend’ there is an appeal that many people my age are discovering; a desire to achieve more and make the most of the land of opportunity.

Growing up in the West Country is a great experience, and I would strongly advise it but, for me there came a time when I wanted to branch out, explore more, and I set my sights on London. I count myself lucky in that my mother and father grew up in South London, some extended family still live here so getting a place to stay wasn’t that hard but instantly I was caught up in the fast pace of life and I loved it. It’s got everything a person of my age could want, fantastic places to eat, drink, socialise and meet new people not to mention the endless job opportunities and fantastic cultural diversity. I often get the impression the majority of people are trying to get out of the “rat race” but I say… take a good look at what this area has to offer, I guarantee you won’t be disappointed.

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19/03/2008 by admin.

My best friend is fab.  She’s pretty, full of life, outgoing and very sociable, but for some reason is still single.  We’re both in our early thirties, and past the stage where we feel the need to go clubbing every weekend wearing the latest Top Shop has to offer.  Her family are starting to worry that she’ll never get married which in turn is making her question why she is still single.  I know she would love to find someone special, get married and settle down in the burbs like me, but it just hasn’t happened.  Thankfully (unlike me) she still has the energy to keep up an active social life and doesn’t mope about like some Bridget Jones wannabe, so surely she must have a good chance of meeting someone?  Whenever I call her she’s out meeting friends for drinks, going to dinner, weekends away and visits to the gym but that elusive Mr Right never seems to cross her path. 

I would like to know how men in their thirties go about finding their Mrs Right?  Surely there must be men out there who are in the same situation, ie. not desperate, but have a secret longing to settle down?  If you are a thirty something single man looking for Miss Right, please give me an idea where my friend can find you, and maybe, you never know, you could live happily ever after.

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18/03/2008 by admin.

Life for an Estate Agent in Hayes has been up and down over the past few months, in fact much more down than up in the last 3 months of last year, but once the kids went back to school that seemed to be the trigger for quite an upturn, which didnt seem to happen in other local areas, and whilst that upturn has modified there are still plenty of people wanting to come to Hayes.

The biggest single reason is Hayes Secondary School, which has an increasingly good reputation, and in fact the catchment area seems to be shrinking with people now working out which roads they need to be in to guarantee entry.

It is quite obvious that this year is going to be more difficult for the housing market and for the economy, but Hayes is a very stable area and we expect the usual steady demand from families coming to the area.

As with any High Street shops come and go, the latest to go being Hayes Cards, whilst by the station the new chemist has taken the second shop previously occupied by Brassets and this has lifted that area which had looked a little run down.

Hayes residents are as usual grateful to THE LADY ON THE BIKE who is always picking up litter on the common each morning

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10/03/2008 by admin.

The Munrolock Home Guide is coming along nicely now. If you live in the Bromley Borough, you just may find something of interest for you. Keep visiting it over the next couple of months, there is alot planned for it…………….http://www.munrolockhomeguide.co.uk

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05/03/2008 by admin.

Today we had a seller pull out of selling. By email. A few days before it was due to exchange. The buyer was extremely upset. Obviously. We had to give her the bad news that the property she had set her heart on, spent solicitors costs on, was no longer going to be hers.

If you ever wondered why Estate Agents fees are as they are, this is one of the main reasons. Believe it or not, alot of work and hours go into selling a property, as well as printing costs, postage, phone bills etc. If we charged every seller for going on the market regardless of whether they went through with it or not, the fees would reduce dramatically.

But I am sure it is not us you will feel sorry for and understandably so. The buyer, as many do, planned for the future in that property, probably had already bought furniture, accessories etc.  We will do everything we can to find her something else, hopefully something even better, but I cannot help thinking that rather than Home Information Packs, couldn’t the government have come up with something to stop this kind of thing happening??   

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03/03/2008 by admin.

According to one property website, 73% of Estate Agents have positive thoughts about the property market. So maybe the other 27% are spreading doom and gloom along with the media…….

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01/03/2008 by admin.

An article in a local newspaper reported that an estate agent in the Bromley Borough recently posted the id information they had been given by their seller on to their website for everyone to see! Proof of id is now extremely important but to be so careless with it is unforgivable. If as Estate Agents we are going to collect copies of passports etc, then they should be kept safe. I dont believe the agent in question is a member of the NAEA….

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24/02/2008 by admin.

It’s easy to become cynical or pessimistic in Estate Agency. Estate Agents have bad press, no doubt about that and in some cases it may be justified, but is it really the Estate Agent who shouldn’t be trusted? Or is it the buyers? Or the sellers?

In this case, we knew from the outset that this particular person wasn’t telling us the whole truth. He offered on one of our properties and as always we ask if they will talk to our financial advisor (is this to try to get them to use our mortgage broker? partly of course, we are running a business, but mainly it’s because an advisor can pick up when someone isn’t sure of their finances.). Our advisor, obviously not able to tell us too much about the conversation, could only say that he didn’t believe the buyer knew quite how he was going to finance the purchase.     

An offer is an offer though and by law it has to be put forward to the seller. An interesting point though…. how much do you think an agent should tell their seller? Do you think we should say if we believe someone is as dodgy as hell, untrustworthy, doesn’t have the money etc? Or should we just put the offer forward and be done with it? I believe it’s a little bit of both.

In this case the seller had already decided not to take the property off the market until the survey was booked, which is becoming more common and I cannot disagree with the reasons for doing so…at least you know once a survey has been booked that the buyer has shelled out some money.

Then came the issues. The buyer after being told the property was staying on the market, continued to talk as if he wanted to buy the property. Great. Two days later….still no solicitor details…..four days later….still no solicitor details and no word on his finances…..a week later and in another phone call to the buyer, he decides to tell us that he has decided not to instruct a solicitor or arrange his mortgage until the property is off the market. Now it’s taken a week for him to tell us this and you can work out the conversation we had with the seller….no chance of taking the property of the market, which is understandable.

This went back and forth for the next few days with no end in sight, until suddenly the buyer said he would instruct his solicitor the next day and was organising a survey for the next few days. We could tell this was going to be hard work, but at least it seemed to be going somewhere.  

To cut the story short, six days later, no news, no survey, no contact from the buyer. When we finally manage to contact him, he says he has now decided not to buy the property as he is unsure it is the one he wants. To cap it off, we hear through the grapevine that he has offered on at least four properties over the last couple of weeks and was pretending he was going to buy them all!! 

This is sadly not uncommon and we are powerless to do anything about it. What do you think should be done about it? 

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