March Market Update - Christies House Price Index - Local property prices have already increased this year

The latest Christies House Price Index, uses the most up to date reliable data from the Land Registry, and also confirms that property in the local area continues to represent an outstanding investment.

Local property prices increased by at least 19% in 2014 and continue to rise in 2015. Medium and long term gains are even more exceptional. 

Based on past performance potential buyers will be very encouraged to see that prices have risen by 34% over the previous five years, by 41% over the previous ten years and by an astonishing 145% over the previous 15 years.

What is perhaps even more impressive is that prices are now also 17% higher than at the previous peak of the market in early 2008.

The comparison is based on the average price of all local properties sold including flats, maisonettes, all types of houses and bungalows. Figures for March onwards are not yet available - the Index will be revised as soon as the data is released so please check this page regularly for any updates.

Date..............Average Price.........Average Price Feb 2015.......YEARS............INCREASE

Feb-00..............£129,516.........................£317,456.....................15....................145%Feb-05..............£225,668.........................£317,456.....................10.....................41%Feb-10..............£236,242.........................£317,456......................5......................34%

In recent times, demand for properties in Cheam, North Cheam, Sutton, Stonecot Hill, Carshalton, Worcester Park, Ewell, Epsom & Banstead  and surrounding towns and villages has increased dramatically. Much of this demand is due to the extremely popular local schools which are nationally renowned and attract large numbers of enquiries, ensuring that property sale levels and prices have remained well above quoted national averages.

Buyers also flood into the area to take advantage of a wide range of leisure and shopping amenities. Flourishing local communities offer popular cafés, restaurants and varied independent shops and businesses coupled with many high street names, creating an enviable mix of retail and food outlets.

These combine with excellent road and rail links, to ensure demand for property remains constant and represents an exceptional investment.

Christies have an unparalleled understanding of the locality and are dedicated to ensuring customers are always informed – not just on the property market and prices, but also the wider area and amenities. 

For example, the location of the properties we sell, are ideally situated on the fringes of London, bordering rural Surrey greenbelt countryside with picture postcard villages and market towns full of rich heritage and character.

When looking at buying a new home, we believe it is imperative that our purchasers are fully informed about all aspects of the potential move.

Your estate agent should be able to answer any of your questions regarding this. We are proud to represent this area and convey that passion to anyone looking to move here.

Please contact us on 020 8643 7777 or email at sales@christiesworld.com

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Budget Comment 2015 – Bottoms Up

Nick Churton of our London Mayfair Global Network looks at the key property related feature in this year’s budget.

The property market is like a building. It is built from the bottom up. Good foundations underpin the market just as they do a fine building.

Much nonsense is spoken about the market being driven by the wealthy. In fact it is driven by the needy – those people who simply need a roof over their head rather than desiring a better home for extra convenience or social status.

The two central piles of good property market foundations are affordability and confidence. Chancellor George Osborne sought to further strengthen these in this year’s Budget speech.

The most important Budget feature for the property market is a Help to Buy ISA which will act as a 25% top-up on deposits. The government will add £50 to every £200 that an intending home buyer saves in one of these new ISAs. George Osborne said the new scheme could be used by a first-time buyer needing a 10% deposit of £15,000. Therefore a buyer now only needs to save £12,000 as the Government will top up the amount by £3,000. The chancellor said, “A 25% top-up is equivalent to saving for a deposit from your pre-tax income – it’s effectively a tax cut for first-time buyers.”

The scheme will be available on properties worth up to £450,000 in London and up to £250,000 outside the capital. It can also be used by couples buying a home together, potentially doubling the government’s contribution to the scheme which should be launched this autumn.

For deposit-strapped first time buyers this is a welcome and timely boost. It should accelerate the speed in which they can get into the market by shortening the period they have to spend in saving for a deposit. This is important at a time when in many areas house price inflation has outpaced wage inflation.

So confidence in the economy is growing. Unemployment is falling. Some are beginning to see their wages rise ahead of inflation and interest rates are at an all time low. Hand in hand with this confidence boost is growing affordability. Buying a home will for many now be a cheaper option than renting. So far so good: but what we need now is some more stock for these aspirational purchasers to buy! Property is never all Champagne and roses. But at least some first time buyers can now crack open the fizz.

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Christies Network Auctions: £5.4 million raised in March sale

Christies Network Auctions held our two day March sale at our new venue of the Grosvenor House on London’s Park Lane on March 3rd with the second day at Birmingham City FC in conjunction with Pennycuick Collins on March 11th.

