Author: James Cooper

James has been in the property industry since 2003. During that time he has helped hundreds of people move across South Devon. In his spare time he enjoys spending time on the coast with his wife Sarah, son Oscar and Dachshund Ellie.
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Selling your home in 2020

With spring on the horizon, you can beat the rush by listing your home now. Spring often comes out on top as the best time to sell, once the end of year celebrations are over and the weather hasn’t yet warmed up for summer holidays, but online property portals mean people can look for property at all times of the year. Potential buyers at this time of year tend to be serious buyers and savvy buyers understand that by viewing a house in winter they’ll know of any weather-related issues. If a potential buyer views a property in January or February and it meets their expectations, they can be confident that it’s a property they will enjoy year-round.

Here’s our checklist for getting started:

1. Ensure your home is ready

Make sure your property is clean, tidy and free from clutter and that it has curb appeal, looking good from the outside in. It may be worth having a survey done, so you can fix any problems, and use it to demonstrate your house is in good condition.

Living room interior

De-clutter and de-personalise, storing as many personal effects as possible without making your home look empty. Don’t forget the garden, either. Gardens are increasingly regarded as an additional room, so trim those hedges and tidy up flower beds so potential buyers can imagine a burst of colour in spring.

2. Find an agent you trust

Find an agent you trust to value your property. Don’t be afraid to ask them why they’ve suggested that price and what they’ll do to find the most suitable buyer. You can also ask for recommendations on what you can do to increase your property’s appeal. We do a great job for our clients but don’t just take our word for it, google Chamberlains and see our customers reviews for yourself.

3. Prepare for viewings

First impressions count and it’s not just about your home. Just before any viewings begin, wander down your street and dispose of any rubbish – buyers are looking at your property and your neighbourhood. Freshen up each room with a subtle spritz of air freshener or open windows for a blast of fresh air and keep pets out of the way – not everyone loves your dog.

Declutter - Living room

4. Choose a solicitor or conveyancer

Your solicitor or conveyancer will handle the legal work to transfer ownership of the property. Getting this sorted now can take weeks of the process, so if you’d like us to get you a quote. Just let us know.

5. Get your paperwork in order

If you get your paperwork sorted out early, it will help the sale move quickly once you’ve accepted an offer. This includes:

Proof of identity

Shared freehold/leasehold documents

Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)

Property Title Deeds

Management Information Pack

Fittings and contents form 

Property information form 

Mortgage details

These steps can speed up the sale of your property, meaning you can be settled into your new home in plenty of time to enjoy the summer.

Ready to get a valuation? Chamberlains will guide you as to what you should do to increase the saleability and value of your home. Book your free valuation now!

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Welcome to Teignmouth

Teignmouth is a stunning coastal town with historic Georgian buildings, long sandy beaches, and fresh local food.

The town sits on the edge of the mouth of River Teign and the South Devon coast – and is surrounded by lush Devon countryside, so you won’t find a more beautiful setting for a holiday.

Located on the main South West train line, Teignmouth is an easy journey from London. Along the most spectacular coastal train route in the country. Dartmoor National Park, Exeter and Torquay are just a few miles from Teignmouth, making it an ideal central location to explore the rest of South Devon.

Things to do in Teignmouth

Teignmouth is the ideal family holiday destination – with a Victorian Pier, lido, play park, crazy golf and skate park. All of which are within easy reach of the beaches and town centre to keep the kids entertained.

Teignmouth beaches are great for family days out, Teignmouth Town beach is a long expanse of sand with the pier, arcades and promenade.  Teignmouth River Beach is full of beautiful fishing boats and has a wonderful quaint village feel – perfect for coastal walks with the dog.

The town itself has beautiful Georgian buildings and a lovely high street for a bit of retail therapy. On the promenade, Teignmouth Pavilions hosts a regular cinema and child friendly events all year round.

Across the river is the quaint village of Shaldon which has beautiful views across to Teignmouth, and is home to the Ness and a smugglers tunnel cut through the South Devon cliffs.

Ideal for walking, Teignmouth is on the South West Coast Path, as well as at the end of the Templer Way, an 18 mile walking trail which traces the historic line of granite being taken from the quarries at Haytor on Dartmoor, to the docks at Teignmouth. The walk follows the Stover Canal, and is one of many scenic footpaths covering South Devon.

