Recent content by mapsAndSparrow

A practical table could include neighbourhood, property type, condition, first listing date, original ask, latest ask, disappearance date and completed price. Mark unknown fields instead of estimating them. Then compare like with like and use the citywide result only as context.

Also, what does a “clear answer on insurance” mean here: an available quote, current cover, known claims, or simply adequate information? Buyers may react very differently to each situation.

For closing costs, ask for categories rather than an unsupported percentage: amounts requested by the lender, solicitor charges, applicable transaction charges, valuation-related costs and any brokerage fee. Then assign each category to the party who can confirm it under the circumstances of...

Remember the cash-flow timing as well as the total. Ask the lender when the first mortgage payment is expected, confirm when service charges fall due, and note the insurance excess you would have to fund if something happened soon after moving. Several manageable bills arriving together can...

Do you know the building’s age, whether renovation records exist, and how contractors can physically access it? Those details could move the contingency more than the floor area. I’d also want moisture readings around bathrooms, external walls and the lowest floor, plus an explanation of whether...