Market Movement For Chiswick Properties

Horton and Garton's Paul Cooney discusses the importance of precision pricing and avoiding the overvaluing trap

We're assaulted by it wherever we look; you can try closing your eyes but, if the radio's on, it's unavoidable. Posters confront us as we walk down the street: Brexit is coming! Despite the spectre of the uncertain looming, Chiswick's property market looks positively buoyant from our position perched above Turnham Green Terrace. We're joint 2nd in Chiswick for sales agreed in 2019 according to Rightmove, no mean feat against a plethora of ‘powerhouse agencies' occupying costly premises on the High Road and Terrace.

There are several reasons why the W4 landscape looks so lush from our position. At Horton and Garton, we get the valuation of your home right from the first day of marketing. It seems like a straightforward part of the job, accurately pricing our clients' homes, but I've met more local homeowners than I care to count who have fallen foul of the overvaluing trap. I call it a trap because it is exactly that: when a property's price tag is inflated, even by just a few percent, it can result in a no sale scenario – but far worse, it can also result in your home selling for less than its true market value.

Overvaluing is an incapable agent's way of hitting the ‘new listings targets' set by head office. It's a simple way to seduce sellers then back them into a corner, forced to reduce their home's asking price. The three worst offenders in Chiswick, all high profile Chiswick High Road and Turnham Green Terrace agents, have reduced between 40.6% and 44.4% of their listings in 2019 according to Rightmove. List with one of these agencies and it's effectively a spin of the roulette wheel as to whether your home will be significantly reduced in value. It makes you wonder if these agents could value a £5 note!

What becomes of the homes that are initially listed at inflated prices? The worst offender in W4 has reduced the asking prices of their listings by an average of just under 16%: this would mean the reduction in the asking price of a £1.1m home to under £925,000... a staggering drop, by all accounts, and utterly unfair to the homeowner. Our average price reduction, of the very small percentage of homes that require an adjustment in price, is only 6.5% - and we've reduced just 8.2% of our 2019 listings. From our vantage point, it's good news. Our ability to price accurately from the first day of marketing is just one part of the arsenal that achieves superb results for our happy clients. We recently exchanged contracts on a spectacular house in the Alphabet Streets which came to the market as a joint listing with one of our competitors; it sold for 97.5% of its asking price and was purchased by brilliant local buyers. Just yesterday we received an asking price offer from a cash buyer for a property in Stamford Brook which is joint listed with a competitor Turnham Green Terrace agency, after only 5 days of marketing. Don't let the posters fool you - there is momentum in the W4 market. For an intelligent, hard-working approach to your home, my team and I are ready to provide a sterling service.

Our clients tell our story:

“I have nothing but the highest praise for Paul and his team: professional, knowledgeable, courteous, good-humoured, buzzing with energy and enthusiasm, I knew I was in good hands from the off. He made a potentially difficult experience seamless, was a joy to deal with, went above and beyond what was expected and achieved a fantastic result for us.”
-Karen, Bedford Park Conservation Area seller

“This might sound dramatic but Horton and Garton changed my opinion of estate agents. As long as I buy and sell in London it will be through them. Paul and Jenn, you set the bar very high with your kindness and helpfulness through what is normally a stressful experience. Start a school for estate agents so the world could be a better place.”
-Jo, Central Chiswick buyer