Prospect Branch Manager’s comment

atat Home......issueissue

11

IN THIS ISSUE

Your guide to Prospect’s new services and products to help make moving easy.

Turn to the back page to see the winning entry that scooped the £1,000 prize for a local school in our Mini Makeover competition!

IN YOUR AREA...

MARKET UPDATE

MOVING MATTERS

COMPETITION

USEFUL NUMBERS

BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT

Looking after your Prospects.

Shaun Stevens, Branch Manager, Prospect Estate Agency Wokingham Offi ce

As the Branch Manager of Prospect’s Wokingham Offi ce, I am delighted to welcome you to the fi rst edition

of “at Home in Wokingham” and very much hope you fi nd it an informative read. Our offi ce is fortunate to see a great diversity of properties, and with our market share in the premier range increas-

ing this year following the launch of our new premier service at Wokingham, Prospect PhD, the local area provides an exciting marketplace in which to work. I very much look forward to meeting many of you over the coming months: whether you’re buying or selling a property, please don’t hesitate to call or pop in and see us.

Wokingham Offi ce ...in WOKINGHAM

PROSPECT WOKINGHAM OFFICE COMMUNITY NEWSLETTER / WINTER ‘07/08

Hot air raises funds for Nine Mile Ride With the theme of

Around the World

in 80 Days, the Nine Mile

Ride Primary School’s

biggest annual fundraiser

inspired the pupils with

tales of travel.

Each child was given a passport to be

stamped at every stall they visited at

the event, and they were entered into

a competition to win a ‘talking globe’,

a fun educational tool contributed by

ourselves here at Prospect.

Once again, Prospect Estate Agency’s

Wokingham offi ce were pleased to spon-

sor the school’s autumn fête which took

place on the 15th September.

Glorious weather and great support

from pupils, families, teachers and the

local community ensured the event

would be a great success - indeed,

around £3000 was raised and this will go

a long way in providing the school with

equipment, books and other resources.

Excited to contribute to the spirit - and

theme - of the event, Prospect provided

not just signage for the fête: we also ran

our ever-popular ‘Guess the number of

balloons in the Mini’ competition. Filling

our new ‘Streets Ahead’ Mini to capacity

with balloons, we invited children and

parents to guess how many were inside.

This year’s lucky winner, a parent of a

child at the school, guessed the exact

number and won a remote control Mini

for her delighted daughter. The prize

was presented by Sam Walters from

Prospect’s Wokingham offi ce.

It’s great to see tangible results from

funds raised too. The proceeds from

our fundraising last year, including the

successful ‘Race Night’, raised enough

money to enable the school to purchase

a new electronic White Board.

Prospect are active members of the

local community and through education

and supporting our local schools we

endeavour to make a real difference.

Prospect in the community - how your local estate agency gives back to Wokingham.

What’s happening with house prices and sales in the Wokingham area.

Your handy listing of new and useful businesses in and around Wokingham.

Feature focus on a recommended business or service in the Wokingham area. Thank you yet again

to Prospect and their staff for their continued support!

r

,

’s More than just hot air! Sam Walters from Prospect’s Wokingham Offi ce presents the winner of the ‘Guess the number of balloons in the Mini’ competition with their prize.

Nicky, Nine Mile Ride Primary School PTA.

For more information contact Shaun Stevens on 0118 979 7770

prospect.co.uk TEL:WEB:

A Home Information Pack

(HIP) is now a legal

requirement when selling a

property with 3+ bedrooms.

As part of the Government commitment to

lowering ‘carbon emissions’ coupled with

making the ‘buying and selling’ process

easier, the government has introduced a

legal obligation on homeowners to have

a Home Information Pack available when

marketing homes for sale.

The general feeling is that this will

provide an even greater increase in

stability within the housing market, less

property sales falling through, serious

offers being made and greater buyer

awareness.

The compulsory EPC gives prospective buyers information about the energy effi ciency of your home – rating it in a similar way to many domestic appliances.

The new energy rating ranges from A (very effi cient) to G (very ineffi cient), and two measures cover the home’s environmental impact, and its energy effi ciency rating.

Most homes will score between D-E.

HIP, happening, and free!

prospect.co.uk TEWEB:

gh,

ater buyer

We have all breathed a sigh of relief as news that infl ation surprisingly dropped below the Bank of England’s 2% target in July, meaning further interest rate rises are likely to be put on hold for the time being. This will provide much needed comfort to all of us grappling with the effects of the past three rises this year. Caution is still advised as the Bank of England indicates that a further rise to 6% may still come.

Naturally, HIPs are free at Prospect, and we arrange it all to make your life easy.

