Blackadders' Property Blog. Covering Dundee, Arbroath, Forfar and beyond

The Cost of Change

Blackadders Solicitors — Mon, 28 May 2012 09:30:09 +0000

Readers of previous blogs will know my views on surveys and general reports on house prices. Trying to explain to a purchaser that not all houses are selling for 10% less than the Home Report valuation is difficult, especially when they have read in newspaper articles that they should simply offer 10% lower than the asking price! Each property purchase requires its own individual strategy which can depend on the property type, the asking price and the psychology of the seller.

I guess this reinforces the importance of speaking to an expert in the property market to achieve your best possible price. Sellers often find it difficult to understand that the focus should be less on the price they achieve for their property and more focus should be on the cost of change, especially if they are moving within a similar property market (as 90% of sellers do).

What do I mean by cost of change? Well, if you are selling a property and your expectation is £100,000 and the property you are looking to purchase in the local area is £200,000 then the straight cost of change is £100,000. If you require to take a 15% hit in terms of your asking price to sell your property but your Solicitor manages to negotiate a similar deal at the other end (or better, which is always my challenge!) i.e. purchasing for £170,000, then the cost of change is actually £85,000 rather than the £100,000 and you are £15,000 better off – not to mention a potential reduction in Stamp Duty and other Government outlays.

Even with the Home Report we still get properties marketed at low asking prices to attract interest and we also have cases where the Home Report valuation is too high which again needs to be portrayed to the seller as part of the purchasing process.

The property market is tough at the moment and I would advise anyone selling or purchasing property to get the best possible specialist advice.

2nd Blackadders’ Property Auction

Blackadders Solicitors — Thu, 24 May 2012 13:02:48 +0000

I wanted to give an update in relation to our first property auction. I am pleased to advise we managed to achieve a couple of sales and perhaps more interestingly 75% of the properties at the Auction have had an increase in viewing activity and 33% of the properties advertised at the Auction now have parties interested in purchasing. The properties that featured at the first auction were a wide range of interest to all types of buyers and the audience consisted mainly of property investors which was to be expected (I am noticing an increase in property investor deals and I will report on this trend shortly in a future blog). I feel these stats show the potential of property auctions and reinforces the importance of instructing a Firm of Solicitor Estate Agents who have an innovative approach to selling properties.

On the back of the success of the first auction I would advise that we are holding our 2^nd property auction on the 26^th of June. I am delighted that we have again managed to secure the services of Steven Dewar of Curr & Dewar as our Auctioneer and we are hosting it at the Apex Hotel, Dundee.

For more information and to register a property or as a bidder please contact the Blackadders’ Property Team on 01382 342222 or via our e-mail address of propertyauctions@blackadders.co.uk. More information will appear in the local press and on our website.

I look forward to seeing you on the 26^th.

Lindsay Darroch

Partner & Head of Property

Mortgage Lending Tightening

Blackadders Solicitors — Wed, 23 May 2012 10:15:24 +0000

I have noticed that clients are once again finding it difficult to get mortgage funding for their purchases. I recently read a report from Mortgage Advice Bureau’s CEO, Peter Brodnicki, estimating that the total mortgage market in 2012 will be £125b. This compares with £135b last year and £360b at the height of the boom. Peter Brodnicki said “…..with Santander announcing that it will be lending £10b less this year it is hard to see that anyone will pick up the slack and indeed some other lenders could follow suit.”

With problems in Greece and other members of the Eurozone potentially having an impact on British Banks and with ever tightening regulations I have a concern about lack of mortgage finance impacting on the Scottish property market.

This reinforces to me the importance of clients getting independent mortgage advice from qualified Mortgage Advisers to ensure that they get the best possible deal available to them on the market and secure a mortgage that they might not otherwise have got.

Lindsay Darroch

Partner and Head of Property

Self-build fund

Blackadders Solicitors — Tue, 22 May 2012 09:25:11 +0000

I was interested to read that Housing Minister Grant Shapps has launched a £30m fund to provide short-term finance for self-builders. He has also contacted mainstream lenders asking them to provide finance for self-build projects. He is working closely with self-build champion Kevin McLeod (from T.V. show Grand Designs), to highlight how important self-build is for the economy. I welcome this event and would ask that mainstream lenders show positive support for the self-build market which is hugely important to the property market as a whole. I am certainly noticing an increase in clients looking to develop sites or build their own home on plots and any assistance would be very welcome.