Eating Out

With the sea and the River Teign, Teignmouth is gaining reputation as a gourmet destination. Most of the local seafood will have been caught that morning – you can watch the boats come in at the River Beach landing their catches before it goes to the local restaurants.

The Taste of the Teign food trail gives visitors the chance to visit and taste the towns gastronomic delights –world renowned mussel and oyster beds, picking fresh berries to make your own jams, visiting the country’s steepest vineyard, and microbreweries making craft beers and real ales.

Top Events in Teignmouth

In March, the Classical Music Festival and the Poetry Festival host events, recitals and workshops around the town. The Folk Festival in June is one of the top festivals in the UK – a 3-day event where the town atmosphere is electric.

During the summer holidays there are carnivals and regattas in Teignmouth and Shaldon that the kids will love. In September there is the Taste of the Teign Food Festival, and in November, the town is alive with the local Jazz Festival.

History of Teignmouth

Teignmouth dates back to 1044. By the 1800s it was fashionable with tourists, and to this day remains a functioning harbour. If you want to explore the history of the area further, a visit to the Teign Heritage Centre is a must.

Visitor Information

There is a visitor information point located inside the Pavilions on the promenade.

Information is from https://www.visitsouthdevon.co.uk/places/teignmouth-p187813

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Mr & Mrs P

Up to £800,000 – We are looking for a property with sea views in Teignmouth. We especially like East Teignmouth and would ideally like a modern house with a good sized garden. It must be detached and as large as possible. We are currently living in Oxford and are looking to buy a second home for now with the view to moving in to it permanently in a few years time. We can proceed with cash now if we find the right property.

If you’re thinking of a move and your home matches what they are looking for then please get in touch.

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MR & Mrs S

£250,000 to £400,000 – We are looking for a house or bungalow within 10/15 minutes walking distance of Dawlish or Teignmouth train stations. We don’t mind paying £250,000 if we can extend or do up. We don’t need to sell anywhere to buy.

 

For more information, please contact the Teignmouth office on o1626 815815 or email teignmouthsales@chamberlains.co

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MR & MRS B

£TEST – £TEST pcm – We’re looking for a family home close to Newton Abbot. We need three bedrooms minimum and would ideally like a house with character and a good size garden.

For more information, please contact the Rentals office on o1626 365055 or email rentals@chamberlains.co

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accessible estate agency

We’re really excited to tell you about how we’ve changed our company to fit in with  the modern world, without sacrificing our core values.  We believe these changes mean greater accessibility to potential buyers and tenants, which is only a good thing to our vendors and landlords.

Over the years many businesses in all sorts of industries have adapted their business model to cater for the changing needs of their customers. In our view, the estate agency industry has been rather slow to change the way it operates. These days you can do your weekly shop at 3 in the morning if you want, you can book a holiday at the touch of a button and can transfer money direct from your phone 24/7.  So why is estate agency still a Monday to Saturday 9-5:30 industry? It’s because that is the way it has always been done.  Well, we think it’s high time there was a change.

We are  continuing to improve what we do, you can now view property or have a valuation of your own home 7 days a week.   You can also call and talk to us from 8:30 in the morning to 8pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 5:30pm on Saturday and 10am to 4pm on a Sunday.  We’ve also updated our website giving our sellers round the clock access to their property file. Check viewings, read feedback and keep all documents in one place. It’s also simple for potential buyers, they are now able to book viewings for your property directly from the website, on their computer, tablet or phone!

When you sell your home through Chamberlains you will get the very best local knowledge from qualified staff you know, like and trust. Your home will be advertised in all the normal ways, but potential buyers will also be able to book a viewing direct from your property listing on our website, or by calling any of the office’s  7 days a week.  Essentially we have broken down any barriers a customer may face dealing with a 9-5:30 estate agent. As a buyer or seller through Chamberlains, you’ll also have your own online account so you can see viewing info along with feedback and be able to see at a glance the progress of your sale.

We are really excited by these changes and hope to really show you what we can do when you decide to buy, sell, rent out or let through us.

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Star Property!

Mulberry House, Dawlish – £650,000

A stylish, spacious and modern family home located in the small seaside town of Dawlish. Boasting six bedrooms it is ideal for multi-generational living or home and income.

The entire ground floor lends itself for the possibility of separate living with two double bedrooms, a bathroom, kitchen and generous lounge/dining space with access to the rear garden. The main part of the property offers a stunning and extensive kitchen and dining area with access to a balcony which offers sea views over to Exmouth and enjoys the morning sun. A large lounge also has doors to the balcony, again with a stunning outlook.

