Buying and selling a home can be an emotional rollercoaster, especially when you’re navigating a property chain. Chains are common in property transactions, involving multiple buyers and sellers linked together as they each buy and sell properties. For example, at one end of the chain, there may be a first-time buyer who isn’t selling a property, while at the other end, there might be someone selling an empty property, such as a new build or an investment property.
No matter the length of the chain, there are proactive steps you can take to help ensure everything keeps moving smoothly. Here’s how:
1. Communicate Clearly and Often
Good communication is the backbone of a smooth property transaction. If delays occur, reach out to your estate agent or solicitor to understand what’s causing the holdup. In some cases, they may even facilitate direct contact with the party causing the delay, allowing you to address any issues collaboratively.
Diplomacy is key here—approaching conversations with understanding and patience will yield better results than making demands. Always ask for clear timelines and follow up to ensure these are met.
2. Stay Organised and Accountable
A successful transaction begins with ensuring you aren’t the source of delays. While some things will be out of your control, it’s vital to stay on top of your responsibilities.
Make it a daily habit to review emails, messages, and documents to ensure you’ve completed everything required of you. Setting aside a short amount of time each day for this can prevent small tasks from slipping through the cracks and causing unnecessary delays.
3. Be Prepared in Advance
Preparation saves time. For instance, securing your mortgage offer as early as possible can eliminate one common cause of delay. Mortgage providers require thorough documentation, so be ready to supply bank statements, details of outstanding finance, and proof of income.
If needed, consider clearing credit card balances or paying off loans to strengthen your application. The earlier you organise these details, the more efficiently the process can move forward.
4. Stay in the Loop
Utilise these tools to stay informed and ensure you’re aware of any updates, decisions, or actions needed on your part. Regular updates can also help you anticipate and address any potential issues before they escalate.
While we’ve already touched on communication, it’s worth reiterating that staying connected with your estate agent and solicitor is essential. Many modern firms offer flexible communication options, including evening and weekend hours, email, text messaging, and online portals where you can track progress.
Navigating a property chain may have its challenges, but by staying proactive, prepared, and communicative, you can help keep the process moving smoothly.
If you’re looking to sell your property, we’d be delighted to offer you a free market appraisal. Contact your local Fisher and Partners managing partner today, and let’s set up a time to chat. We’d be delighted to hear from you.
If your child is nearing school age, especially if they’re 3 or 4 years old, you’re likely already thinking about schools and their future education. With school applications for September 2025 looming, many parents are grappling with one critical question: are we in the right school catchment area?
If moving home is part of your plan to secure a spot in a preferred school, it’s worth understanding the timeline and considerations involved. Here’s what you need to know.
Planning for Growing Families
Family life can be a whirlwind, and many parents don’t consider future space or school needs when choosing their first home. As families grow, it’s common to find the house that once felt spacious now feels overcrowded.
This becomes especially pressing when it’s time to think about school applications. What might have seemed like a distant concern when your child was born can quickly become a pressing reality as school deadlines approach.
Understanding School Catchment Areas
A catchment area defines the boundary around a school, determining which children have priority admission. To find out if you’re in the catchment for your preferred school, check your local council’s website for a map of catchment boundaries.
In England, children start school at age 4, with applications typically opening in September and closing in January of the year they turn 4. You’ll receive your school placement by April, giving you a few months to prepare for the start of term in September.
Why Moving Early Matters
If you discover that your current home isn’t in the catchment for your chosen school, moving might become a priority. However, house sales take time, and waiting too long could force you into a rushed and stressful process.
A rushed sale can lead to compromises, such as lowering the asking price to attract quick buyers. Planning your move early, however, allows you to properly market your property, achieve its full value, and secure your next home in good time.
Take Control of the Timeline
School applications for September 2025 will close in January 2025. To avoid unnecessary stress, now is the time to start planning if moving house is part of your strategy. By acting early, you’ll have the advantage of time to stage your property, market it effectively, and negotiate confidently without feeling pressured by looming deadlines.
If you’re considering a move to secure your child’s place at the right school, Fisher and Partners is here to guide you every step of the way. Contact us today for a free market appraisal and advice tailored to your needs. Let your local managing partner help you navigate this important transition with ease and confidence—we’d be delighted to hear from you!
Fisher and Partners is delighted to announce that we’re growing. Lisa Nott, Managing Partner for the Winkfield Region, has joined the team. Here, Lisa would like to introduce herself and share more about her way of working.
