Reader's comments on what to do immediately after repossession
1. Find out the exact date the property was given to the Estate Agents to handle. If possible visit the property to check: That it's been cleaned, garden tidied etc. That a "For Sale" sign is up. Take a camera and photograph it if there isn't one or get a witness. Also look for postholes in the garden. Why? Because as in my case they might say the sign had been stolen ! Visit the Estate Agents: check your property is in the window or displayed inside. (They won't know who you are). If it is not displayed ask about the availability of properties where it is located. If you are shown yours, show interest and ask for a copy of the same sales particulars. If they don't show yours just get the name of the sales person for future reference.
2. Later check the sales particulars in comparison with others for positive selling points: Located in Cul-De-Sac, Off-Road Parking etc. If they have neglected to give any you should be pleased. They will almost certainly have neglected to mention "No Chain" or "Vacant Possession". If they have then the case for under-marketing grows stronger as Estate Agents I have surveyed cite this as one of the best selling points for a property.
3. Always ask the lenders if they are ensuring that the Estate Agents are marketing the property in the same way that they market the other properties they handle. They usually won't actually state they have checked this themselves but simply say that the Estate Agents have "assured" them that this is the case.
If so and you have evidence of under-marketing then the assurances can be later proven worthless and it will expose the lender to recent case law. This questioning is really a double-edged sword for the lender because they should reply in some manner that they "believe" it to be marketed in the same way. The sword can then be used to say Ok, I don't believe it but you seem to, therefore it is only reasonable to expect the fees that are charged by the Estate Agents to be "normal" (subject OF COURSE to the normal discount that is usually given when sole agency has been granted - It will have been).
4. The Internet: I believe that at this time after my experiences that it can be proven a reasonable step that a lender should take steps to ensure that the property is advertised to as wide an audience as possible. This means the Internet. Nearly all Estate Agents have their own or are affiliated to a property web site. In the comfort of your own home you can then compare how they have decided to market your property in comparison to others. You can also get printouts! In my case it was glaringly obvious that they were under-marketing it.
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