Hard work is key to house sales now

People often tell us we are ‘bucking the trend’ because they see so many Hobbs Parker ‘sale agreed’ or ‘sold’ boards as they drive around the area.

It is true that we agreed 35 sales during October which we think are good results by anyone’s standards but I can tell you it doesn’t come easily and not without a lot of hard work.

The housing market is subdued and sellers are facing challenging market conditions but there is nonetheless market activity whatever the political or economic climate. We deal with buyers and sellers who want to buy and sell, with many good reasons for doing so.

It is true there are fewer people moving this year which means a smaller number of sellers but also a smaller number of buyers, this can actually create a favourable supply and demand dynamic. Money is cheap to borrow which is a strong driver and likely to maintain underlying demand. There are numerous mortgage options available from a diverse range of lenders which can facilitate buying power, the trick is for movers to do their homework.

The key for sellers is to try and offer their houses for sale at realistic prices, there is no scope for inflated guide prices at the moment so get it wrong and the result is that buyers stay away.

This balance is hard and sometimes painful to find with many sellers reducing their asking prices more than once in search of the biting point, the figure at which demand is ignited.

Another important factor is the way that a house is marketed, what information is important and how is this promoted.