Since reopening our doors back in May, we have become accustomed to working in a new Covid-safe way, and have been practising these measures for over five months. It’s safe to say, we are well rehearsed and practiced in keeping you moving.
The Government has advised that the housing market can continue to operate and that home moves and viewings may continue to take place. Of course, there are some restrictions such as a maximum of two households in a property at one time (e.g. estate agent and viewer), and therefore we will ask you to vacate the property at the time of the viewing. In addition, many of our properties can be viewed initially via virtual tour either online or by contacting our offices.
Therefore, whilst we are returning to Lockdown, our offices will remain open, albeit behind closed doors. We are experienced, prepared, well versed, and ready to support you throughout the moving process.
If you haven’t arranged a virtual tour for your home, we will offer this to you free of charge, but urge you to book quickly as demand is high. If you would like to view one of our properties, please do contact our offices. We will in the first instance offer you a virtual tour if available, however should you wish to view in person, our teams are on hand to conduct your viewing in person at the property.
A comment from our Director in Chelsea
“It seems hardly a day goes by at present without changes being made to the way we live our lives. Last week we were settling into the tier system, and then on Saturday, rather unexpectedly, we discovered that we were all heading back into lockdown from Thursday. I think because the rules have changed so much in recent months we all assume we understand what lockdown means – we’ve been here before after all. Only we haven’t. This time will be different, and I want to give my take on how it may impact the housing market. I know for most, this won’t be anywhere near the top of the list of your concerns. Maybe your own work is on hold, or you are worried about friends and family. These are all very real concerns that we all share, but given this is a property update, I hope that you will indulge me.
From a property perspective there are two key differences to the Spring Lockdown. The first is that we, as agents, are able to continue to operate fully. We are by now well versed in Covid Security, and with attention to detail have been able to work since 17th May successfully. That means that at the end of this week we will continue to be able to show our clients properties to carefully selected buyers, in the same way that we can now.
The second, and important differential from earlier in the year, is that our children will remain at school. Schooling is an important tie to London. With virtual learning, many local people were able to move their entire household out of London, and as things stand, that will not be the case this time around. I am therefore looking forward to the coming weeks with some cautious optimism.
Of course, there are plenty of other distractions out there, if you look for them. We have the US Presidential elections this week, and Brexit trade negotiations continue, to name two. Despite this, October was a strong month for sales agreed, and we exchanged contracts on over £30m of property in Chelsea. People are looking forward, and continue to want to make Chelsea their home.
Finally, I’ll leave you with an observation. Over half term, I was away with my family for a short break in Cornwall. The frequent rain showers often ended with a rainbow as the sun started to break through. It was a poignant reminder that however grim things get, they will pass. Let’s hope we don’t have to wait too much longer for our sun to break through these difficult clouds.”
Robert Green MRICS, Director
rgreen@johndwood.co.uk