Lindsay Darroch

Partner and Head of Property

First time buyers – key to property market

Blackadders Solicitors — Fri, 18 May 2012 09:27:55 +0000

Apologies for the lack of blogs over the last few weeks. This has been brought about by an unprecedented surge in activity in the Scottish property market in general and my business in particular. This is a good sign, however, there are some interesting and perhaps worrying trends developing which I will report on over the next few weeks. I read the report yesterday from Your Move indicating a massive surge in first time buyers prior to the end of Stamp Duty Relief. I have to report that this is not my experience and I am becoming more and more concerned regarding the lack of first time buyers in the market. I have not seen any official statistics but my own view is that lack of mortgage finance is severely curtailing first time buyer activity. The Government’s New Buy Scheme launched in England to assist first time buyers purchasing new properties has failed to have any impact. I would urge the Government to bring in a scheme to assist first time buyers who are looking to buy any property in the UK market. This would release the property market, boost the construction industry, boost retail and have a huge positive impact on the UK economy. This could be funded by tightening up the Capital Gains Tax Rules so that you have to be in your property for a certain period of time before you can sell it without incurring any Capital Gains Tax, i.e. if you live in a house for more than five years it can be classed as your sole or main residence, if you sell it prior to five years you then have to pay a percentage of the gain depending on how long you have lived in the property. As well as funding any assistance to first time buyers this would also have the positive impact of curtailing property speculation.

I will report further on the property market soon.

Lindsay Darroch

Partner and Head of Property

Scottish Home Buyers Thin on the Ground

Blackadders Solicitors — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 16:39:45 +0000

I was disappointed to read a recent report by Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors Scotland which showed that Scottish surveyors were among the most pessimistic in the UK when it came to activity in the housing market. I do agree that there is still a problem in relation to mortgage finance, in particular for first time buyers. However, I would report that Blackadders Property are continuing to show an increase in activity, both in listings, viewings and Under Offers. I still stick with my prediction that 2012 will be a tough year but that from the summer onwards, we will start to see continued and sustained improvement. I can report that the year has started off better than expected and I hope that this continues. I will keep you advised of trends.

Lindsay Darroch

Partner

Stop Press – First Time Buyer Mortgage Scheme

Blackadders Solicitors — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 16:37:50 +0000

As readers of previous blogs will know I have been campaigning vociferously for the government both Scottish and UK to take urgent action to assist first time buyers. I was delighted to hear the announcement from the Scottish Government of their backing for a three year national Mortgage Indemnity Scheme developed by home building industry body Homes for Scotland. This project is for first time buyers purchasing new build properties up to a maximum price I understand of £250,000. I think this is a welcome move for both the housing market and the construction industry which is fundamental to the economic recovery. I am disappointed that the Scheme is not open for all first time buyers and is limited to new build properties but I think it is still a very welcome step in the right direction. I will advise you of more details as and when I get them.

Lindsay Darroch Partner

Head of Property

Home Report Update

Blackadders Solicitors — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 09:29:28 +0000

I was delighted to see Malcolm Cannon the Chief Executive of ESPC calling for a rethink on the Home Report. As readers of previous blogs will know I have been campaigning for a number of years for the abolition of the Home Report. Malcolm’s research coincides with my view that rather than decreasing the number of surveys it has actually led to an increase in the number of surveys being commissioned per property. Research shows that 65% of sellers who pay for the Home Report described the document as not helpful to them as a seller and 31% were of the view that the best way to improve the Home Report would be to scrap them. I would again urge the Scottish Government to create a working party to review the Home Report legislation.

Lindsay Darroch

Partner

Property Market Update

Blackadders Solicitors — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 09:28:01 +0000

Despite my efforts to have an update every month and I am now conscious that we are at the start of March and you have not yet an update. Whilst I apologise for this I am very pleased to advise it has been caused by a huge surge in activity in the Blackadders Property Team since the start of 2012. In general my figures indicate that there is still an east/west divide with the East of Scotland performing much stronger that the West Coast, in particular Glasgow. Overall the trend seems to be for an increase in properties coming on the market and a corresponding increase in activity with purchasers. This is a good sign. There is still a problem for first time buyers and with the budget fast approaching I hope that the Chancellor uses his budget to put in place a fund to assist first time buyers. I am also hopeful that the Scottish Government will likewise take steps to help first time buyers. My view of the market indicates that the number of first time buyers continues to drop and is still well below levels required to have a healthy property market.

Overall my feeling is that for the first two months sentiment has been improving and that in general there is more demand. I am still sticking to my January predictions for 2012 that from the summer this year we will start seeing sustained improvement in the housing market.

From a Blackadders point of view I am pleased to advise that listings and under offers for the first two months of 2012 have exceeded targets and are way above levels seen in the corresponding months in 2011. Our mobile team continues to grow and develop and list properties throughout the whole of Scotland. Our unique proactive and innovative approach to the property market continues to win us plaudits and increase our market share and I am confident that this will be a long term trend.

I will continue to keep you advised of the market and I am sure that the March overview will be equally as positive.

Lindsay Darroch

Partner

Blackadders Property – Dundee TV

Blackadders Solicitors — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 09:26:43 +0000

I am delighted to advise that we are now working closely with the Online Dundee TV Channel to assist with the marketing of our properties for sale. As well as the property getting video footage and being on the Dundee Channel the video link will also be available through our own website which can also be accessed via smartphone and our interactive QR code for sale boards.

This gives our clients another way to market their property in the best possible light and I think is another example of our innovative approach to marketing properties.

For more information please don’t hesitate to contact either myself or any member of the Blackadders Property Team.

Lindsay Darroch

Partner