House Critic – Page 175 – House buying, selling, viewing and the housing market.

Flooding risk and information

Signs a property floods

When a house is near a stream or river you might instantly be suspicious about whether it floods. If you’re serious about buying it then check out the Environment Agency website for flooding risk. If you’re not sure if it has flooded then you can ask the owners. They should tell you the truth, but asking via your solicitor in writing means they’re less likely to try and lie about it.

Why worry about a property having been flooded? If it’s going to happen again then it’s a really horrid experience to have to go through, and your insurance would already be high if it’s flooded once.

You can probably get an insurance quote and find out how much the insurance will be – you would have to say you weren’t sure if a property had flooded – but they should have access to records and a high premium might indicate more risk.

Flooding might only have happened in exceptional circumstances and never happen again especially if flood defences have been improved.

Properties that regularly flood will be by smaller streams less likely to have funding spent on them to prevent reoccurrences of flooding. You might notice that sleeping quarters are downstairs and upstairs is the kitchen and lounge. Fully tiled downstairs would also send a little alarm bell ringing. Plugs placed well above the floor might also indicate work done to prevent damage from flooding.

Look around the area too. Is there a lot of mud on the road? Sometimes flooding just washed mud up onto the roads and doesn’t come up really high. Whilst this might not affect the house it’s still a nuisance for you and something to bear in mind that you might come home to find the road ankle deep in water or worse.

If you want to find out more about flooding in an area then internet search engines are your friend. Type in the name of the area and the word flooding, put them in speed marks such as “Boscastle Flooding” and you’ll get lots of results shown to you that you can read and see photos of. Sometimes you can do street names too and that shows up information about the flooding.

Useful sites for flooding information:
Northern Ireland – Strategic Flood Map (NI) – Rivers & Sea

Environment Agency Flooding site

Noises near your dream house

Things to watch out for when you’re buying a house – hidden noises.

Have a good look around the area when you’ve picked a house you really like. Have a look on maps and overhead views to work out what the buildings are around the property. If they’re all residential then that’s fine, but if there’s something different in the neighbourhood you want to know what noise problems it might cause.

Roads can be noisy with motorways being fast and busy creating much noise. Stand outside and listen. Can you hear the traffic? Sometimes it’s a dull roar that sounds more like the sea, but on wet days the sounds can be more intense and the wind can change the noise levels too.

A pub is an obvious potential noise problem, not just with noisy drunks falling out on the street at closing time, but bottles being thrown out, barrels being bounced in by the draymen at dawn and other associated deliveries.

What about shops? Are they noisy? They might not be hugely noisy, but paper shops often get deliveries very early in the morning of the papers being dropped off. The slamming of van doors at 5.30am might not be something you notice on a viewing either. Shops are often where young people congregate in the evenings. Whilst you might think its handy having a shop so close you might not like the associated bustle that goes with it. So check it out. Visit several times in the evenings, on different nights at the weekend and see what the street is like. It might be very quiet, in which case it’d be time to question a neighbour about it and get the low down.

Factory units might work all week and be quiet at the weekend but it is best to check before you buy a property and discover that it’s a 24 hour a day, seven days a week business.

If there’s a patch of bare land near by it’s also worth checking out with the local planning office about what potential uses it might have, or even if any applications have been put in for it. You can often check this online, but sometimes a visit to the planning office in person can be really useful.

Other sources of noise to look out for are schools. These are not hugely noisy apart from at lunch and break times. They might have associated parking problems though, so if you have to leave the house at the time school crowds are forming you might get annoyed and cross every day of the school year!

It pays to have a good walk around the local area on foot too. Explore the footpaths and side streets near the house you want to buy. You might discover some lovely countryside or discover that there’s an area where the yobs hang out. You will also hear lots of noises too – whether it’s dogs at the dog training school, trains, or motorway noise!

It’s a serious business buying a house so it pays to take time to explore the local area well. It might also mean you stumble upon a quiet perfect street with a sale board up on your idea house.

An attractive house

Making your house attractive to buyers

Price: This is vital to take into account. Take advice from your agent.

