Property prices in Sunderland have slowed to a halt for the first time in a number of years according to Dean Harding, Managing Director of Good Life. Dean says, “We’re certainly not seeing the falls being experienced in other parts of the country, but it’s true that people now have to be sensible when pricing their properties otherwise they will suffer a frustratingly long wait before achieving a house sale.”

Although recent reductions in the Bank of England Base Rate to 5.25% has helped, Dean feels that further reductions are still needed to restore a little confidence among home movers, “Some people are thinking twice before moving and another cut would certainly help confidence.” He went on to say, “If they want to get moving, home movers should listen to an agent they can trust to give an honest assessment of current market value. If they achieve a successful move, they will be well placed to negotiate a sensible price on their next property which means they don’t lose out in the long run.”

Dean added, “Good mortgage advice is also essential to ensure that you get the very best deal possible. Always ask whether a mortgage broker is truly independent and whether they are truly “whole of market” as most are not and operate from a limited panel of lenders. Some of the very best deals are often with smaller mortgage lenders who can offer incentives like free valuations, free legal fees or low arrangement fees. This can potentially save borrowers thousands of pounds.”

If you have any questions relating to the sale of your property, or you would like a free valuation or mortgage advice, please contact one of our branches where you will find us only too pleased to help.

Following recent phased implementation of Home Information Packs (HIPs) from 10th September, the Government have announced that all residential property, irrespective of the number of bedrooms, will require a HIP from 14th December 2007.

Since September, three and four bedroom properties have been phased in and it has been clear that the main issue has simply been the public understanding of the HIP content. Very positive feedback has been received from consumers on the benefit of HIPs and particularly the EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) which offers suggestions on how to save money on your energy bills and therefore reduce your carbon footprint.

Buying searches at the beginning of a sale, rather than on a purchase has also caught some people a little short financially (a typical HIP will cost around £350 to £400) and to help this situation, Good Life have arranged several methods of payment including credit card payment and deferment of payment to the end of the sale, for those than want to do this.

Managing Director, Dean Harding said, “HIPs are here now and we have to embrace a new procedure and help clients where we can. I’m sure that deferring the payment of the HIP till the end of the sale will prove very popular for clients and we have our own in-house, fully qualified Domestic Energy Surveyors which will also help to keep costs down for clients.”

Properties that are currently on the market, but which do not have a HIP will remain exempt until the government announces anything different. It is expected that there will come a point where any existing properties without a HIP will require one and any clients affected by this will be contacted by Good Life to arrange their HIP at an appropriate time.

If you have any questions regarding HIPs or any other matter, please contact one of our branches who are well briefed on all up to date matters concerning HIPs implementation.

Following recent postponements, the Government has announced the phased implementation of Home Information Packs (HIPs) from 10th September.

Initially, only residential homes with four or more bedrooms will require a HIP, followed by three bedroom homes, possibly from October and all remaining homes by the end of the year.

Dean Harding, Managing Director of Good Life said, “Lots of inaccurate press reports about HIPs have confused homeowners, but in their current form, they are basically standard searches accompanied by an Energy Efficiency Report. “ Dean went on to say, “Provided the Government implement HIPs quickly, very few people will be worse off, as instead of buying searches from your solicitor when you purchase a property, you’ll simply have them ready on the property you’re selling in the HIP pack.”

The new HIP packs will contain an Energy Efficiency Report called an EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) carried out by a Domestic Energy Assessor or Surveyor and this will calculate the amount of energy used and carbon produced by your property, with practical suggestions on what potential buyers could do to reduce energy bills and reduce the carbon footprint.The energy rating will be displayed on a scale of A to G, similar to that on fridge freezers, with most properties expecting to achieve band D to E.

EPC’s are a new concept and are as a direct result of European Legislation. Soon they will be required for all commercial property and rental properties too.

Dean summed up by saying, “Energy Certificates are here to stay as energy use and awareness is near the top of the political agenda. The reports are a useful tool and can be used to help us save money if used properly.“

If you have any questions on HIPs packs or EPC’s, please contact any of our staff who are all well informed on the latest developments regarding the implementation of Home Information Packs.

It gives us great pleasure to announce the acquisition of LG Lets, the Sunderland based letting agent established in 2003 by Steve Neil.