The March sale saw a record number of legal packs downloaded and both days drew large attendances (over 300 people) with standing room only during the sales. This was a clear indication of the successful growth of auctions as a method of sale.

There was lively bidding on both days but there were also some signs of investors showing increasing caution as a number of lots fell short of the reserve prices set. Auctions are always a clear barometer of market sentiment and the sale demonstrated a clear gap between many sellers expectations and buyer’s reality and the need for realistic reserve prices.

In total, an impressive £5.4 million of property, including residential, commercial and land was sold over the two days.

Auctioneer Guy Charrison entertained the audience in London in between lots with anecdotes and interesting trivia and worked hard from the rostrum to deal with bids that were being made in the room, by proxy, by telephone and over the internet.

Stuart Tullah was at the rostrum in Birmingham and oversaw a successful day including the remarkable sale of lot 57 which was a house with a short (eleven year) lease which had a guide price of £30,000 and ended up selling some 336% higher at £101,000.

Network Auctions Managing Director Toby Limbrick said: “We were delighted with our new venue at the Grosvenor House and the large turnout for both days demonstrated a keen interest from investors, institutions and the public at large. To have a number of lots fall just short of reserve was obviously disappointing but we are certain that several deals will be arranged post auction as sellers can be confident that, having tested the market in the room, the price they achieve is a good one."

“Historically the property market shows signs of slowing due to uncertainty before a General Election but the auction market remains more robust and this is borne out by the amount of interest in our next auction sale in May.”
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Christies Network Auctions’ next sale is another two day event with the London auction coinciding with the General Election on Thursday 7th May and the Birmingham auction taking place on May 13th.

The catalogue for the May sale is now open and, having invited lots for inclusion, the size of the catalogue is growing fast. If you are considering selling, please contact Jeremy Richardson of Christies Network Auctions on 020 8643 7777 or at sales@christiesworld.com who will be delighted to discuss the best approach for your property.

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Voting Intentions

Nick Churton of our London Mayfair Global Network takes a very personal view on moving home in this time of political and economic uncertainty.

Which way will you vote? Will you vote to move home before or after the election?

All decisions have consequences. And all big decisions have big consequences. Buying and selling property is certainly a big decision. Answers to questions like this are best made on the basis of what you know.

So what do we know? We know that Britain is a nation of homeowners, that we have the lowest interest rates ever and lenders have entered a mortgage rate war, bringing some incredible deals to the market. We know that as salaries rise so does the affordability to move home and that it is now often cheaper to buy a property than to rent one. We know that we are more optimistic about the economic future - and therefore our own financial futures - than we have been since 2008. Finally we know that property stock levels are the lowest for many years and while that should put upward pressure on prices it hasn’t because of what we don’t know.

We don’t know who will be in 10 Downing Street after May 7th. So we don’t know what sort of country we will be living in following the election. We don’t know how far the current improvement in the economy will take us, nor the effect that the three headed monster crisis of Euro Zone, the Ukraine and the Middle East will have over time. Nor do we know how much a mansion tax would affect the UK property market. It would also be helpful if we knew how long our current low interest rates will prevail. But we don’t.

One thing estate agents have always known is that many fewer people would move if residential properties were simply viewed as commodities. But residential properties are not commodities they are homes and, despite what is going on in the world, at the heart of our lives and our families are our homes. They are not a speculation they are a human necessity.

If your voting intention to move is clouded by indecision you are not alone. But in my view one thing is certain; home trumps the UK economy, current affairs, ‘dodgy’ politicians, terrorists, tax evaders, devolution and the oil industry. Home is where the heart is and if this is the right time to find a new home then now is the right time to move – despite what is going on in the rest of the world or who might be grinning broadly at us from the steps of Number 10 on 8th May.

Please contact us on 020 8643 7777 or email at sales@christiesworld.com

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Last Call for Lots – Don’t Miss out

Christies Network Auctions are still accepting entries for the auction on Tuesday 3^rd March but... the deadline is fast approaching!

If you are still looking to sell:

Residential properties

Commercial investments

Land with or without planning permission

 We can advise on all aspects of selling by auction and provide free appraisals for properties anywhere in the UK.

 With major auctions in London and Birmingham supported by a network of partner agents throughout the country we provide expert local marketing combined with national exposure resulting in the best possible sale price for your property.

 We accept instructions from private individuals, asset managers and corporations as well as sub instructions from agents.