A clean, bright house will sell more easily. If you have dark rooms then consider painting them lighter and changing the colour of the curtains. Whilst new carpets might appear expensive, you could add a light rug to brighten the room. Use matching toning colours and avoid harsh colours and jarring colour schemes.

Clean up the front garden. Consider hanging baskets or tubs of flowers. Kerb appeal can just mean trimming the hedge or mowing the lawn though.

Once you get them in through the door you want your house to smell clean and fresh. Plenty of fresh air, no pet smells, or pet food, hide litter trays too, and get the pets out of the house if at all possible. Whilst a cute cat curled up asleep looks cute, a slathering dog might not be.

Decluttering is a hugely important thing to do too. A tidy neat house looks roomier.

If you smoke then stop smoking in the house. It’s gross and really puts off non-smokers who will worry about getting the smell of smoke out of the house.

Use gentle subtle air fresheners. Natural scents are best. Vanilla is a lovely warm scent that can really make your house smell great. Don’t overdo it though and don’t ever spray air fresheners as they are often too overpowering.
You don’t have to bake bread or brew coffee just before they arrive but take into account that a nice smelling house will be more appealing. Don’t have food cooking during a viewing unless it’s something neutral and sweet like bread or cakes.

Try to get viewings during the day. Don’t be afraid of putting side lamps on if it makes a room look warmer and more inviting. Lighting is a lifestyle thing that can really impact how we view a house.

Think about buying some fresh flowers for viewings. Arrange them in a nice vase on the dining table. It’s recommended you lay the table for a meal as this shows how many people can fit easily round the table. It’s easy to do and free so might well be worth giving it a go.

It’s said people often buy because they like the lifestyle you present to them. If you have glossy classy magazines on your lounge coffee table then this presents a nice imagine. Throws and cushions on a bed create a nice luxurious feel to a bedroom.

Don’t forget that most changes are things that are free, or you can take with you to your new home. The changes are known as house doctoring and can really make your house look nicer and feel more attractive to buyers.

Which estate agent

Which estate agent to choose?

If you’re buying then look at all the estate agents!

If you’re selling then you need to decide which one to use.

Look at several things firstly – are they on Rightmove being the most important thing.
Ask friends and family which they have used and which they liked.
Ring round a few making enquiries about buying a property. You’ll get a general idea about which handle your call well and are on the ball. If they can’t handle your enquiry very well as a buyer, then how will they handle the buyer of your house?

Have a look at the local property paper if there is one in your area. Is there one estate agent that has a huge number of pages? Which ads attract your attention? Does one agent stand out?

Make a shortlist. Make appointments with them to come and let them do their sales pitch. Get details in writing about what they offer you, what fees they charge, whether they recommend you do viewings,

You want the estate agents to value your property. Do not tell them what other agents have valued it at. Just because an agent values it higher than other ones doesn’t mean it’ll achieve that.

Fees are negotiable. Ask for fee of 1% with no lock in so if they don’t perform well you can easily leave them and find another agent. Giving notice to the agent can be one way they try and keep you with them – ask for 1 week after written notice. If they refuse then make a note of this. You’re after the best deal for you and the best agent for selling your house.

Look to see whether the estate agents are members of a professional body.

If you’ve been watching the property market locally for a while then you may well have noticed sale boards that have turned to sold. An agent that achieves sales locally might be able to do the same for you.

Once you have almost got ready to make a decision, ring up the offices again and make more buyer enquiries. Sometimes a second call can reveal something interesting that might change your mind.

If once you’ve agreed with an agent that they can sell, you feel they’re not doing a good job then ask them what they can do to help sell the house. If the photos aren’t right then ask to change them.
If you have no enquires after a week then ring up and ask why they think that is. If they say price, then remember they valued the house, not you!
They should be able to tell you how many people have looked at your property on Rightmove too.

If after a few weeks you’ve still got no enquiries then you have to work out why and do something about it. Sometimes changing agent can help, but it can be down to price or location, or a downward trend in the housing market.

I know some houses that were on the market a long time and only sold when they accepted a much lower offer. If the properties had been valued lower to start then they would have almost certainly sold quicker.

