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Service Fees

Sellers

Choose to pay up front or when your sale is complete, fees are negotiable. Either way full service is included.

  • Property Consultation.
  • Photography, video and online 3D tour.
  • Floor Plan.
  • Listing On Our Partner Property Portals.
  • Viewing Scheduling.
  • Buyer Qualification.
  • Offer Negotiation.
  • Sales Progression To Completion.

Premium marketing options are available on most online property portals at an additional cost, your property professional will discuss these with you when preparing the marketing plan for your home.

Landlords

Full rental management –  10% excl VAT of rent collected for rentals under R22,000. A flat rate of R2,000 plus 1.5% excl VAT  when monthly rental exceeds R22,000.

We also offer a tenant procurement service –  you pay R7,500 excl VAT upfront or R15,000 excl VAT on signature of the lease agreement.

See  Property Management Flyer  for more information

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Recommended Contractors

BEE Removal  – Lawrence Woollam – Bee Keeper and Handyman Tel:  082 898 3835.  Email:  lawrencewoollam@yahoo.co.uk

CLEANING – Pro cleaning 021 911 2630 or 083 303 9419

DSTV – Aer & Sat Services – Ian Povey   021 531-2968      Cell:  0837217781 / 0839826261    E-Mail:    poves@telkomsa.net

DOORS AND WINDOWS – Denzyl Koen (Panamera) 082 9670007 – repairs to doors, windows, sliding doors  – Wood, metal, aluminium

ELECTRIC GATES AND DOOR – Louis Nell is a guru on electric gates and garage doors 021 531 4323 or 072 231 2738

Budget garage doors – Aluminium outside doors and garage doors  www.budgetgaragedoors.co.za or 021 683 0050

FIRE PLACES – Lava Fires – all things fire – call them on 021 510 3896 0r Ray at 076 769 6077 – they provide excellent service and good value for money.

FLOORS – Dustless Floor Sanding – Eddy Koning 083 7000 880 very good service, professional finish.

HOME APPLIANCE SALES and REPAIRS – Fixitt Appliance Centre or Claremont Home appliances 021 671 5004

HOUSE INSPECTION SERVICES – HouseCheck

MOVERS – Go Gorilla movers – I have had several clients use their services and always had good reports on their service and value of money.

PAINTERS

RE SELL (furniture and bric a brak)

Thistle Cottage Collectables

Lisa – call her on 082 886 4855

Hofmeyr-Mills Auctioners

ROOFERS and WATERPROOFING

Scheltema – Phone 021 638 3121

Levenbach – Phone 021 799 3000

Prize – Phone 021 671 1343

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Sellers guide

We will structure our selling fee to optimise your net proceeds. Service fees

From the time you first think about a possible sale through to the EFT deposit into your bank account. There are may details to be taken care off. An expert agent can guide you through the process

Most banks require a 90 day notice period before bond cancellation, be sure to transfer any funds you need from your access facility before giving notice. Notice Rules for banks.

Pricing

To maximise your selling price within a reasonable time frame, you need to get the price right. The market determines the value of your home. You are the final arbiter because you will either accept or reject any offers.

Setting the appropriate marketing price for your home is challenging. Too low, and you leave money on the table. Too high, and you loose potential buyers who may think your property is out of their price range. Not only that but you will also help the competition sell faster.

Pricing your home right results in more exposure, more showings, more offers, and ultimately, the highest price for your home. To find the optimal price – one that achieves the highest selling price and minimises the time it takes to sell – requires strategic thinking.

Your home is an emotional asset—it’s hard to make the pricing decision objectively.

Agents spend their careers refining and mastering pricing strategies. We combine intimate local and national market knowledge, an exhaustive study of similar homes for sale,  an analysis of past sales and combine these with your unique needs to come up with the optimal listing price. Consult your property professional, for information about the housing market in your area.

Don’t “Test” the market with your price This is a post on a US blog site but it sets out the reasons for giving careful consideration to your pricing strategy.

Prepare to impress

The way you present your home is a vital part of achieving the best possible sale.  Buyers viewing your home, imagine themselves living there. You need to present your home in a way that allows them to do so.