Mark Towell, Director, Prospect

Estate Agency

Sales StatementA summary of the terms of sale.

Evidence of TitleTitle Deeds from the Land Registry.

Standard SearchesLocal Authority enquiries and a drainage and water search.

IndexList of pack contents.

Tenure documents Commonhold or Leasehold (as appropriate) documentation.

Energy Performance Certifi cate (EPC)A rating of the overall energy effi ciency of the property.

What’s in a HIP?

At Prospect, we have been ready and

prepared for HIPs for some time: we

introduced our own version of the HIP

as part of our conveyancing service. We

called it a Home Sales Pack – it contained

almost all the information required for

the HIP and our experience showed that it

produced encouraging results: speeding

up the transaction process, and making

for happier clients.

Naturally, HIPs are free at Prospect

and we arrange it all to make your life

easy. Our staff have undergone thorough

training to become an authority on the

new process, so please don’t hesitate to

call or pop in if you have any questions

about HIPs and the new legislation.

What is an EPC?

MARKET UPDATE

How do interest rates translate to your monthly repayments?

A look at average house prices across the regions, as of August ‘07.

FOR ILLUSTRATIVE PURPOSES ONLY, BASED ON A 90% LOAN-TO-VALUE, REPAYMENT MORTGAGE OVER 25 YEARS AT A FIXED RATE OF 5.75%. FOR MORE INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT PROSPECT FINANCIAL SERVICES WHO WILL ENDEAVOUR TO SOURCE THE BEST PRODUCT FOR YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES.

YOUR HOME MAY BE REPOSSESSED IF YOU DO NOT KEEP UP REPAYMENTS ON YOUR MORTGAGE.

Q4

/07

Bank of England Base Rates (%)

Region

monthlyrepayment

purchase price

Average price

monthlychange (%)

AL

L D

AT

A C

OR

RE

CT

AT

TIM

E O

F G

OIN

G T

O P

RE

SS

. T

HE

PU

BL

ISH

ER

S A

RE

NO

T R

ES

PO

NS

IBL

E F

OR

ER

RO

RS

OR

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ISS

ION

S

DATA: www.landregistry.gov.uk

£150,000 £859.25£200,000 £1,145.67£250,000 £1,432.09£300,000 £1,718.51£400,000 £2,291.35

London 1.5 £349,838

North West 0.9 £137,871

South East 0.6 £227,667

Yorkshire/Humber 0.5 £145,583

West Midlands 0.4 £153,247

East -0.1 £192,457

South West -0.2 £194,100

Wales -0.4 £140,611

North East -0.9 £128,758

East Midlands -1.1 £144,945

5.75aug 5.75

sep 5.75oct

Interest Rates

prices by region

Mortgages

in your area

Issue #1, Winter ‘07/08

1 BED 2 BEDS 3 BEDS 4 BEDS 5 BEDS

* DATA COLLATED FROM PROSPECT’S WOKINGHAM OFFICE, SEPT. 2007

PROPORTION OF PROPERTY TYPES FOR SALE IN WOKINGHAM*

AVERAGE HOUSE PRICES IN WOKINGHAM*

£150,000

£450,000

£300,000

£600,000

£750,000

£675,000

£465,000

£332,000

£258,000

£155,000

Wokingham Offi ce39 Peach Street, Wokingham, Berkshire RG40 1XJ

in WOKINGHAM at Home...

0118 979 7770

59%Detached

15%

14%

11%

Semi-detached

Terraced

Apts.

James MayDirector

In charge of residential property, James has been based at our Wokingham offi ce since opening it in 1999.

Steve SadlerLand & New

Homes Manager

Heading up our land & new homes department, Steve’s team of specialised land personnel & new homes representatives based at Wokingham are dedicated to all development related issues.

Stuart RossArea PhD Manager

Based at Wokingham and heading up our latest department, PhD is offered throughout the Berkshire & Hampshire regions.

Shaun StevensBranch Manager

Wokingham’s Branch manager, Shaun drives his team to offer an unrivalled service for his clients. Shaun looks forward to meeting you in our café-style offi ce for a chat on anything property related.

Lisa ThomasLettings Manager

Lisa has many years of property experience and looks after our property management department based at Wokingham.

Our combined experience at Wokingham ensures an altogether different Prospect!

Meet the team!

Imagine selling your home after just a single viewing...

Hot off the press!

A new driving force!

Property continues to be one of the

most dependable investments you can

make — with poor-performing pen-

sions and stockmarket crashes making

the headlines, whilst average property

prices continue to climb all the while.