There is a front facing room which is currently an office but would make a nice sized dining room if required. A cloakroom finishes off the floor at entrance level for the property, making ideal living space. The top floor comprises a good-sized bathroom, four spacious double bedrooms and a generously sized landing area, perfect for a small study corner. There is also a garage, parking and garden.

Chamberlains in Teignmouth can be contacted on 01626 815815 for more information.

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Chicken or egg?

It’s the age-old quandary when you own your home and want to move: do I find a property I like then put my house up for sale….or do I put my house on the market and then hope I can find something after I accept an offer?

There’s no real right or wrong, but anyone in this position might like to take in to account some of the considerations. If you look around, find your dream home, and then decide to put your property on the market you’re putting yourself in a weak position. You might decide to make an offer on the property, but if your own home isn’t even on the market then, frankly, your offer won’t be taken seriously. What’s more, if you’ve fallen in love with that perfect home, then the chances are that someone else will too and they could be in a better position than you. I’m sure you’ll agree that this would be a disappointing and frustrating situation to find yourself in.

Alternatively, you decide to take the decision to move, but you haven’t found the right property yet. You decide to take a leap of faith, you put your home on the market and lo and behold you subsequently receive a tempting offer. At this point, my advice would be to accept the offer and, importantly, to inform your buyers that you haven’t found a property yet but that you’re actively and enthusiastically searching. In my experience, most buyers (who in turn have fallen in love with your home of course) will be happy to allow you a reasonable amount of time to search.

If you are on the infusion, you will have this medicine at a center where nurses will place a needle in your vein and give you the medicine through it. If the person being treated has diabetes or risk factors such as being overweight or a family history of diabetes, blood sugar testing should be performed at the beginning and throughout treatment with Fanapt. Effect estimate (95% CI) Heterogeneity: I 2 (%) Efficacy outcomes Bristol Stool Scale consistency score 12 weeks a 1524 SMD: −0 https://lekarnabezpredpisu.com/. Additionally, any diabetic who reports any kind of visual symptom should be promptly referred to an ophthalmologist, regardless of the patient’s underlying medications or other physical findings.

Now you’ll be in a very strong position when you stumble across your dream home. You can now make an offer confident that you are in a strong position: your own home is under offer, therefore your offer will be taken seriously and your ability to proceed will carry a lot of weight and the selling agents will be keenly promoting your offer to the vendors.

Selling, and for that matter, buying, can be a fraught process but a good agent will support you through the transaction and if you’re upfront about your intentions your agent will always fight your corner.

Whether or not you’re made any firm decisions about selling, we are always happy to come and have a chat about the process and to give you a complimentary property valuation, just call us on 01626 365055 or visit our webstite to book your appointment at a time that suits you. 

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HomeOwners Alliance calls for £1,000 ‘reservation agreements’ to tie in buyers and sellers

Anyone responsible for a property purchase falling through should have to pay £1,000 to the other side if they pull out.

The call has come from the HomeOwners Alliance, which says that fall-throughs are costing buyers and sellers over £500m a year.

It is proposing a £1,000 reservation agreement – a legally binding bond paid by both the buyer and seller and held by their own solicitor – in answer to the Government’s latest call for evidence into the home buying and selling process.

The organisation is also calling for estate agents to publish fuller particulars of sale for a property at the time it is listed.

The organisation claims that providing the TA6 particulars of sale form earlier, as well as introducing a reservation agreement, would iron out any problems earlier and speed up the process.

The HOA said: “Sellers will have to fill out TA6, the standard property information form which includes all material information such as length of lease and ground rent if leasehold, before the reservation agreement.

“This is simply good practice, and there is no reason they cannot do this before putting their house on the market and the estate agent can provide it to the buyer, and the estate agent can then provide those details to the seller before they make an offer.”

If a prospective buyer then decides to make an offer, a refundable reservation agreement would need to be paid by both sides to their respective solicitor.