Steve also joins us as Lettings Services Director to head up our new lettings business and is joined by Lettings Manager Susan Armstrong who was previously Branch Manager of Countrywide Residential Lettings and whom also has 20 years valuable experience as a Housing Officer in local government.

Dean Harding, Managing Director said, “We’re delighted to bring LG Lets and Steve into our business. The business has a natural cultural fit with ours and we look forward to helping Steve take our lettings business to the next level.”

The lettings sector is expected to grow considerably in Sunderland over coming years, as first time buyers are priced out of the market and look for alternative, quality rental accommodation instead. More apartments are being built in the City and significant numbers of these are being bought by outside investors who need their property professionally managed; this is where Good Life can help.

Steve Neil said, “Good Life has a reputation for good quality and integrity and are perfectly positioned to look after rental portfolios for investors or private individuals. I’m excited at the opportunity ahead and I’m looking forward to adding significant value to our investor clients including a full range of financial advice options through our Mortgage Advice business.”

Good Life offer a full range of lettings services for landlords including full management and tenant find. Anyone interested in finding out more about how to build an investment property portfolio, what services we offer, or how to get the very best mortgage advice on buy to let property, should call Steve at the Central Lettings Department on 0191 5656655 (Option 3)

Extract from article in Sunderland Echo on 16th Feb 2007

Sue and Dean Harding of Good Life were this week celebrating a major signing for the business with the arrival of David Meads, their new Director of Financial Services.

Dave, 48, joins the Good Life team from International Acceptance, where he held the post of Operations Manager responsible for consumer lending in the UK, Ireland, Spain, Portugal and Italy and has over 25 years of management experience in unsecured, secured and mortgage lending.

Dean Harding, Managing Director, said, “Dave is probably one of the highest calibre people in his field in the UK and this is a major signing for Good Life and for our clients.”

Sue Harding, Director and Senior Valuer also said, “I’ve worked with Dave in the past and I’m delighted that he’s joined us. He’s a lovely man and will build a loyal team around him where customer service and going that extra mile for clients will be top of his priority list.”

Dave himself commented, “When Dean and Sue talked to me about the opportunity at Good Life, I didn’t hesitate to come on board. I’ve already experienced what a terrific team of people they have here and how they already operate similar to my own philosophy.”

Dave went on to say, “The two most important things that clients want from a mortgage advice service is a sound, trusting relationship with their advisor and to have complete independence in the market place to ensure they can access the very best deals. Already I can see that the company deals with a lot of clients who are referred by existing clients and this tells me they are certainly doing things right.”

Good Life offer mortgage advice on a whole range of mortgage products including first time buyers, remortgages, buy to let, commercial and mortgages for clients with a poor credit history. Should anyone wish to contact Good Lifes to discuss their mortgage requirements, please call 0191 565 66 55 at any time.

Good Life Estate Agents were delighted to announce their record property sales month for September reaffirming their strong belief that they are much better placed to serve clients by being located outside of the City centre at their Ryhope Road branch.

Director and Senior Valuer, Sue Harding said, “Being located on Ryhope Road means clients can park right outside the door if they want to visit us or pick things up. It’s much more convenient than the City centre and much easier for access.”

Sue went on to say, “Last month, we sold three times more properties than a well known City centre estate agent which confirms that it’s our work ethic and attitude that is far more important. The fact that our shop is more convenient is a bonus! ”

Dean Harding, Group Managing Director said, “Not all, but certainly the vast majority of people who shop in the City centre are school children, students and tenants, which are not the market segment involved in buying property. This means that a City centre location doesn’t help when it comes to selling property and certainly doesn’t help when it comes to getting to and from an estate agents shop quickly!”

Dean added, “ That’s why we decided to locate on Ryhope Road, where you can get to us within 10 minutes from virtually anywhere in the City without any parking problems and as a result it actually helps us to sell more property. We’ve had more situations than we can mention where we’ve been very busy selling property when well known City centre agents have claimed the market was dead.”

Good Life Estate Agents is the fastest growing estate agent in the City and is now one of the top three estate agents in the City in terms of numbers of property for sale or under offer. For details of how you can arrange a free valuation, please call 0191 565 6655