How we find your London property
Haringtons’ policy is to work on a one-to-one basis with our clients, on the basis that we can only have one client for a given brief.
If a buying agent has too many clients, they have industrialised what is a very individual business and will inevitably have conflicts, where they have more than one client looking for the same property.
Exclusivity is essential.
One of the original property buying agents, as featured in…
We advise.
Since selling agents work only for the vendors, and are paid to get the highest price, regardless of whether a property is good,
bad or indifferent, buyers need independent advice.
Our clients come to us for our experience in London and we go to great lengths to understand what they really want to buy.
We tell it how it is – what is possible and what is not. We will also speak up if a client’s head is turned by a property that they should pass on.
Making it personal
We refine this into a specific, tailored ‘brief’ based on our extensive knowledge of the complex London market and the varied landscape for houses and apartments across London.
We listen and probe for things you may not have considered and advise on strategies to suit your bespoke needs, e.g. location of schools, commuting times, noise or flight paths.
Your London life
Understanding what you hope to gain from living in London is vital, so we can ensure you have good access to what’s important to you, be it schools, parks, art and culture, access to West End, airports or your children’s social life.
Sometimes we feel we’re as much lifestyle consultants as we are property advisors!
As experienced buying agents, over the decades we’ve got to know the intricacies of the most desirable locations as well as less desirable aspects of seemingly attractive spots.
We search.
This is the easy part. With many decades of experience, we have the contacts and knowledge to find your perfect property.
You get total market coverage whether you are searching for a Knightsbridge apartment, family house, or pied-à-terre. Typically, 95% of what we see are un-buyable for a variety of reasons including position, price, condition or sanity of the vendor.
These are a few of the reasons why you need a knowledgeable, trusted advisor to filter out the unsuitable. Remember, you will be our only client looking for your property type, so you get to see them all.
Knowing what not to buy is as important as what to buy.
Our role is to filter until we arrive at a hard kernel of the best. – Saul Empson
Through our contacts and knowledge, we make our clients aware of properties that they would not otherwise hear about. Very often, the best London properties are sold privately, without going to market. Our aim is to ensure that our clients don’t miss out. Equally important at present is judging the moment where a previously overpriced property can be bought competitively.
We do due diligence.
We scrutinise the property, so you know just what you’re buying.
Many think they’ve found their perfect house or apartment and just buy it – do they really know what they’re getting? The agent told them the price is right but why believe them?
Haringtons has its own due diligence framework to analyse strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and environmental and planning threats. There will maybe be a survey and a solicitor’s report on title, but we try to fill all the gaps so there are no surprises.
Solicitors often have no picture of how the actual property compares to what is seen on paper. We work as a team with them looking well beyond the obvious.
Having identified a London property that our clients might like to buy, we then hold the proposition up to the cold light of day for in-depth scrutiny, to make sure that there are no unforeseen factors that could affect it.
We then prepare a written report that will cover such diverse issues as relevant local planning applications, nearby amenities, comparable sales evidence and background to the area.
The aim here is to try and pick up the issues that fall between the solicitor’s report on title and the surveyor’s structural report. We also put some objectivity behind the value of the London property.
Finding London houses or apartments is just the tip of the iceberg.
We report on;
- Guidance on location, including schools and communications
- Awareness of potential problems: eyesores, flight paths, character of the neighbourhood and relevant environmental issues
- On value and comparable evidence
- The best lawyers, surveyors, planning consultants and architects
We are highly skilled negotiators.
Finding a London property is one thing. Securing it at the right price is another. We buy the best London properties on the best terms.
Whilst our clients are often skilled negotiators themselves, they find that this part of our service is as valuable as the finding of the property. We are familiar with all the potential pitfalls, and we conduct a “due diligence” process to steer each client through to a successful conclusion.
We want to avoid the “the stiff-legged terrier syndrome” whereby the negotiations can reach an insoluble impasse over a small detail such as a washing machine or cooker; we want our clients to have a balanced overview of the deal and steer the vendor away from getting bogged down in minutiae.
It’s not always only about price. We get the vendors to see our clients as the preferred buyers and we make sure they have a good relationship with our clients throughout the negotiations.
London selling agents want to deal with the best-qualified buyer that they can, not just the highest bid. We work very hard to ensure that they view Harington’s clients as the preferred buyers.
Remember, the selling agent works solely for the vendor and is ultimately not responsible for the interests of buyers – It’s vital to have the very best team working for you.
We can introduce a top London-based professional team – lawyers, surveyors, planning consultants, land agents, architects, and so on – on a best of breed basis. We are the lynchpin and work with all of them together, acting as the interface.
We complete.
Many London property buyers do not go to the property they have purchased on the day of completion. What if it has burnt down, flooded or is occupied by squatters?
We always attend London properties on or just before the day of completion to make sure all is in order. If there have been inclusions in the deal such as carpets and curtains, furniture or garden machinery, we make sure they have not been removed.
Once we are happy that the London property is as it should be we telephone the solicitors and instruct them to release the completion money – but not until we are completely satisfied.
Rental search in London
Finding a property to rent in London is rarely straightforward. Haringtons can find you a property to rent in London following exactly the same policy as we use for our buying service.
We avoid taking on too many clients, allowing us to work exclusively for clients. We will not take on a client brief overlaps with another.
Click here for more information
Buying a property in London
Acting exclusively for you
London is a big place, but the number of properties that are exactly right for you may be in single figures. That’s why we assess your requirements very carefully and arrive at a very robust action plan to finding the property that’s right for you.
Contact Saul for more information.
We also help clients who want to rent a flat or house in London. We cover the same wide area and provide the same excellent service from instruction to move. We also remain available for help and advice throughout a tenancy.
Contact Saul for more information or contact Nina