Let me share a little about myself…
I gave up the corporate world selling software, travelling around Europe recruiting resellers, and set up my own business. I got myself trained as an interior designer 17 years ago and it allowed me to pour my passion for making home improvements into helping people create amazing home environments.
I fell passionately in love with being an interior designer not because of choosing great fabrics and wallcoverings, but because of the difference it makes to people and their emotional connection to their home and enjoyment of living there.
I knew that I wanted to get more into property, so I started working with property investors and property managers. I’ve helped landlords to transform even the ugliest of properties with what seemingly has little potential into something that’s a high value. I sold new homes for developers as well.
My journey towards Fisher and Partners
I have been considering getting deeper into property sales for a while. I have been a consultant and freelancer for other agencies many times before. But to join a team full-time…
I believe that you’ve got to feel passionately enough about the opportunity, feel you’ve got enough of the right experience to bring to the table, and at a time when it suits your lifestyle. For me, this was the right time.
Fisher and Partners was my top choice of agency to work with because they operate a ‘quality, not quantity’ business model that speaks to me. They represent quality not just in the properties that they sell but also with the clients they represent and the staff that they bring into the business.
I like the fact that they’re never going to have thousands of properties on their listings, because you can’t offer the best quality service to so many listings.
I love individuality. I love it in homes, I love it in people, and Fisher and Partners offers me the opportunity to be myself, bring the value of what I know, the experience that I have, and allows me to express that and deliver that to the clients of Fisher and Partners.
I’ve been offered jobs by many other agencies before, but I’ve never taken a job because the corporate feel doesn’t appeal to me. I can’t be a cookie cutter model of what they want me to be. I need to be Lisa, and Fisher and Partners are going to allow me to be.
My Way Of Working
Having been a small business owner for so long, I am not just the first point of contact, but the ONLY point of contact for my clients. It’s one of the ways that I’ve always differentiated myself from competitors. I never wanted to be the biggest company with the biggest budget, but I wanted to be the person there with them from concept to completion.
I run my own service accommodation properties and I pride myself on being available when somebody needs me. That’s the kind of service that I have always offered; I’m not a 9-to-5 kind of person. When people work with me, I’m always at the end of the phone.
Selling a home is complex. It comes loaded with emotions and many stresses. But I’m experienced enough and emotionally connected with people enough to know how to deal with it.
Rightly or wrongly, some people believe buying and selling a house is stressful because working with estate agents is not pleasant. That’s the kind of myth about moving I’m gonna break. I put honestly, communication, emotional connection, and genuinely looking after my clients’ best interests first.
About My Region
I’ve lived in Winkfield for 24 years. I love the area and how it has a very quintessentially English Village feel, yet it’s close enough to the M3 and the M4 to give you good connections to the rest of the world.
I chose the area, I didn’t choose the house, and I think that’s really important to fall in love with a location and what it offers you in terms of lifestyle. There were so many things going on in the village then that I loved, and it’s growing really well now too.
Though I didn’t have children at the time, I loved the beautiful little Church School and knew that should children come on the agenda, Winkfield St Mary’s would be great for them, and my two children did go on to attend and love it. I love the local fete, the local church, Don Beni the amazing Italian restaurant, The Cricketers for Friday fun or Sunday lunch, the dog walks, and an amazing community. I’ve made lifelong friends here.
Winkfield today is developing that broader community. The infrastructure is growing up. They’ve built a new Academy in Binfield, so there are more school opportunities for all ages. There’s a new health centre, more youth clubs and sports clubs, an active Seniors Centre at the Foxes Den to keep the elderly engaged, the Lexicon in Bracknell has been regenerated, there are many more jobs available in Bracknell and the surrounding areas.
I’ve noticed more and more people want to move out of London or a city, possibly because of noise or overpopulation or the infrastructure not being what it needs to be. Coming out to Berkshire represents flexibility and logistical practicality. You can live in a leafy green royal Suburb with clean air, wonderful walks, and a semi-country life for your family. But you still get in and out of London easily when you want or need to.
My Unique Approach
Selling property is not about the property, it’s about people. And I think the best way to sell a property is to get to know the family – and for them to get to know me – and if I can offer some intelligence about the area, the lifestyle, the schools, where to eat, where to walk the dog, which church…
That’s actually the value of dealing with the right agent. Someone who can give you that local knowledge on the factors that really count towards your future lifestyle.
If you’re considering moving house and would like to speak with me about the opportunities in Winkfield, do get in touch. I’d be delighted to hear from you.
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