Where to begin, 2020 has been a very strange year and for some it’s sadly been the worst year possible; people are facing huge disruptions and changes to their lives which none of us could have predicted. If we go back to 12 months ago, I don’t think any of us could have even imagined where we’d be now, in and out of lockdown and not knowing what the future holds…
For many businesses 2020 has been a hard year for them, facing months of not being able to trade and with the restrictions currently in place even when open most businesses are looking at largely reduced capacity meaning ultimately reduced income and trying times ahead. Estate Agents initially closed up shop just like everyone else when the lockdown was announced on 23rd March and the market essentially ground to a halt. Without being able to conduct any appointments including viewings, valuations and all other important stages of the house buying process we were all left motionless… however this was 100% the right thing to do in order to make a change and fight the virus.
During the lockdown we carried on working in the background from home and took the time as an opportunity to reflect on ourselves, iron out the creases and make sure that when we do return to our offices, we hit the ground running and are more streamlined than ever. Part of this included the introduction of Video Tours, something which we are very proud of as we designed, created and perfected them ourselves. The quality of our video tours is something which we have received many compliments for and they were instrumental in securing a large number of lets and even a handful of sales before the lockdown restrictions were lifted for Estate Agents in May.
Thanks to our preparations, the week we reopened we were inundated with potential buyers and vendors looking to sell their homes; and after just 5 days back in the fold we secured some 15 sales on properties ranging from £100,000 all the way to £500,000… it was fantastic! This initial flurry did not stop, and honestly has not stopped yet. Every week we are securing more sales than ever, the prices we are achieving for our clients are higher than ever and we’re seeing record breaking achievements across the board and in all areas of Plymouth.
In order to thank our wonderful NHS and other key workers who were out there face to face with the virus whilst we were safely in our homes, the managers and directors of Cross Keys decided to implement a discount on our sales and lettings fees of a 50% reduction for NHS and keys workers as a huge thank you from all of us; this deal was to last until the end of 2020 and is potentially going to be extended into 2021. This has been a huge part of our success this year and we are thrilled that so many people have benefitted from something which we are very proud to offer.
As 2020 draws to a close most of us are looking forward to Christmas and the new year with optimism and are also looking forward to leaving what has been a tough 12 months behind us. So on behalf of all of us here at Cross Keys, we’d like to thank our clients both old and new for your continued support; and we’d like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We are looking forward to working with you all in 2021 and for many more years to come!
The housing market has been on fire since estate agents were tasked with returning to work in May. Everyone bought a house thinking it would be exactly what they needed, Lockdown proved them wrong. It wasn’t just the lower/smaller end of the market that wanted that extra space that they did not have but also the higher end including the town and country market.
Historically there have been a few agents that are well renowned for dealings with high end town, city and country property set, Cross Keys Estates was not in this category, however I can safely say that we have not only breached this market but are currently sitting pretty high in the rankings for the marketing of these exclusive and desirable residences. Recently a client of our lettings department had their property on the market for quite some period of time going from one of these country agents to another. By chance we had a conversation and I explained what we do for our properties in order to secure sales on them. The client decided that they would like to try the Cross Keys way and gave notice to the agent currently trying to sell their house. This property was out of Cross Keys normal marketing area by quite some way plus it was a listed building worth almost one million pounds. We went out to take new more lively photographs, did our three dimensional floorplan and researched the area and all the things that made the location desirable for potential buyers.
After 48 hours we had a fabulous set of property particulars to show the client who happily signed them off and we placed the house on the market on the Monday morning. After 7 days of marketing we had completed three viewings and received offers from two of those viewings resulting in a sale being agreed above the bottom “Guide Price” meaning that from initial conversation to agreeing the sale took less than 7 days. Now this could been seen as bragging, however we have now had numerous examples including a stunning detached six bedroom family home in Derriford, another detached property in a gated community close to the city centre, a double fronted Victorian villa in Stoke Village, a large semi-detached family residence in Hartley and a stunning refurbished farm house in Cornwall to name a few, all having asking prices over £500,000.
I believe that our success with the higher end of this market comes from the fact that we offer bespoke, premium marketing with fully properly produced video tours and fantastic 3D floorplans alongside a clever pricing strategy which allows for a fully immersive buyer’s experience. We believe that this is essential for the larger family homes as potential buyers prefer to look at these properties online and do their homework before coming up with a shortlist for viewings as many of the buyers have been relocating from the east coast.
Cross Keys Estates place customer service above all else, we have dedicated managers that are there for our clients at all times, we have staff that are either fully qualified to offer you advice or are many years experienced and very happy to help no matter what the problem.
If you are currently trying to sell your property with what you think is an appropriate agent but getting nowhere, ask yourself this “could Cross Keys Estates succeed where most of the normal agents are failing?”. My answer to you is yes, we can. Please call either Jack Fi, Rob or Jon on 01752 500018 to find out more about how to be a bigger fish in a smaller pond.
During these unprecedented times we’ve been quietly working in the background to ensure that we minimise the disruption to our clients in both our sales and lettings departments by implementing certain aspects and features which we consider to be vital moving forward with the ‘new norm’. Here’s a quick update for you:
Video Tours – As previously mentioned, we are currently unable to conduct viewings on any of our properties as we are following the government strict advice to keep both our valued clients and our wonderful colleagues safe. This however is very inconvenient for those of you who are looking for a property during the lockdown, therefore we have taken the time to create quality, detailed video tours which we aim to be head and shoulders above the competition. This feature has assisted us to continue with some levels of activity, especially within our lettings department, in which the video tours have been vital to the numerous lets we have agreed during the lockdown. Not only do our video tours allow us to conduct ‘online viewings’, but they also help landlords who are not able to visit their empty properties be able to see that we are checking up on the property for them and it is in good order. This feature is here to stay and will be available to all of our clients as another marketing tool to generate the highest levels of interest for any property. Currently we have 38 properties available with these video tours, including our entire available letting stock and this number is growing by the day.
New Website – alongside our investment in quality video tours, we have also taken this time to reflect on our website, which has had a makeover in order to make our home www.crosskeysestates.net as user friendly as it can possibly be and to incorporate our comprehensive marketing strategies for our clients properties.
Virtual Valuations – During the lockdown we have provided a number of virtual valuations via Facetime, Skype or photographs provided in order to provide our professional Propertymark Accredited valuation service to those who need us; however we do recommend that in order for us to give the most accurate valuation and provide an in-depth account of the service available from Cross Keys Estates that we attend any property requiring a market appraisal once the government advises us that it is safe to do so. Should you require any advice with regard to the sale or marketing of your home then please do not hesitate to contact us.
Preparation for Re-opening – In anticipation for when the government’s advice is for us to return to our office we have implemented some changes in order to ensure the safety of both our clients and our team, such as moving all working stations around to ensure the 2m rule is in place at all times as well as installing hands-free antibacterial hand wash stations upon entry into our offices. We want to keep you safe!
We want to hear from you – Thanks to all of you, our wonderful clients, alongside our fantastic team we are able to move forward from these unusual times as Plymouth’s Recognised Number 1 Estate Agent and continue to support the community that we love so much! But any good business is forever looking for ways to improve, so if you have any suggestions for us, we’re all ears.
Lastly, thank you to all of our fantastic key workers, without you we wouldn’t be able to look forward optimistically about opening our doors once again!