The work required is to clean, declutter, make minor repairs and make sure that your home makes a great first impression. It is important not to waste money repairing something that will add little value but sometimes spending a little can change a lot – first impressions count. Contact us for a free pre listing consultation.

Get Noticed

With the right price and your home in showing condition its time to get the buyers to notice. 97% of homebuyers start their search on-line. It is vital to be promoted on the most visited websites and to show them great visuals and related information when you have their eyeballs.

We showcase your property on Property24.com and its many partner  websites. We create an interactive 3D Tour of your home. Sample 3D Tour

Negotiate a deal that works for

You are in control of the sale. You set the selling price for your home when you accept an offer .

When buyers make an offer it is important for the seller to consider the following

  • Wether the offer is lower or higher than you expected, keep an open mind. Make sure that you understand all the terms and conditions of the offer.
  • View the offer as the opening of a conversation between yourself and a committed buyer.
  • Consider your position in the market –  Do you hold all the cards? Are you on the back foot? Does the offer meet any or most of your requirements. Thoroughly understand where the offer does not meet your requirements.
  • Do you or your agent understand the buyers motivation?  How does the deal on the table stack up against their needs? Are there easy wins where you can meet their needs at little cost to you.
  • Keep the conversation moving – If necessary make a counter offer on the terms and conditions or the price or the dates – work the deal to the point where it achieves what you want. But you must be proactive buyers won’t sit around waiting.

Show me the Money

With an deal on the table it is very important to shepard the transaction through the finalisation and transfer process.

In most sale agreements there are suspensive conditions to be cleared, your agent should take a proactive role in ensuring that the conditions are met in the time allowed.  In the event that they are not met he/she must make sure that the necessary addenda to the agreement is signed so that the transaction does not lapse.

Finance must be arranged, Compliance Certificates, Rates and Levies Clearance certificates, Deposits collected and many other minor issues need to be tracked. Your agent will track these and try to ensure that transfer takes place on or as soon after the planned transfer date as possible.

Many sellers become very frustrated in this phase because the minutia of the sale are not properly managed by their agent and transfer can be delayed by weeks or months.

Sellers guide PDF.

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The Blues – Rondebosch / Claremont Property Market update Dec 2017

Intimate market knowledge is a critical aspect of the service an Estate Agent provides to clients. I track homes that come to the market in the Rondebosch / Claremont area and analyse their performance.

The issue is price expectations – sellers are pricing homes for the peak of the market and holding out for their price. They do not realise that the rate of price increases has been slowing for the past 5 quarters in the Southern Suburbs.

Buyers are holding back for a variety of reasons mainly because of affordability but also because of economic and political uncertainty. These influences are beyond the control of sellers.

This is not a doom and gloom situation;  prices are still rising but not as quickly as in the past.

The current market conditions create a situation where buyers have more choices and are not under pressure to make offers, the market has become a buyers market.

Now more than at any time in the past 4-5 years it is vital for sellers to appreciate that  Price + Presentation = Saleability

Price

Know what you are up against – Potential buyers are well informed;

  • They find out what properties were bought for.
  • They research how long properties have been on the market and use various websites to calculate a current valuation.
  • Buyers don’t have to visit a property to get a feel for what it offers. Most good agents provide internal and external photographs, floor plans and 360 degree video. There is little mystery left as to what is behind the front door.

How to get it right –

  • Be realistic about your selling price; ask a variety of agents for their perspectives and ignore ‘valuation flattery’ where an agent is overly optimistic to seduce you into a mandate.
  • Do your research into the competition – which other houses will your potential buyers be looking at and how does your property compare?
  • Be objective, see those houses and yours through “buyers’ eyes”, it can be difficult to be rational, so get others opinions.

Presentation

First impressions count – In every aspect of modern lives, presentation is critical – both for the photographs and 360 tours which potential buyers will view and for the actual physical viewings.

Get professional help – It is not advisable to spend a lot of money when selling, but unless your home is in a permanent state of perfection, which very few are, a small investment may help you to achieve your sale price, or achieve any sale at all.