Changing agents should be a last resort – especially if you researched properly to start with. Don’t add agents, change them! A house on with multiple agents shows desperation. Sometimes you have to lower the price to attract interest. This can work well if you get several people interested and they are prepared to bid on the property in order to buy it. Sometimes seeing someone else interested in a property can make you want it more.

Ask friends to test out your agent. Give them the approximate location and type of house and see if your house is suggested to them. If it’s not, then you should ask your agent whether they can push your house more.

If you are sensible vetting agents and negotiating the fees and contract, as well as being realistic about price you should sell your house quickly, which then means you can get on with the buying and moving process.

Top five websites for checking out an area

There’s a huge number of sites you can use for researching an area. It’s at the stage where you don’t even have to visit to have a great idea of what an area is like!
Why don’t you bookmark this page or share with a friend who is looking to buy a house!

1. Police Crime Maps.
This is a fantastic new resource that tops our list at the moment. Previously the only way of finding out about what happens on a street would have been to visit it at different times, ask the neighbours, and ask the sellers if there’s any issues with neighbours.

2. Flooding map Risk of Flooding – insurance is going to get harder to get in areas that flood – so it’s useful to know if you’re at risk. The environment agency allows you to search and see results on a map.
Flooding risk is a concern if you live near a river or stream. If you live in the area you’re searching in you might have an idea of which areas flood, but the make shows you where flood defences have been put in. Always have a look at the area too. Streams that are 100ft below your house aren’t likely to flood without some major catastrophe! However it’s always worth making a note of streams that are close to the property as erosion can steal your garden!

3. house prices What it sold for before – although not every property’s last sale is listed you can get information on what propertys sold for previously. It’s a great site as you can search by postcode, street name, or area. If the property you’re after isn’t listed then look for the neighbouring ones.. specially if they’re really similar in size. Houses not listed on the data publicly are repos, auction sales and some company purchases – this is because they’re below market value. You should be able to buy the information from the land registry site but it’ll cost £4 a go. It’s interesting to know how much similar propertys have sold for for giving you an idea about what price you should go in at.

4. Council tax band – worth checking this out before you look at a property – especially if you are concious of the cost of higher bands of council tax. Lots of new builds are rated at C which comes as a shock to many people who move from a similar size band A house. This official site also indicates if a band is due to go up when they sell – ie: if they’ve had work done to make the property bigger than when it sells it might go up a band.

5. streetview image Google Streetview. This is an amazing website for showing you a snapshot of a street when the google car when round. It’s very interesting and covers most of the UK. Private roads haven’t all been done, but the vast majority of the houses in the UK can be seen on it.
Fantastic site to use to see what an area looks like.
You can spend hours going up and down roads with it!
When you get to the maps – type in the postcode, or street name and town. Zoom in a bit to find the right road and then drag the little orange man onto the map and drop him on the roads that show up in blue. Use the mouse to drag around to see 360′, and click on arrows on road to move down the road. You can use the zoom options to zoom in and see more detail.

House buying a quick summary

You should do plenty of research before you buy a house.
You should make enquiries about how much of a mortgage you can get, what areas are you interested in, what sort of house do you want to buy?

Your mortgage will depend on your income and you’ll need eventually to provide proof of this with wage slips and the like. You should also have your own deposit saved. I know many people borrow money off parents but I think this only adds to the problems we have with high house prices.
If people just decided they couldn’t afford to buy and weren’t prepared to take parent’s savings, then house prices would be falling. Every parental deposit helps prop up the housing market.
Don’t let parents take equity from their home – this is debt and it’s wrong to expect anyone to take out debt on your behalf.
Of course it’s this older generation who may have done well out of the property price explosion in recent years.
When you’re starting to look for a house you could write a list of everything you think you want it to have. The number of bedrooms, layouts (open plan or not), number of bathrooms, whether a garden is important or a drive … all the things you can imagine yourself wanting.
Then you can start to look for a house.
Looking for a house forms part of this research process though – so remain slightly detached and more scientific about the process. Do not fall for a property and go mad trying to buy it.

