The latest from John Thorogood


Welcome to our February Newsletter, where we introduce you to the areas between and around Wandsworth and Clapham Commons. There’s even our video called “why we like to live here” featuring some of our clients. We also give you some handy hints and tips to help you rejuvenate your home this year. Have a look at our article exploring what the top priorities for buyers are these days, and you may well find some information to help you sell your home. Finally, we tug on the heart strings and ask the question of whether landlords should allow pets.


<span style="text-decoration: none; color: #ec008d;">It takes just 8 minutes to decide on a property</span>

As any estate agent can tell you, a successful sale hinges on a good first impression. Prospective buyers possess a sixth sense when it comes to viewing a property and if things aren’t up to scratch – inside and out – you can guarantee they will spot it.
 

In fact, a recent study has revealed that the average house hunter only needs eight minutes to decide if a property is for them or not and six in ten adults will also choose not to buy a property based on the condition of the exterior of the property, without even needing to view the inside.

In comparison, 18% of buyers admitted to buying the very first property they view and 15% said they decided to buy the property before they had even viewed it in person.

This decisiveness extends online, with the average buyer spending eight minutes deciding whether or not to visit a property – highlighting the importance of a good online advert.

75% also confessed to being irritated upon finding that an advert or online listing does not accurately represent a property when visiting in person.

The study also revealed which aspects of a viewing signalled an early exit for many prospective buyers. The main offender was an obvious damp patch, which 60% of buyers said would put a stop to any future transaction, whilst a house on a main road or cracks in the wall would also put an end to the viewing.

For the buyers who are good at seeking out the problematic finer details of the property, there were some decisive reasons for buyers backing out of the viewing, such as dirty toilet pipes, overflowing bins, wheelie bins left in front of the property and faded or yellowed paintwork.

Some viewers take issue with a sellers lack of preparation for the viewing such as untidy rooms, poor DIY and ashtrays left around the house.

Other reasons included logistical problems such as the size of the rooms being too small for the buyer’s furniture or issues with the natural lighting of the property. The current owner’s furniture cluttering up the layout of a room which preventing the buyer’s imagination from running wild led to over a third of buyers to back out of a purchase.

The list showcases the importance of sprucing up your home, both before putting it on the market and before every viewing. A prospective buyer needs to weigh up the additional costs and work involved in buying a property, so ensure you give your home the most generic makeover possible and organise your possessions and furniture in a way that won’t distract the prospective buyer.



<span style="text-decoration: none; font-weight: bold; color: #ec008c;">A basic guide to decorating</span>

 
Flick through the pages of any magazine these days or scroll through the popular Pinterest app and you’re likely to see endless images of chic properties with timeless décor. For those of us that are blessed to be able to colour-match and accessorise effortlessly, this is an entirely attainable vision; however, for the rest of us who are a little more challenged in the decorating department, it can be tough to know where to start. Read through our basic guide to decorating and we will provide you with some guidelines which are sure to help you turn your home in to a real page-turner.

Start scheming

So, you have decided to revamp a room, you’re excited and you just want to get the paint brushes out but hold on…you need to take a moment and think about what you really want! Taking a moment or two to plan will help to ensure that the effort you’re going to is really worth it, and having an overall concept will hold all of the interior elements together. Ask yourself what you like and dislike about the room currently and how you want the room to feel - cool and trendy or warm and welcoming? These simple questions will help you to focus in on how you’d like the end result to be and using apps such as Pinterest or Instagram will help you to decide on overall concepts. Creating a mood board for the room will help to streamline your ideas and will serve as a reference throughout the entire decorating process.

Stay in neutral

It may seem like a safe or unimaginative option, but neutrals are timeless when it comes to decorating. When you have a neutral palette to work with, you can layer colours and textures on top of the basic colour scheme in order to achieve your desired look. With new trends popping up seemingly every other day, having a neutral colour scheme allows you to easily change the feel of your room simply by updating the accessories and soft furnishings. You can also add in vibrant pops of colour to lift your room when using a more neutral scheme, with accent pieces such as side tables and upholstery offering some interest in to your colour palette.

Softly, softly

Soft furnishings can put the va va voom in to your room! Having strong accent pieces, as well as coordinated soft furnishings such as curtains, throws, pillows and rugs create a more coherent and cohesive atmosphere in a room. Rotating which soft furnishings you have in your room seasonally works really well to make your room feel up-to-date and contemporary; for example, using a blue rug and pops of yellow during the longer winter months, or some glittery cushions for the festive period. These pops of colour and print will have the desired outcome of a tasteful and chic room.

Simplify

Don’t be scared to leave spaces empty in your room. Horror vacui, a fear of empty spaces, is evident in so much of today’s culture with a tendency to want to display all of our knick-knacks throughout our homes. When you have gone to the effort to stylishly decorate your room, don’t ruin the hard work by then adding in too many objects; instead, let your decorating do the talking for you. If you want to display some of your own items, then ensure to group them and use the rule of thirds; group three objects together in a display rather than two. Groupings of objects which vary in heights, shapes and textures but are related to one another are the most effective for displays; for example, grouping three candles which are different heights but are the same colour.

