Author: Benjamin

[openai_chatbot] rewrite this content and keep HTML tags as is: David Sandeman March 2025 saw a modest rise in auction activity, with lots offered increasing by 5.6% compared to the same month last year – a pattern likely influenced by the usual push to complete transactions before the end of the financial year, the latest figures released by the Essential Information Group (EIG) reveals. But this increase in stock did not translate into higher sales, with the number of lots sold down 0.5% year-on-year and the success rate falling to 68.2%, a drop of over five percentage points. Still, total…

[openai_chatbot] rewrite this content and keep HTML tags as is: Dominic Agace Winkworth has announced its audited results for the year ended 31 December 2024. The company says its financial performance in 2024 was in line with management expectations. + Revenues of £10.79m up by 17% on 2023 (2023: £9.27 million). + Profit before taxation up 10% to £2.36m (2023: £2.15m). + Strong balance sheet with year-end cash balance of £4.09m (2023: £4.55m) and with no debt. + Full year dividends of 12.3p per ordinary share declared (2023: 11.7p per ordinary share), an increase of 5% on the prior year.…

[openai_chatbot] rewrite this content and keep HTML tags as is: Santander and HSBC were among major lenders to announce significant rate cuts yesterday, with some deals now starting from below 4%, while Halifax overhauled its affordability criteria. Santander’s two- and three-year fixed rates for residential home purchase for buyers with at 60% loan to value (LTV) have fallen to 3.97% and 3.99% respectively, both with a £999 fee. Santander is the latest lender to offer sub-4% fixed rates for home purchase, after Barclays and Coventry BS reduced their rates last week, as the current mortgage price war intensifies. Hina Bhudia, partner…

[openai_chatbot] rewrite this content and keep HTML tags as is: The number of properties being sold by landlords has increased significantly, with 15.6% of all new instructions in Q1 2025 having been previously rented homes – a sharp rise from 9.8% in Q1 2024, new data from TwentyEA has revealed. New instructions for Q1 2025 totalled 451,154 – 70,542, of which were prior rentals or 15.6%. In research detailed in its latest Property & Homemover Report, TwentyEA, part of the TwentyCi group, found that in Q4 2024 12.2% of all new instructions were properties which had been rented at some point…

[openai_chatbot] rewrite this content and keep HTML tags as is: Irakli Menabde A new residential property intelligence tool has been launched for estate agents, combining data and AI. REalyse’s analytics has been designed to allow agents to impress prospects and win more listings, presenting as local experts with little to no prep time needed. The tools, which are also available to consumers, will mean agents benefit from working with well-informed clients who are better equipped to move forward with transactions. The geospatial platform is said to bring together more than 100 data sources covering planning and policy, land information, achieved…

[openai_chatbot] rewrite this content and keep HTML tags as is: An estate agent from Cheshire has completed another trip to Ukraine, having travelled to the war-torn country several times to take food to people in need. Gary Fear, who works in Nantwich, says he has raised more than £100,000 for the venture since 2022, with his next trip taking place next month. A concert raising funds for his project will take place at Nantwich Civic Hall on 3 May. The event, entitled Resilient Ukraine, will be hosted by author and former BBC newsreader Diana Mather. “This war is now in…

[openai_chatbot] rewrite this content and keep HTML tags as is: Adam Day Hybrid estate agency eXp UK has now signed up more than 700 estate agents with the firm expected to expand further later this year, the company has revealed. Launched in November 2019, the digitally-focused platform initially signed up 50 agents but now has over agents on board, as more agents seek self-employment with a view to managing their own business. The latest announcement comes less than a year since eXp UK launched its brokerage model – designed to convert existing branch-based estate agency businesses to the use of self-employed…

[openai_chatbot] rewrite this content and keep HTML tags as is: A man has been sentenced after threatening an estate agent with a paving slab. Michael Beckett, 66, has been jailed for 10 months after picking up the concrete block after warning the female agent that she needed “a good slap around the head”. Norwich Magistrates’ Court heard that he had threatened to attack the estate agent on 16 January 16 during a confrontation as she attempted to help him to put his house up for sale. Josephine Jones, prosecuting, said he later told police “she drove me to it” and…

[openai_chatbot] rewrite this content and keep HTML tags as is: Residential properties in England and Wales spend an average of 36 days on the market before a sale is agreed, according to new data from Zoopla. Over half – 52% – of sales are agreed within the first two months of a home being listed, a 3% increase from last year (49%). To complete a sale, sellers and buyers will typically need another 4-6 months, depending on the complexity of the transaction. There are significant regional variations in the time to sell, with available stock, demand and pricing all playing…

[openai_chatbot] rewrite this content and keep HTML tags as is: The National Residential Landlords Association (NRLA) has announced a new partnership with waste removal platform Litta, offering its members discounted access to on-demand clearance services across the UK. Litta will provide NRLA members with 5% off all waste removal bookings. The service includes same-day or next-day collections and live tracking of waste, from pickup to disposal. The partnership is designed to help landlords manage issues such as rubbish left behind by tenants, furniture removal, garden waste and DIY debris. Litta also handles commercial waste, white goods and electrical items, and…