Homesearch Services
Moving home
Moving house can be time-consuming and stressful experience, from the initial search for the perfect property, negotiating price and timescales, right through to registering with utilities and notifying everyone of your change of address.
Appointing County Homesearch London to assist you with your move can help on every level and at every stage of the process:
- Detailed interview to fully understand clients requirements in terms of property, location, budget, timescales etc.
- Area Advice vs Budgets
- Estate agent contact and Property Search
- Preview of all suitable properties
- Accompanying clients to view most suitable properties
- Advice on negotiation strategy and undertaking negotiation
- Recommendations of associated professionals – mortgage advisors, solicitors, structural surveyors etc
- Support and advice through to exchange of contracts
Clients acquiring second homes in London have particular challenges often associated with being located away from the City for the majority of their time and having limited scope to undertake a full home-search. County Homesearch will be your eyes and ears on the ground in London and will undertake all the necessary groundwork to seek out appropriate properties and organise a series of viewings of suitable properties when you are in London and have time in your schedule.
We are also highly experienced keeping these searches very focussed on exactly what is required of a second home, which is often quite different from those factors necessary in a main residence. Our focus always is to ensure your budget is used in the most efficient way possible. Our service covered the following aspects:
- Detailed interview to fully understand clients requirements in terms of property, location, budget, timescales etc. This can be done on the phone if location factors make a face to face meeting difficult.
- Area Advice vs Budgets
- Estate agent contact and Property Search
- Preview of all suitable properties
- Organising and accompanying our clients on block viewings of suitable properties at times convenient to our clients to ensure maximum time efficiency.
- Advice on negotiation strategy and undertaking negotiation.
- Recommendations of associated professionals – mortgage advisors, solicitors, structural surveyors etc
- Support and advice through to exchange of contracts
County Homesearch London is uniquely placed to advise on investment properties thanks to the extensive work we undertake for corporate clients relocating their employees into rental accommodation in London. We have first hand knowledge of exactly what corporate clients expect from their rental properties, favoured locations and what rental values you can expect to achieve.
We are also able to ensure your cashflow takes full account of many of the hidden costs of being a landlord (ie voids, maintenance, service charges, agents fees etc) to ensure your investment gives you the net returns you require. Our service covers the following aspects:
- Detailed interview to fully understand clients requirements in terms of property, location, budget, timescales and expected returns (capital and income).
- Area Advice vs Budgets
- Estate agent contact and Property Search
- Preview of all suitable properties
- Organising and accompanying our clients on block viewings of suitable properties at times convenient to our clients to ensure maximum time efficiency.
- Assessment of costs associated with letting properties of interest and thuis net returns.
- Advice on negotiation strategy and undertaking negotiation.
- Recommendations of associated professionals – mortgage advisors, solicitors, structural surveyors etc
- Support and advice through to exchange of contracts
- Recommendations of letting agents and introductions.
Searching for a Rental Property
We look after many clients, both private individuals and corporate employees, searching for rental accommodation and so have extensive knowledge of the London rental market and the agents operating within it.
Finding the right property is only half the story in any rental search. Equally important is ensuring the lease documentation, inventory and check-in are correctly drafted and undertaken to protect a tenant’s rights during and at the end of a tenancy. Given that we operate in this market day-in-day-out we are able to ensure you have your eyes open to the options available to tenants and the potential pitfalls they can face. Our rental search service includes:
- Detailed interview to fully understand clients requirements in terms of property, location, budget, timescales etc
- Area Advice vs Budgets
- Estate agent contact and Property Search
- Organising and accompanying our clients on block viewings of suitable properties.
- Price and Lease negotiation
- Attending check-in
County Homesearch is a highly experienced destination service provider. We look after in the region of 200 corporate clients a year providing them with a variety of relocation services (details of which are set out below). We are able to ensure your employees’ move into London is as stress free as possible by providing them with a dedicated single consultant who will look after their relocation from start to finish and will be able to offer support and advice throughout the process. Our services include:
London can seem a huge a bewildering City to those who are not familiar with it so our orientation service provides the following:
- Initial assessment of a clients’ accommodation needs, lifestyle, budget and commuting requirements followed by recommendations of suitable areas.
- Clients will be taken on a tour of recommended areas to get a feel for each location enabling them to narrow down further their search area.
- Clarification of the rental differentials between recommended areas allowing like for like comparison of what size and quality of accommodation can be achieved in each location.
- Information on each area will be provided so clients understand social demographics, facilities, environment, transport links and schools if necessary.
Many clients relocation into London will require advice and support on which location will best suit their needs in terms of lifestyle, commuting, family and of course budget. We can provide this support to ensure their search is as focussed as possible allowing them the best chance of finding the correct accommodation:
- Initial assessment of a clients’ accommodation needs, lifestyle, budget and commuting requirements followed by recommendations of suitable areas.
- Clarification of the rental differentials between recommended areas allowing like for like comparison of what size and quality of accommodation can be achieved in each location.
- Information on each area will be provided so clients understand social demographics, facilities, environment, transport links and schools if necessary.
We will fully co-ordinate the property search as follows:
- Based on clients criteria we will search the market for suitable properties, dealing with all the relevant agents
- Arrange and accompany client on block viewing sessions of suitable properties
- Give honest assessments of the properties highlighting advantages and disadvantages so help clients in their decision making
- Ensure all relevant information is acquired at the viewing ie when the property is available, can furnishings be changed, will the landlord undertake necessary improvement or repair works, how long has the property been on the market etc
This stage of any rental is extremely important to ensure, not only, that the client is paying the right rental, but also to ensure the lease terms reflect their needs and protect both during and at the end of the tenancy. Important negotiating terms are as follows:
- Rental
- Lease start date
- Lease term
- Break clauses
- Landlord maintenance commitments
- Deposit protection
- Special conditions – ie works required
Once a tenancy begins we can assist a client getting settled into their new home by helping with all those small issues that without guidance can be frustrating and take up a lot of our clients valuable time:
- Guidance on setting up utility accounts
- Guidance on options for satellite TV, broadband and telephone connections
- Details of local facilities
- Guidance on setting up bank accounts
- General documents on UK and London focussed issues
- Contact details for the landlord or managing agents in case of any problems with the property.
At the end of a tenancy we can assist clients with all the issues that arise and importantly advise on how to ensure the property is vacated in the correct condition to allow a smooth return of their deposit. Our departure service can cover the following aspects:
- Termination Notice: We can serve notice on the Landlord if required.
- Departure Notes: We provide notes containing useful reminders of some issues clients may need to address before leaving the UK and advice on how to close down utility accounts.
- Lease Review: We will review the lease to check on client’ contractual obligations on departure from the property.
- Cleaning: Depending on the terms of the lease we will advise on whether professional cleaning is required and can arrange for this to take place.
- Inventory and Checkout: As well as clarifying from the lease who is responsible for paying for the inventory check-out we will attend the check-out to provide support and assistance. This is to ensure the condition of the property is accurately reflected and that any dilapidation claims against the deposit are fair.
- Refund of Deposit: We will negotiate (if necessary) with the landlord or agent on the issue of dilapidations (if any) and will arrange for the return of the deposit.