The buy-to-let market is a great indica-tor of this, remaining strong in spite of recent interest rates rises. Investors are savvy and still expect good returns on their money: 171,800 new buy-to-let mortgages, worth £21.2 billion, were taken out in the fi rst half of 2007. This accounted for 12% of all mortgage advances during this period and is the highest proportion seen to date.

With such demand for quality invest-ment property Prospect has the perfect

ty continues to be one of the

tments you can

Your guide to the new services available at Prospect

MOVING MATTERS

LAL

fl eet of Minis and are thrilled with their brand

new livery — inspired by your very words...

We organised a competiton too, to

mark the launch of the fl eet... turn

to the back page to see the winning

entry in our Streets Ahead mini

makeover competition!

solution for all budding landlords and the seasoned investor alike: a one-stop-shop for the property investor.

» Expert market advice to help you make informed decisions

» Sourcing the right investment prop-erty for you

» Arranging your buy-to-let mortgage should you wish, with free impartial fi nancial advice

» Processing your sale via our in-house conveyancing team

» Sourcing & vetting the tenant(s)

» Managing the let, should you wish, with one of our tiered services.

All you have to do is sit back and let us do the work!

d top-

u

rop-

gage eertial

With consolidated Open house view-

ings, every applicant is given the same

opportunity.

Each property receives a ten day

intensive marketing campaign involving

targeted mailouts, press and web adver-

tising, and calls to all suitable applicants

on our database.

Our experience shows that most

Open house viewings result in a sale!

Visit prospect.co.uk/openhouse.php to see all scheduled Open house viewings.

For anyone who’s ever sold a property,

you will immediately appreciate the

benefi ts of Open house: cleaning,

staging and preparing a property for a

viewing is time-consuming and incon-

venient — especially at short notice,

and particularly if arrangements have

to be made for children or pets.

For those looking for their next home,

you may not always get the opportu-

nity to view a property before a sale is

agreed, and may fi nd yourself chasing

properties that have already sold.

Making moving home an altogether different Prospect.

At Prospect, we don’t rest on our laurels.

Our standard practice is to ask clients

for feedback on our service and

performance.

The result is reassuringly

– and overwhelmingly –

positive.

It’s your feedback that

drives us further, and in

order to mark this con-

tinued success, we have

taken delivery of a new

Thehhhheeeeeee

Mini

No let up for the rental market

Prospect.

COMPETITIONresults on back

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y your veeeeerererrrrrere y yyy y wwy wyy ordordords...

ton too, to

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the winning gg gggg g g gg ggg g gg

ad aaaaaaaaaaa mini

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COMPETITIONresults on back

At Prospect, we’re renowned

for being refreshingly different.

We’re full of beans!

Our enthusiasm and friendly approach sets us apart from other agents. Pop into one of our café-style offi ces and discuss property matters with one of our highly trained staff over coffee!

Prospect Estate Agency’s Wokingham Community Newsletter

This month sees the launch of

our new Propertyexpress — a

regular bulletin, direct through

your door, keeping you informed

specifi cally about the properties

available in the Wokingham area.

Even if you’re not looking to move

at this time, it’s a great reference

guide to the local property market!

Call our dedicated Lettings Team on

0118 979 7773 for more information, or pop

in to any Prospect Offi ce for your free copy of

our Essential Residential Lettings Guide.

please recycle meResidential Sales • Lettings • Property Management • Financial Services • Apartment Lifestyle • Terrace Living Land & Development • New Homes • Premier Homes • Conveyancing • Commercial • Overseas • Investments

TEL:

WEB:

COMPETITIONAt Prospect, we really enjoyed designing

our new STREETS AHEADSTREETS AHEAD mini... and

we’ve shared the fun with you!

at Home...

send your comments, recommendations and questions to newsdesk@prospect.co.uk

your feedbackSpeak your mind! Your opportunity

to offer comments, critique and contributions for the next edition...

you know where to write!..

Have you had great service from a local company and want to share your

experience with our readers? Tell us about it!

Is there something happening locally you’d like to share? Events, activities,

sports fi xtures, organisations, etc. - drop us a line!

TalkbackService with a SmileAnnouncements

Issue #1, Winter ‘07/08

USEFUL NUMBERS

After a phenomenal response, the

competition has now closed and we have

had the extremely diffi cult job of choosing

the winner. The quality of the entries was

superb and we would like to thank all of

those who took part and presented such

wonderful ideas.

The winner of our competition clearly spent

time bouncing ideas around, and served a

master stroke with his 'Mini-Tennis' Mini -

a 'top spin' on the traditional mini theme,

which truly delivered an ace! Aron Clarke

aged 13 from Sandhurst has won £1,000

for his school, Edgbarrow in Crowthorne,

plus tickets for him and his family to spend

a fun-fi lled day at LEGOLAND® Windsor!