Accept what you can afford. Sometimes this can be very hard and you might be better off saving rather than stretching your finances to the limit. If you like a house but don’t feel it’s worth the amount they’re asking then its simple – don’t buy it!

Find a solicitor. You don’t need to do this early on but you will notice solicitors ads in the local property pages so you could keep a note of their numbers and get them ready to ask for conveyance quotes when you need them.

Valuation survey – this would be done before your mortgage is officially agreed on a property. It may be as simple as them confirming that the property exists. For your own sanity you should probably have a proper survey. This can investigate the house for any potential problems. Don’t let obvious things like cracks in external or internal walls be ignored though – think twice about proceeding on a property showing serious signs of structural movement.
Insurance will be harder to get and might not cover existing problems.

Insurance for the building will be needed from exchange. Your solicitor will tell you about this though and may ask for proof. Some companies are au fait with this idea and some will think it’s most bizarre. If your insurance company isn’t prepared to insure from exchange then find a different one.

Exchange and completion can take place on the same day. This is much more stressful than exchanging and then completing a few weeks after. It allows more time to organise the move.

Packing – companies will come and pack for you but it costs more money. If you have some strong friends then a man and van can be the answer or even a self-hire van. It’s incredibly tiring though moving so perhaps consider professionals who’ve had plenty of experience.

Moving in is the moment you’ve been waiting for. Be prepared to have to clean the place. Have a box with kettle, mugs and tea making items in. Have a cleaning materials box handy too.

Utilities can be sorted before hand but you’ll need meter readings the day you move in. Take photos of the readings as proof of what they were.

Doesn’t that sound easy?

Do twigs sell houses?

twigs
I’m not talking about uber-skinny estate agents, but real twigs. Decorative twigs. I personally think that twigs are best left on the plants.
However this property has plenty of twigs in the lounge
less twigs It’s the same property here with a different agent, but this pic only has one lot of twigs in it. (pic 4)

So the question has to be, how seriously good are twigs? Will twigs add enough style to a property to get buyers getting their wallets out?
Next time you’re browsing a house on an estate agent’s site then have a look for any twigs that they have! You might even have twigs in your own home.

Most unusual feature in a house

Langley, Berkshire Could this house win an award for the most unusual archway ever?
It’s really impressive!
If you’ve ever looked at an archway in a house and thought ‘that’s impressive’ … then just think it would have looked being turned into a full circle! This is such an unusual design element that it’s taken my breath away!
Stunning.

Relocation Relocation

Relocation, Relocation woodbury Last night’s Relocation Relocation had Phil and Kirstie helping Sunee and Will Goring, who wanted to bring their young family back to London. Watch again on 4onD
They wanted a big family house and an investment property too.
However their search uncovered a proeprty just across the road from Sunee’s brother’s house that wasn’t on the market but the owner was interested in selling. The couple loved the house – although it did have some eclectic decorating – the black on the stairs was a bit dark. But it was an amazing size house – although they paid £640k for it and they needed to do some work on it.
They declined to buy an investment as they’d spent more on their main home – this was probably very sensible. Phil showed them three flats which got a return of between 5-6%.
The house they bought didn’t involve any estate agents and they offerdd 660 on an asking price of 675. The owners had discussed the fact they wouldn’t be paying any estate agent fees and in light of work needing doing on the guttering they accepted this offer. Kirsty was speechless almost!

This was Series 7 Episode 7

Alkrington Hall West in Middleton

Alkrington Hall West is a beautiful house set on the edge of parkland in Middleton in North Manchester.
The house is at the top of the Alkrington Woods conservation area and faces open parkland so it feels almost rural.
Inside the rooms are huge and airy with a feeling of luxurious space.
Alkrington Hall in Middleton was built for Sir Darcy Lever and the house was split into two sections in the early 1990s and overlooks the Irk valley.
It’s described in it’s listing as flats – I can’t quite work the layout out but suspect the house is divided up the middle somehow with an inside entrance.

It’s still for sale here reduced from £795,000 to now £750,000!