When renovating a room, it is easy to feel overwhelmed, which is frequently why we shy away from decorating. However, we would recommend taking your time, planning your renovations carefully with a budget and enjoying the process – updating your home will add value to your property, after all, as well as giving you a beautiful home to relax in after a tough day at work.



<span style="text-decoration: none; color: #ec008c;">Area Guides</span>

Over the past three or four decades, the areas around Clapham, Wandsworth and Tooting Bec Commons have become first-choice locations for homebuyers and tenants alike. Covering five postcodes, they offer an abundance of green space, excellent schooling, great shopping facilities and fast, direct transport links to The City and West End...
 
If you want to read more about our area guides click here.
If you want to watch the video "why we like to live here" click here.

Click here to read <span style="text-decoration: none; color: #ec008c;">Area Guides</span>.



<span style="text-decoration: none; color: #ec008c;">What are the top priorities for buyers?</span>

 
Good schools, good commuter links and a good kitchen; traditionally, this is what has been considered to be the magic triad of priorities for buyers, however new research has suggested that this is no longer the case. Read on to see what buyers are prioritising whilst on the hunt for a new property…

One country-wide poll has shown that a budget supermarket has ousted the school catchment area for one of the top spots in buyer priorities, with almost 40% of those surveyed stating their desire to live within close proximity to an Aldi or Lidl. The desire for good-value shopping could be linked to the need to economise after purchasing a new property, so it is no surprise that it is the younger generations who rate the budget supermarket highest; some 54% of 18 to 24-year olds want to live near to one. This figure gradually declines to 34% of over 45s sharing the same view.

School catchment areas remain high on the wish list of buyers with 29% saying that they would move home in order to be in a specific catchment area.

Click here to see our article on the catchments for Belleville and Honeywell Schools.

The outright top spot on buyer priorities, however, is for a scenic view with 44% of people preferring a property with scenic surroundings. For decades now, the proximity of Clapham, Wandsworth and Tooting Bec Commons together with Battersea Park, has helped make our local area a magnet for singles, couples and families alike.

Click here to see more about our area.

Budget supermarkets follow this in second place, and local bars and restaurants come in at third in the wish list of buyers.

Once a property move is completed, research also revealed what people first investigate once they have moved to a new area. Public transport links are the first item which people look into with 21% of people researching this immediately, followed by local schools, crime rates and broadband speeds.



<span style="text-decoration: none; color: #ec008c;">Should landlords consider allowing pets?</span>

 
Britain is without doubt a nation that loves its pets, and the pet population continues to grow; homeowners around the country have brought many types of animal into their home, from dogs and cats to birds and hamsters.

Given that the latest data suggests that 45% of British residents own a pet of some description, it’s surprising that the stance from landlords on pets in rented accommodation seems to have remained unchanged.

There are some understandable reasons behind that, of course; even the most well-behaved pets can have their accidents and depending on how responsible the owner is, they can be quite destructive.

However, a new study conducted by LSL Corporate Client Department surveyed over 3,200 people throughout the UK on pets in rented accommodation has revealed that it may be time for landlords to make some exceptions.

This survey asked its participants if and just how much they would be willing to pay to have a furry friend in the place that they are renting and the answers suggested that landlords could be missing out on some extra income, should they wish to be flexible.

31% of the 18-35-year olds surveyed are willing to pay more for their pet so could landlords be persuaded to allow pets, providing that a deal is structured to cover the potential cost of any damages?

Elsewhere, some differences seen between male and female tenants were thrown up, with 31% of women prepared to pay more in comparison to the 23% of men willing to do the same.

Whilst the rented sector may be hesitant to adopt a more flexible approach, there has already been some movement in this direction from the build to rent sector; some developers are looking to create pet-friendly 1-bedroom units that come with a garden, for example.

John Thorogood’s experience clearly shows that being able to live with a pet is a huge incentive for some tenants. Landlords could request a slightly higher deposit, eight weeks instead of the usual six, to protect the property. Or they could consider increasing the monthly rent slightly to cover the cost of any potential pet-related damage.

Many believe that there is huge potential for landlords to increase their income by structuring a lettings agreement that allows pets but also works for them. This is an opinion shared by CEO of DogFriendly, Steve Bennet: “One of the most common questions that we receive from dog owners IS Where can they find private landlords who will allow dogs? I know from personal experience that having a dog, or as in my case, dogs, the choice of properties available to my family was severely restricted.

“Accommodation suppliers who welcome dogs tell us that dog owners usually take more care of their rooms and their properties than non-dog owners – so it really is time for landlords to recognise that one in three households own a dog, which is a massive potential market too many landlords are still ignoring”.