Spot the Difference
Ben Marchbank compares a new BBC TV series on estate agency with real life. The BBC will broadcast a new reality show called Crazy Rich Agents on BBC2 at 9pm, Sunday 6th August. The series is designed to focus on high-end estate agency in the UK. The producers aim to showcase a more American way of selling and buying properties …
Ditch the Compass
Ben Marchbank points the right way through the new year property market maze. There are areas of the British Isles, such as loftier parts of the Isle of Skye, where a compass doesn’t work. This anomaly is due to the local geology – a hard, abrasive, magnetic rock called gabbro. Not being able to trust one’s compass is always unnerving …
If Wishes Were Sales
Emmerson Dutton looks at what it takes to make things happen in the property market this New Year, because wishing is no longer enough. This time last year Russia hadn’t set foot on Ukrainian soil, the chickens were still to come home to roost for Boris Johnson, we had hardly heard of Liz Truss and were barely out from Covid …
The human side of selling a home
In the days before technology invaded the estate agency industry – flooding it with helpful and not so helpful ‘proptech’ – estate agents kept buyers’ details written on index cards that were stored in plastic boxes. These were called hot boxes in the trade and all estate agents had them. Depending on how long buyers had been looking for a …
EVENTS
Emmerson Dutton of Bedfords takes a look at what’s important in a confusing property market. Asked what he thought would define his premiership, Prime Minister Harold McMillan famously replied, “Events, dear boy, events”. It is much the same with the property market. Events largely control turnover and turnover affects prices – up or down. There have been major global events …
Bury St Edmunds Hidden Gardens
Bedfords are proud to sponsor Bury St Edmunds Hidden Gardens – Sunday 3rd July – 11am to 5pm, in aid of St Nicholas Hospice. Bury St Edmunds has many fine and historic buildings, but Hidden Gardens gives people the chance to discover the secret patios, lawns, borders, vegetable gardens, greenhouses and other features behind their facades and high walls. All …
Building Back, Better
Ben Marchbank of our Burnham Market office reflects upon the Queen’s platinum jubilee celebrations and considers what we have and have not learnt over seventy years of the property market. Last weekend, we celebrated the Queen’s platinum jubilee. There were parties in streets which didn’t even exist when the Queen came to the throne along with those in the many …
We are hiring…
The Bury St Edmunds office is looking to strengthen its sales and administration team. We are interested in hearing from talented individuals already in the industry or looking to start a new career. Do DM us or call 01284 769 999 and speak to Emmerson or email your CV in confidence to emmerson@bedfords.co.uk
SWINGS AND ROUNDABOUTS
Paul Bedford advises prospective sellers and buyers not to wait until the property market gets back to ‘normal’. Who remembers the boom and bust property markets of the early 1970s or the late 1980s? Who remembers the MIRAS debacle in 1988 and 15% mortgage interest rates? More people will remember recent mini booms and busts, general elections, Black Wednesday, the …
“…Spring is the time of plans and projects…”
The selling season is upon us, and due to the low levels of property available, now is the perfect time to take advantage of the large number of buyers looking for a home in Norfolk and Suffolk. If you are considering your property plans or projects, now is a good time to get in touch with us to book your …
THE START OF SOMETHING NEW?
PROPERTIES WANTED! We are building up a large database of buyers looking for property in both country, coastal and town locations within Norfolk and Suffolk. If you are entertaining the idea of selling this year, do get in touch to arrange your free market appraisal.
Whiz, Bang or Psst?
Whilst we are known throughout the region for our comprehensive marketing at a local, regional and national level, we also have the ability to dip into our extensive network of contacts and have a quiet word with motivated buyers – perfect for sellers who don’t relish the glare of a full open-market campaign. If you are considering your options and …
October is no longer a symphony of permanence and change
Emmerson Dutton, one of the Partners based in Bury St Edmunds, reflects upon the year to date and wonders what the future holds for the property market. The Stamp Duty holiday is now over and it has been an extraordinary period for the housing market, with exceptional demand met by a good supply of houses in post-lockdown 2020 and exceptional …
Remember September!
A sense of normality has returned as the children go back to school after the long summer break. Whilst the market remains very strong, one cannot help believe that a sector of the market was hampered during the summer by childcare challenges or simply because they enjoyed a well-earned break somewhere in the UK. Now that we are in September, …
FULL-TIME OFFICE ASSISTANT REQUIRED – BURNHAM MARKET
Our Burnham Market office is looking for a full-time office assistant. Computer literacy, a pleasant telephone manner and excellent organisational skills are required, as is the ability to work efficiently within a small team. Please send a CV and covering letter to Bedfords, The Bower House, 25 Market Place, Burnham Market PE31 8HF or via email to bmkt@bedfords.co.uk
Hidden Gardens of Bury
We are proud to once again be sponsors for the Hidden Gardens event. Bury St Edmunds has many fine and historic buildings, but Hidden Gardens gives people the chance to discover the secret patios, lawns, borders, vegetable gardens, greenhouses and other features behind their facades and high walls. All the gardens are in the town centre and within walking distance …
ONWARDS AND UPWARDS
Ben Marchbank looks to a genius to make some sense of a property market, the like of which we haven’t seen since the 1980s. What Isaac Newton, who formulated the laws of gravity in the middle of the 17th century, would have made of the current gravity-defying property market is anyone’s guess. But no doubt, like most people, he would …
Spring…a surprise!