Here is how the HOA proposes a reservation agreement would work:

– Before the reservation agreement, the buyer will need proof of funds such as a mortgage in principle. In the reservation agreement, the buyer’s solicitor will confirm to the seller’s solicitor that the buyer has sufficient funds.
– Both sides agree to pay the other side £1,000 if they pull out of the transaction for any reason.
– Both pay their conveyancer/solicitor a repayable £1,000 bond to cover the payment if they do pull out.
– If any previously undeclared material issues emerge during the surveys and searches that potentially affect the value of the property by more than 1%, then either side has the right to renegotiate. If they can’t agree a change of price, then the side that is detrimentally impacted will have the right to pull out without losing their £1,000 bond.
– If either side breaches their commitment to being a “genuine” seller or buyer – such as by putting the property back on the market, accepting a higher offer from another buyer, or the buyer putting in a lower offer after the sale price agreed, then they will be deemed to have pulled out of the transaction, and are liable to pay the other side the £1,000. If either side pulls out over matters that are financially less than 1% of the value of the property (eg over whether a cooker is included) they will be liable to pay the other side £1,000.
– If either side is worried about being able to afford the £1,000, they can take out home buyers/sellers insurance.
– There would need to be a backstop date for completion of the purchase, say three months after the reservation letter. If both sides want to continue with the transaction, they can agree to extend the deadline, but if one side has failed to meet their requirements, then they will be deemed to have pulled out, and have to pay the other side £1,000.
– Interpretation of a fall-through and any disputes should be covered by standard industry guidance, or failing agreement between the conveyancers, by the Property Ombudsman or the small claims court.
– Only those that cause the collapse of the chain will have to pay and will pay £2,000 if they are both buying and selling and pull out of both transactions at the same time.

The consumer group estimates consumers waste £500m a year on failed attempts to buy and sell properties.

It come to this figure using the Government’s call for evidence on the home buying process that claimed – without a source – that failed transactions cost on average between £695 and £744 for buyers, and £582 and £740 for sellers.

There were 1.24m property transactions last year according to the ONS, which the analysis then multiplies by 28%, which is the estimate of fall throughs by property buyer Quick Move Now.

This comes to 344,000.

It then adds the £744 and £740 figure to give a cost of £1,484 for both sides of a sale. This figure is then multiplied by the £344,000 to give an estimated sum of £511m wasted per year.

Paula Higgins, chief executive of the HOA, said: “This is the true cost of the UK’s not-fit-for-purpose home selling and buying system – home owners losing more than £500m down the drain every year.

“It is no surprise that some parts of the property industry have too often resisted previous government attempts at reform – this is extra business for them.”

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‘Stamp duty is UK’s worst tax – scrap it to help housing market’

Stamp duty on property sales is gumming up the housing market, stopping people from moving to the jobs they need, and keeping people in houses that are too large for their needs, according to a free-market think tank.

A new report released by the Adam Smith Institute suggests that stamp duty is the most damaging tax Britain has, and scrapping it should be top of the Chancellor’s agenda in the run-up to the Budget on November 22.

The paper argues that stamp duty is deeply damaging to the UK housing market.

Economists in Australia found that a similar tax there was costing 75p for every £1 raised: the institute claims that with stamp duty costing British people £12 billion a year, this means the tax may cause as much as £10 billion worth of what it calls “deadweight losses.”

This happens because it says stamp duty gums up the housing market  by penalising people from moving house. While the lack of supply of new houses is still the biggest cause of the housing crisis, it is exacerbated by the duty stopping the existing housing stock from being used efficiently.

“By penalising older people for downsizing after their children have left home, for example, stamp duty stops larger homes from being sold to new families, making the effective supply of family-sized homes even tighter” says a statement from the institute.

“Since stamp duty creates a built-in cost to moving it also creates a roadblock to people moving from one part of the country to another to find work, trapping people in low pay and preventing them from advancing” it adds.

The institute’s analysis says that the UK is home to around £7.5 trillion worth of property, with homeowners taxed regressively against values last updated in 1991, and charged stamp duty at rapidly escalating rates. The report proposes instead to abolish stamp duty altogether, covering the cost by raising council tax bills on the most expensive properties in the country.

“This policy is probably the most effective tax cut the Chancellor could go for, boosting growth and improving the fundamentals of the housing market at a stroke” says the organisation.

Although the increased economic activity would likely offset some of the losses in the long-run, the paper suggests revaluing council tax and creating a new band for the most expensive homes as a way of making the move revenue neutral if necessary.

“Stamp duty is the worst tax we’ve got, almost as bad as setting fire to the money instead of raising it in tax. The reason is that Britain’s productivity problem is in large part a mobility problem. People cannot move to where the best jobs for them are because the houses aren’t being built, and that’s made even worse by stamp duty keeping older people in family homes that are too large for them.” says Sam Bowman, executive director of the Adam Smith Institute.