Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Kirstie Allsopp - my battleplan for buyers



I read this article in the Daily Telegraph from the ubiquitous Kirstie Allsopp and thought she was talking a lot of sense.

It's not rocket science but she tells us how to get the most out of estate agents (as she says, they're not the devil incarnate), how important it is to have your financing in place, how to do your "due diligence" and reminds us of the importance of checking out the neighbours.

I hadn't actually realised that Kirstie too used to be a buying agent.....it makes me like her a bit more now.

I particularly liked the bit where she says to beware of mod cons:

Remember, what’s state-of-the-art today won’t be in five years’ time. I wouldn’t touch a house that makes a big deal out of having the latest technology.

It's true that many buyers seem impressed by the fixtures and fittings rather than the one thing that truly matters.....the location.

If you're buying in France I'd say that you should also make sure that you have a full understanding of the process that you are about to undertake and, above all, make sure that you have a good knowledge of the local market and have spoken to a cross section of agents.

An efficient notaire will also help smooth the process immeasurably, some of them are still stuck in the dark ages and if you are buying from afar it can prove frustrating.

www.cognacproperty.com

1 comment:

Chris said...

Did a blog myself recently on Kirstie, really is an interesting person to read about. Quite opinionated but usually correct in what she says, knows her stuff.