Get a professional Agent or home stager to give you an objective second opinion and recommend where to put your time and effort in getting the presentation up to the required level for photographs and viewings. Simple things such as de-personalising your home to allow potential buyers to imagine themselves living there and decluttering to maximise space and appeal, can be crucial in securing a sale.

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Preparing yourself for a sale

All estate agents offer advice on how to prepare your home for a sale – Home Sellers Guide.

These guides however only address the work of preparing your home for a sale.

If you have been living in your home for several years, it is just as important (probably more so) that you prepare yourself and your family emotionally, financially and psychologically for the sale.

When we work with clients that are moving home after 20,30 or 40+ years in a home.  We find that it is far better to make a planned, considered move than to be forced by circumstances into an unplanned ill considered decision.  Even if you are not ready to make the decision in the next 12 months or so,  it is important to build momentum slowly and consistently and to put together a framework for how you would like the next move to work out.

Spruce.com is a great website offering loads of advice of what you should consider before moving.

You may also want to discuss the financial implications of a sale with a financial advisor / tax consultant.

Ticking boxes and checking finances is vital but it is just as important to focus your creative energy on your new home and the new life style that will come along with it. You should try to shift your mind, your dreams and your activities, even while staying in your old home. This will help you be better prepared for the move when you finally decide it is time and will help you to establish a clean break.

A recent blog post on Thinking about downsizing may also be useful.

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Unlock value by creating a second dwelling on your property

Retirees and empty-nesters can unlock value by selling or renting the second dwelling or by selling the right to construct a second dwelling. They can do so without having to move away from the suburb in which they have lived for many years.

The City of Cape Town’s Municipal bylaws grant an automatic right to build a second dwelling on almost all properties in Cape Town, no mater what the zoning.

It is best to consult professionals to assist with the process as there are numerous interacting regulations that must be adhered to.

You will need

Conveyancer – to conduct a deeds search to establish if there are any restrictive conditions in the title deeds. Restrictive conditions override zoning rights so they will have to be lifted before you can proceed.

Town planner – to help you to understand the regulations as they pertain to your property.

Architect – to prepare a site plan which optimize the opportunities.

You will have to decide if you will be selling freehold title or sectional title. There are pro’s / con’s to consider. Your estate agent and conveyancer can help you weigh them up. In most cases a sectional title scheme is the best option.

There is a great deal more to the entire process. Get in touch if you would like a free consultation.  We can also recommend experienced professionals that will assist you with all aspects of a project of this nature.

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Forget the Kitchen Draw — Its time to re-evaluate the way you live.

We spend decades being organised: managing our households, families, and lives. Starting in our twenties, we have acquired : property, people, experiences, marriage, children and other relationships.

We reach an age when we step back and think about where we are, and where we want to be. There are so many competing realities: kids growing up and moving out, parents aging and possibly moving in, changes in jobs, retiring, downsizing.

We should remember the advice of John Keating (Robin Williams) in Dead Poets Society and seize the moment. Free  ourselves from the clutter we have accumulated, or we may get stuck in the mire.

How can we go about doing this?

  1. Acknowledge that change is happening.
  2. Think about how you would like to manage the change so that you can define how things will be in the future.
  3. Identify the clutter in your life. Clutter is anything that is obsolete, drains your energy or that you feel is time-consuming.

•Objects: It could be paperwork in boxes that you haven’t opened for years, jewelry you no longer wear, the old business cards on your desk, or the stacks of magazines and books that you will never look at again.

•Obligations: Obsolete roles and responsibilities like boards, committees and clubs.  Shedding these can be hard because they involve other people.

•Habits: If you are a perfectionist, a procrastinator or a workaholic, you are doing yourself a disservice. These habits waste time and energy and create stress. We don’t need to be defined by what we do. Instead, we should focus more on who we are. It’s enough to be engaging, interesting and involved.

