The rise of the secret property market... and how to break in
telegraph.co.ukStacks Property Search in the Cotswolds points out. “It is about local knowledge and access to the right off-market properties.
Downsizers want to know what sort of neighbours they are going to inherit, whereas young families are more interested in seasonal light and secondary schools,” says Fuller.
Pending local developments and neighbouring new-builds are another vital area of knowledge.But perhaps the most compelling reason to use a buying agent, says Jonathan Hopper, CEO of buying agent Garrington Property Finders, is the secret zone of the “off market”. “That’s the trump card for property finders right now,” says Hopper.
The sheer number of homes being sold this way (one national chain of estate agents sold 37,000 properties off market in the first quarter of this year alone) – can make the case for using a property finder overwhelming. “A standout trend this year has been that more sellers are reluctant to have hordes of people tramping around their home, so off-market sales have almost become the norm for the most desirable properties,” he says. “For many buyers, a good property finder is the only way to unlock this fast-growing, but hidden, market.”Once the client is sure that they want to proceed, the buying agent will negotiate on their behalf (remember those nail-biting phone calls on Location, Location, Location when Phil Spencer and Kirstie Allsopp put in an offer?) and hopefully agree a favourable outcome.
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