The daffodils are standing tall, the clocks have gone forward, lambs are gamboling playfully in the fields and the Easter Bunny is eagerly anticipated across the land. It is fair to say that spring has sprung! But one traditional seasonal event has failed to come to pass this year; the Easter Parade of new instructions at which spring buyers keenly …
“Winter Is Coming” or “Now Is the Winter of Our Discontent?”
In advance of the Budget, there has been much speculation as to what measures the Chancellor might introduce and of course, our concern has been how they might impact the housing market. The speculation has largely occupied two schools of thought; those who thought that further positive measures might be announced before, inevitably, tax rises are implemented (the ‘Winter Is …
SUPPLY AND DEMAND
First and foremost, may we wish you all well as you juggle with the demands of this latest lockdown. Whether you are a front-line worker, a work-from-homer, a home-schooler, a self-isolator or a shielder, congratulations on having endured January – now we can look forward to February supplying the first snowdrops! Since the start of this latest lockdown, we have …
Happy New Lockdown…
It was announced just after 8pm on Monday 4th January 2021 and coincided with the unexpected and sudden end to ‘Dry January’. A new national lockdown for England has been imposed to lessen the spread of the new variant of coronavirus. Our first thought, of course, was how will this impact the property market? Thankfully, the government has made it …
A look into Bedfords’ crystal ball
It is that time of year again, when we blow the dust off Bedfords’ crystal ball to see what it foretells of the coming year. I should probably confess now that much to our subsequent disappointment, last January our crystal ball failed to predict the imminent pandemic, the resultant lockdown or the resurgent boom market that followed. But on the …
OUR CHRISTMAS OPENING HOURS
As the year comes to a close, we are already thinking ahead to January and preparing properties to put on the market in order to satisfy the continued interest from outside of the region. Since last June, an overwhelming number of buyers have registered with us, hoping to live in the peaceful villages and towns of Suffolk and Norfolk, and …
LOCKDOWN II – WHAT DOES IT MEAN FOR THE PROPERTY MARKET?
We now have clarity on the extent to which the new lockdown will further restrict the housing market and limit the way we operate – and to all intents and purposes, thankfully it won’t. We will still be here in our offices or WFH helping clients and customers with their home moves, albeit whilst we remain open for business, our …
Flying off the shelves
As we head for autumn and further Covid restrictions, Michael Bedford of Bedfords assesses the state of the property market. So many people are asking us about the property market at the moment. To provide some perspective, we often answer the question with a question. We ask, “Do you remember back in March, how loo rolls became difficult to find as …
A BOOM MARKET?
Since May demand for good quality houses in Norfolk and Suffolk has been exceptionally strong; no doubt people have been reassessing their lives in larger towns and cities and our quieter way of life looks more attractive and safer. This coupled with a low supply of property coming to the market has caused the market to rally to a greater …
Stamp Duty Holiday…
The Chancellor has just announced a temporary Stamp Duty holiday on the first £500,000 of all property sales in England and Wales which will last until March 2021 (although, to be clear, the 3% surcharge on the acquisition of additional homes will continue to be levied against the entire purchase price). Undoubtedly, this should stimulate activity in what already has …
BACK IN BUSINESS – ONE MONTH ON
I suspect that anyone involved in the property market was somewhat surprised to hear on the evening of May 12 that the market would be allowed to resume trading the following day. I certainly was! For me personally, it heralded a spell of frenetic activity as my mobile rang and pinged with a succession of new enquiries from sellers and …
Business…but not as usual
The Government have now detailed how the property market can resume. As part of the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) (Amendment) (No.2) Regulations 2020, the Government has now removed its restrictions on residential sales. Viewings and market appraisals can now be carried out, along with visits by photographers, Domestic Energy Assessors and floor-plan technicians. This is a pivotal development and …
LOOKING INTO OUR CRYSTAL BALL…
I’m sure many of us had similarly mixed feelings on hearing today’s announcement that we must continue to stay at home unless essential for at least another week – and only the most optimistic amongst us would have thought that the lockdown might end in a week. On the one hand, we all want to do our bit to help …