•People: People can be just as draining as piles of newspapers and magazines. If there’s someone in your life who drags you down, maybe it’s time to reconsider the relationship. It’s not easy to completely remove those people from your life, perhaps you can think about redefining the relationship. You want to be kind, but you must also be honest with yourself about which relationships nourish you, and which deplete you.

  1. Let go of what you identified as holding you back. Change can be hard work – if you reduce the things that hold you back, you can travel further and faster with the same effort.
  1. Keeping moving this is not a once off event. Having started the journey keep the focus and direction clear and commit to staying on the journey.

Good luck

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Rondebosch / Claremont Property Market update Oct 2017

Price Pressure

Nationally property prices have been under pressure with some suburbs showing declining real house price over the past few months.

In Cape Town; the remarkable strength of the housing market over the past few years has started to show signs of slight weakening.

The average time a home is on the market before a sale has increased over the past 6 months. It now takes close to 20 weeks on average for a home to sell in Cape Town. A market is considered to be in equilibrium when homes sell in +/- 12 weeks.

With homes staying on the market longer there is a risk of a real house price correction. There is minimal fear of a local (Cape Town) bubble and the risk of significant price declines is considered to be very low.

However, price increases in the Cape Town market are expected to gradually return to the longterm trend line for house price inflation. The spectacular increases seen over the past few years are unlikely to continue.

Have you been holding onto you home, enjoying the 10% +annual  increase in value over the past few years? Have you  also been thinking about a change? With holding costs (rates, insurance and maintenance) increasing all the time, Now may be the time to begin planning for that change.

In the Claremont and Rondebosch market we started have started to see pressure being transferred to sellers. Over the winter period, average days on the market began getting longer, and in some cases homes were removed from the market not having sold.

Strategies for serious sellers in the current market;

  1. Prepare your home carefully for sale – get ready to show its best face.
  2. Ensure that you price competitively relative to similar homes on offer.
  3. Be ready to negotiate.

Every home is unique and offers different benefits to the market. Its always a good idea to consult a professional agent before putting your home on the market.

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Re-think downsizing

Your family home holds precious memories, but as your children grow up and move on to establish their own lives both near and far the question; what next? Inevitably comes up.

Downsizing can evoked negative feelings, but one can think of the change differently.

In her book Composing A Life, Mary Catherine Bateson reflects on how 5 of her friends went about remolding their  lives in their 50’s, 60’s and 70’s.  She likens the process to (amongst other things) the weaving of a tapestry where existing threads are woven together with new, creating new possibilities.

We should view the empty nester / downsizing phase of our lives in a similar way. The weaving together of a new way of living using threads and memories from the old.

Whatever you choose to call it, you are in the stage of life when, possibly for the first time, you can choose where to live based on your own dreams and desires and not because its close to school or has 5 bedrooms.

Your home will be an important part of the new tapestry you will be weaving.

If you need assistance with selling or buying a home please get in touch

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Estate agencies are not passing on efficiencies from improved technology.

Metamorphosis of the estate agency.

This article by Vivian Warby appeared in the Weekend Argus 24 June 2017,  highlights changes in the real estate market and how different agencies are reacting.

In summary;

Globally, online portals dominate the real estate market particularly in relation to buyers. This is certainly true in South Africa where Property24 and Private Property are the first port of call for interested buyers. New technology enables agencies to work smarter and more efficiently.

We have seen the emergence of start up agencies seeking to leverage these changes – they offer sellers low or zero commission services – but with reduced or zero agent involvement.

Most buyer and sellers, prefer to deal through an experienced real estate agent. This is because no real estate transaction is the same. Each deal has its own peculiarities which most home owners are unlikely to have seen before. Buyers and sellers prefer to deal with a credible, professional expert able to give prudent and sensible advice. 

The daily  activities of an estate agent have changed considerably over the years as a result of the technological changes in the industry. There is no doubt that a key element remains, the services of a person with the requisite knowledge and experience to facilitate the closing of deal between 2 parties.  

Efficiencies gained by agents have not be passed on to clients. 

The Bestnet.Property approach is to passes on efficiencies to our clients,  without cutting back services.

We provide full service to clients at very competitive rates.