A well smart welcome....

October 18, 2015 by Rob Kahl

Well Smart

I am a bit behind schedule this week as we have been so busy and unusually I am writing this blog on a Saturday. I haven’t got many appointments out of the office today but my colleagues have been busy in and out on viewings, inspections and valuations and all I hear when they return is what a pain parking in Leigh is today.

We all know that Leigh is hugely popular, densely populated and one of the only pitfalls with this is the lack of parking. In the Broadway itself and surrounding roads it has been muted that residents permit parking may be the way forward, but as a trader, this is not something I would want as we need the passing trade of people being able to pop in and out of the Broadway for a short period. Most of the other traders in the town are also understandably against it, so parking permits don’t look like they'll be happening anytime soon.

What this all means, is that we have to drive round and round looking for a space and if you have a car full of shopping or children to unload it is a huge inconvenience. Some people, when they are looking to buy or rent a house won’t even consider a property without parking and I can quite understand why. If however, you are looking for a character fisherman’s cottage or a flat close to the Broadway, then 90% of these type of properties don’t have parking so you are limiting your search greatly.

The other side to that is that the properties that do have parking or garages are at a premium. Just a stand alone garage close to the Broadway can cost in excess of £30,000 and obviously, if it is a double garage, then it could be a great deal more because it could be developed in to a house therefore losing more parking. 

It is often very difficult to pinpoint exact figures when saying how much value a parking space adds to a property. In Leigh, properties vary greatly and it is rare that 2 similar properties come on to the market at the same time, 1 having parking and 1 not. It is also dependent on the road itself. If the road has not got any parking restrictions and is relatively easy to park on during the day, then it would not hold that much of a premium compared to a road with double yellow lines outside or a road right on top of the Broadway thats always busy.

I would hazard a very rough guess though that off street parking would add at least £25,000 to a property but, it could be an awful lot more depending on the circumstances and situation. I have found a way to combat my frustrations when it comes to parking though.......

I am very fortunate to have a company car and whilst in the past I have had BMW’s and Audi’s I have decided enough is enough and I have plumped for a Smart car. It has been a revelation, the parking is so easy, it fits in the smallest gaps and can even be parked facing the pavement, taking even less room.

Obviously, my macho image has taken a bit of a beating, but you know what they say about men with small cars?

Welcome

Whilst writing this week, I would like to take the opportunity to welcome some new faces to our expanding team. You may remember that I have previously written in my blogs about recruiting staff and I was inundated with requests and C.V’s. The level of candidates was truly impressive and our only regret is that we couldn’t take more.

We have however got 4 new members of staff that have fitted in seamlessly and we are very excited about what they can offer to our already successful team.

Neysha – Block Manager. An experienced block manager and property manager who is heading up our new department looking after blocks of flats and freeholds for investors and landlords.

Daryl – Lettings Administrator. Another new experienced member for our team, looking after referencing for new tenants, contracts and property management.

Shane – New Business Manager. His remit is to g out and get more business, whilst promoting Scott & Stapleton, already bringing in loads of new business and opportunities and looking at different avenues in which to explore.

Chloe – Apprentice Lettings Negotiator. Our new office junior who is wise beyond her years, extremely hard working and efficient although needs to work on her tea making skills more!

This article is by Rob Kahl at Scott & Stapleton
http://www.leigh-on-sea.com/scott-stapleton.html