We were really impressed by Aron’s clever

mini-makeover and loved the idea behind

his Mini-Tennis theme – he really has been

a great sport. Congratulations to both Aron

and his lucky school, Edgbarrow.

Keep checking prospect.co.uk for details

of our next competition!

ng

Game, Set and Match!

What an ace! Aron Clarke’s winning entry (above) showed superb imagination and attention to detail, closely rivalled by

our commended runners up: Rachel & Kya Fordham’s dazzling

bejewelled entry, and Rebecca Smith’s forward-thinking eco design.

& K

prospect.co.uk

0118 979 7770Wokingham Offi ce

39 Peach StreetWokinghamBerkshire RG40 1XJ

in WOKINGHAM

If you’re thinking of moving

in the Wokingham area, an

enthusiastic, pro-active team at Prospect awaits your call.

With a county-wide network

of branches and a thorough

knowledge of the Wokingham

property market, avail yourself

of our exemplary service, marketing... and results.

f

Wokingham Offi ce

39 Peach Street

pubs & restaurantsBlubeckersFleet Hill, Finchampstead,Wokingham RG27 0RR 0118 940 3136

0118 978 9912

Miltons RestaurantCantley House Hotel, Milton Road,Wokingham RG40 5QG

01344 304 446The WarrenForest Road, Wokingham RG40 5SB

0118 979 5796

Rossini16 Denmark Street,Wokingham RG40 2BB

0118 978 0247The Retreat23 Denmark St., Wokingham RG40 2AY

The CourtyardTown Hall, Wokingham RG40 1AS 0118 979 4040

Nirvana SpaMole Road, Sindlesham, Wokingham RG40 1XH 0118 989 7500

St. Vincent’s Veterinary Surgery9 Crescent Rd., Wokingham RG40 2DB 0118 979 3200

Wokingham LibraryDenmark St., Wokingham RG40 2BB 0118 978 1368

Tudor House Surgery43 Broad St., Wokingham RG40 1BE 0118 978 3544

Holt Comprehensive SchoolHolt Lane, Wokingham RG41 1EE 0118 978 0165

St. Paul’s ChurchReading Rd., Wokingham RG41 1EH 0118 978 0629

Nine Mile Ride Primary SchoolNine Mile Ride, Wokingham RG40 3RB 0118 973 3118

Rectory Road SurgeryRectory Rd., Wokingham RG40 1DH 0118 978 4566

Emmbrook Comprehensive SchoolEmmbrook Road, Wokingham RG41 1JP 0118 978 4406

useful services

healthcare

schools

not listed?

If you’d like your business to be listed in our

Wokingham Useful Numbers, please email

us at: newsdesk@prospect.co.uk

our next competition!

W

S9

4

HoHolt

EmEmWo

s

BUSINESS NAME

Anthony BlayPRODUCT/SERVICE PROVIDED

Formalwear hireDIRECTOR

David PeverellADDRESS

29 Rose StreetWokinghamBerkshire RG40 1XS

HOURS OF BUSINESS

Mon-Sat9:00-5:30

Sun:closed

David Peverell,Director

Established for over 25 years, Anthony Blay

formalwear prides itself on unique personal

service. Offering elegance, style and a sense of

occasion, Wokingham’s renowned outfi tter provides

formalwear hire for weddings, proms, black tie

affairs and other formal occasions. Holding a large

range of the latest menswear for sale, they also offer

a tailoring service to assure you of the perfect fi t.

All garments are of the highest quality and

competitively priced, and there is something to

suit all - from ages 2 upwards, to the outsize man,

along with a comprehensive range of accessories

for the perfect, and appropriate look.

The ladies evening department holds over

750 exquisite garments for sale: stock

is continuously updated and gowns are

periodically sold at greatly reduced prices.

For the perfect outfi t for your next formal

occasion, please do not hesitate to call in,

e-mail sales@anthonyblay.com or telephone

David on 0118 978 1861.

BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT

TELEPHONE

0118 978 1861 David Pevere lll,

an,an,an, ririries es es

For individual attention and the highest quality service, choose Anthony Blay for your formalwear.

is a quarterly publication of Prospect Estate Agency. © Prospect Estate Agency, 2007, All rights reserved. Material contained herein may not be reproduced without prior written permission.

at Home...in WOKINGHAM

WEBSITE

anthonyblay.co.uk

worship

EstEsttEstablablablishishishededed forforforf ovovovererer 252525 yeaeayeayea

10% discount off all hire and 20%

discount off retail on presentation of

this advert. 1 offer per customer.

D I S C O U N T !