As a busy professional couple, our client had very little time to dedicate to searching for the right property.

After viewing more than ten different properties on their own unsuccessfully, they decided to retain Bradbourne’s search and advisory service to provide them with greater access to the market and to unlock opportunities they had been unable to.

A second home in the countryside that could produce its own income to cover the maintenance and associated costs of the property was the driving force behind the search.

With a wide search criterion of up to 1.5 hours’ drive from their existing home on the south coast properties in Hampshire, West Sussex, Wiltshire and West Surrey would be considered.

How we helped

As we do with all clients, we began our partnership by conducting a series of meetings to understand exactly what they were looking for and where we could add value to their search. Over several weeks we worked closely with them to fine-tune the brief and create a short list of desirable locations.

Once we had identified key search criteria, we completed thorough research into a range of destinations and utilised our extensive network of contacts to filter currently available stock and gain access to properties yet to come onto the market.

After previewing several properties, we identified a village house in West Sussex which matched the brief exactly.

The property included three separate cottages that were already being used as holiday lets. It also featured several dilapidated outbuildings which presented an opportunity for further development.

The main house was near a busy road which was in the process of being bypassed. We knew this would significantly improve the quality of the location in the long term but still carried out extensive due diligence on the potential impact of the work as well as reporting on price.

Thanks to our excellent relationship with the selling agent, we were able to negotiate terms before the property had been fully exposed to the market.

Utilising our local connections we introduced a solicitor to manage the conveyancing process, a surveyor to undertake a Building Survey, and a private client insurance broker.

The purchase was complex, and a significant amount of time and effort was required to arrange specialist reports after the survey was completed. The findings enabled us to renegotiate, saving the client 10% off the agreed purchase price.

Shortly after renegotiation, contracts were exchanged. As the client was not able to attend on the day, our team took care of this on their behalf as part of our end-to-end service.

What our client said

“It was the first time we had used a property search agent, so we were not sure what to expect. But I must say we were very impressed and happy with the excellent services provided by Stephen.

“He is professional, proactive, communicative, easy to get hold of, and efficient. You feel you are in safe hands. We would highly recommend his services.”