The Police are looking for a motive

The housing market seems to have ground to a halt here in Chiswick during August, and it got my cousin and I thinking of the estate agent speak for such an event. There is in fact an estate agents calendar.

• January - market is slow sir, no money about after Christmas
• February - too cold, not many people looking
• March - a lot of people away what with Easter and the skiing season
• April - good time to put the house on the market, it should pick up with the weather
• May - not a good time to be buying, would have to move in August during the holidays
• June- a window of opportunity
• July - people saving for their holidays
• August - people on their holidays
• September - back from their holidays and start of a new school year, not a good time to look
• October - evenings getting darker so people less keen to view
• November - saving up for Christmas
• December - Christmas

They also have aspect speak,

• South facing garden, full sun
• West facing garden, nearly South facing , sun in the evening
• East facing garden, sun in the morning
• North facing garden, beautiful views

We have seen a few properties with a view to buy but I am reluctant to put a bid in until our place is under offer. The prices continue to amaze though. Emma,our youngest daughter, has just offered on a one bed flat on the Wirral for less than £70,000. A two bed in Chis is hard to find for five times that.

Anyway, we press on and hope for a change in fortune shortly.....at least the inflation rate reduction looks like it might delay a further interest rise for a while......lets just hope the financial markets don't go into meltdown on the back of the USA mortgage crisis.

Think I'll go and eat worms.....

Estate agents have an interesting reputation, don't they? Unloved, unpopular and unable to live up to their promises. I am reminded of a newspaper report from some years ago.......'a man walked into a high street outlet and shot dead the estate agent. The police are looking for a motive.' ......yeah right......
Well I interviewed five organisations in Chiswick. they all promised the world and the spread of prices which they quoted as reasonable was more than £100k apart. They work, of course, on comparibles, but this is what happens when there are none. So I set my own price, and appointed the outfit who sent the lady round. Well a philanderer would, wouldn't they?

So whats happened so far?
Nice glossy brochure, several promises of viewings which have not materialised, me hanging around for no reason, little communication unless I instigated it, and finally a few people have been shown round.

No offers yet but it looks like one of my viewers has offered on the house next door, which will be good, as it takes the opposition out of the frame, and it is a snip.