 This is the ideal opportunity to secure a fast exchange of contracts in the current tax year and before the disruption of the general election.

Call us today and our team of valuers and auctioneers will be pleased to assist you.

Please contact us on 020 8643 7777 or email at sales@christiesworld.com

www.christiesworld.com

House or Mouse?

Nick Churton of our Mayfair Office Global Network is pleased to announce the launch of a great new property market resource for buyers and sellers - OnTheMarket 

Many property buyers and sellers will soon be aware that there is a new property portal to help them find or market a home. In recent years there have been two main portals, Rightmove and Zoopla. Both these appear on television commercials and, until now, they have been supported by many corporate and independent estate agents up and down the country who upload all their properties onto these sites.

But over the coming weeks and months homebuyers and sellers will become very familiar with OnTheMarket  which was launched on 26^th January this year. OnTheMarket will be hard to miss. There will be television commercials on the main channels and independent high street estate agents like us will feature the arresting red, white and blue Google-style map pin logo in our local, regional and national newspaper advertising, websites and prominent office windows.

We support OnTheMarket because it is easy to use and uncomplicated for buyers and sellers - and it is free from extraneous ads, pop ups and announcements. We strongly believe that before long most independent firms – the bulk of the UK’s estate agents - will be on OnTheMarket. Very quickly it will become a leading property resource.

But we want to stress that any property portal is only there to let people know what is on the market. Property portals won’t value property, tell owners what they can do to add value to their homes, accompany and influence prospective buyers, negotiate fiercely on a seller’s behalf and then diplomatically, respectfully and tactfully steer a sale to completion through the complexities of conveyancing, mortgages, surveys and other chain-related issues – including other buyers and sellers all with very different needs, wants and timescales.

We hope that you will come to enjoy and regularly use OnTheMarket  for your property research. But never forget that the best way to buy a home is through a house agent and not a mouse agent. Mouse or house it is your choice, but in the world of estate agency dealing with experienced and empathetic people is always preferable to dealing with an electronic rodent with no imagination.

Please contact us on 020 8643 7777 or email at sales@christiesworld.com

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Christies Estate Agents joins new property website OnTheMarket.com

Christies are proud to announce we are featuring all of our properties at OnTheMarket.com, a new property website which launches on Monday, January 26th 2015 as a direct competitor to Rightmove and Zoopla.

OnTheMarket.com is a mutual organisation focused on providing an outstanding service for property searchers, estate and letting agents, vendors and landlords. The venture already has the support of more than 4,600 estate and lettings agency branches nationwide, including those of leading national, regional and local firms. OnTheMarket.com is expecting many more to join in the coming weeks after they have seen the website.

Estate and letting agents who have joined have moved hundreds of thousands of properties to OnTheMarket.com from other websites to create a unique set of listings which cannot be found elsewhere. In addition, many are choosing to launch their properties exclusively there first, at least 48 hours in advance of the other portals.

Neither Rightmove nor Zoopla can now claim their property listings cover the entire market because many estate and letting agents have left them to join OnTheMarket.com as the best platform to showcase their properties in the clearest and simplest way.

The property search at OnTheMarket.com is slick, simple, fast and state-of-the-art, compatible with the latest technologies. The website adapts seamlessly to fit the screen of any device being used to view it. There is no clutter from irritating and distracting third party adverts, nor any spam email.

Every property at OnTheMarket.com is marketed by a locally-based estate or letting agent because OnTheMarket.com knows the majority of the public recognises the benefits of having a local professional in place who can manage the sales or lettings process on their behalf. Also, there is no substitute for their detailed knowledge of a property, the local area, the current market conditions and the vendor’s/landlord's personal circumstances. OnTheMarket.com does not feature properties marketed by online-only agents.

We believe OnTheMarket.com will rapidly grow to become a major player in the portal market because it will provide a clean, crisp and simple search function and a highly effective platform for our vendor and landlord clients and be a great place to launch new properties onto the market.”

Ian Springett, Chief Executive of OnTheMarket.com, said: “We are delighted Christies has committed to OnTheMarket.com and we look forward to matching motivated buyers and tenants with all the properties our member agents are marketing for their clients in and around Cheam, Sutton, Carshalton Beeches, Banstead, Epsom, Ewell, Stoneleigh, Worcester Park and all the other area covered by Christies” Please visit www.OnTheMarket.com now to register.

Please contact us on 020 8643 7777 or email at sales@christiesworld.com

www.christiesworld.com