Home sweet home: you bought it for nesting, not investing - but still you've lavished your hard earned money on it and it's quite nice to watch the value increase... but not quite so nice to see that value decreasing as the property market drops during an adjustment. In fact, it's quite easy to feel that you - and you alone - have lost money on it. But then again, when you think of it, the value of your property has gone down and so has that of bigger more expensive houses. The financial gap between your current house and your next one is a little bit narrower. Now would be a good time to move!
Admittedly, the market is a little tougher so you think it's a good idea to put your house on the market before finding something that you really like, and which would break your heart if you lose out on it. Emotional reasons aside, putting your house on the market puts you in a much better buying position because sellers and agents will take you more seriously. So you ring round and ask for some valuations. What comes as a surprise is the difference between the lowest and the highest valuation. Now why would that be? Some estate agents think it's a good idea to undervalue property to bring on a quick sale - and a faster commission for them. Other agents significantly overvalue your property to tempt you into giving them the instruction instead of the competition.
And, of course there's quite a significant difference between the lowest and the highest selling fees: let's assume your house is worth about 180,000, the typical UK property price at present. One agent generously tells you he will only charge you 1.5% plus VAT, or, in real terms 3,240. Another agent claims he's the best in town and therefore worth every penny of his 1.75% plus VAT, or 3,780. And yet another agent says he's the best in the county, with a massive network of offices - and just look at these sales particulars printed on high quality glossy cardboard. And because of these benefits, his bosses won't let him go below 2%, or 4,320.
You took out a 90% mortgage in 2007, on a property worth 200,000. Now that value has dropped to 180,000 any equity is long gone, but at least you have 25,000 saved up and you know that in the long-term, the value of your new home will definitely increase. After all, four years ago your new 250,000 pound property would have gone for 275,000. Now it's time to look a little more carefully into the financial aspect of moving: there's stamp duty, solicitors fees... and whatever it is you're prepared to fork out to have an agent to come round, take a few photos and upload them onto Rightmove. A few clicks of the calculator later, and you realise that you might not be able to afford to move in the first place. Thank you Mr Estate Agent.
Well, that's that then - your local, greedy, estate agent hasn't just thrown a spanner into the works - he's jammed it in with all his might. What we need here is an alternative, offering the same facility as our greedy friends on the High Street... but at a far lower cost. And we have one: eMoov is an online estate agency helping people sell their homes without relieving them of several thousand pounds unnecessarily. With the advent of online estate agency, the whole property industry is changing and we think you'll like those changes because with fees starting at just 99, this could be the difference between staying put and moving!
Home buyers don't bother to walk into estate agency offices these days. 90% of them look for property on the web. eMoov, internet estate agents, cover the whole of the UK but save money by not having hundreds of premises which you otherwise end up paying for in high estate agents fees. eMoov are online estate agents and ten times cheaper than the High Street.