The importance of selling your property through a trusted and professional high street estate agency has never been greater as the rising demand for homes continues to outweigh supply in West Dorset.

Parkers Property Consultants, Bridport's leading independent estate agency, is currently inundated with buyers looking to move to the area and as a result are seeing many of their properties going under offer quickly and achieving top end prices. However, although this is very positive, it does present challenges.

Quality estate agency is not just about selling the property quickly, it is about achieving the best possible price and finding the best buyer in terms of their position, reliability and timescales.

Many of our vendors need to tie in forward purchases, some of which are out of area, so it is vital as an agent that we ensure we relieve as much of the pressure on their search as possible by making it clear to potential buyers that it may take time for them find and managing that process whilst they do.

The sheer volume of sales that have been agreed in recent times is also causing backlogs in the conveyancing process and slowing down search times, so having an agent monitoring the sale and any chain that might be attached to it on a regular basis is also of paramount importance.

Many people within the industry assumed the unprecedented levels of demand for homes in the area would more than likely relent as the end of the Stamp Duty Holiday approached at the end of this month, but that is proving not to be the case.

I think what we are seeing is a cultural change. The Stamp Duty Holiday has certainly been a major factor in the way the market has panned out in recent times but the impact of the pandemic is certainly another.

Bridport and the surrounding areas have always been a haven for retirement and early retirement buyers moving out of the cities but now with more people being able to work remotely and from home, we are seeing a much wider demographic of people looking to settle in the region.

And with holidaying abroad proving difficult, there is also a lot more investment and second home buying than in the previous few years.

If you are thinking of moving and would like a free market appraisal of your home or further advice on current market conditions, call Parkers on 01308 420111.

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