Founded by family in 1991, we are proof that not all agents are the same! Proudly independent and still family run, our focus on every client aims to produce outstanding results – and it works. People use us again and again.
We embrace innovation in our industry – in the ’90s we helped pioneer property websites. Today we’re the first in our area to showcase all properties on through-glass interactive touchscreens inside and outside our office.
“Thoroughly professional, lovely people, a pleasure to deal with. Would thoroughly recommend John Thorogood to anyone selling a house in that area. “Independent” speaks volumes, thank you. I really don’t think you could improve, just keep doing what you are doing. It seems you have a great team there.”
After completing a law degree from Manchester University and two winters working in the French Alps, Austin Thorogood joined the firm in 1993. All his estate agency experience has been from Northcote Road and, as he has been conducting valuations since the start and has over a thousand sales under his belt, he has an unrivalled and extensive knowledge of the local housing stock. His passion (aside from his wife, two children and skiing powder) is for offering the highest level of service and maintaining the company’s reputation as the leading independent agent in the area. He has lived locally for over 20 years.
John cut his teeth in the Toronto property market in the late ’60s and is pictured here in SW London in 1971, with wife Janet and youngest son Austin (now director of the firm) asleep in the pram.John had just joined a Battersea estate agency to set up and run their new sales department covering Battersea, Clapham and Wandsworth which he successfully grew over two decades.
In 2000, Austin’s wife, Cara, (the 4th Thorogood involved) joined the company. Thanks to their continuing reputation for providing honest advice, achieving top prices and offering an exceptional personal service, the family-run firm continued to win favour with the locals. Director Austin Thorogood has now managed the firm for almost two decades, safely steering the firm through hugely varying market conditions to become one of the area’s leading independent estate agents. He and Cara have lived locally for over two decades and have had two sons attending Belleville School.
in 2014, Cara masterminded a stylish re-brand including a total re-design of our premises, to provide a sleek contemporary space for clients to visit us complete with through-glass touchscreens inside and outside the office. Austin and Cara continue to evolve a pro-active, honest and modern approach to selling and letting homes, bringing it firmly into the 21st century and helping us achieve outstanding results. The company has only ever hired people who can maintain the same high standards of customer service for which we have become well known. This has ensured we continue to build long-standing relationships within the local community. It remains to be seen whether a 3rd generation of the family will carry the company’s proud tradition into the future…
In any case, perhaps I could be forgiven a little professional satisfaction when I read this week’s industry headlines. Data now confirms that slower house price growth over the past two years (especially for London’s high-value property) may have offset extra stamp duty charges. In short, you pay less overall to buy a bigger property then you did before, as prices have come down by more than stamp duty has gone up. Eureka! So, with mortgage rates attractively low (even on a five-year fixed) and the affordability of property at its highest for many years, what is (or was) holding buyers back? A reluctance to pay the taxman? Do buyers really care whether they pay a vendor, as part of a rising purchase price, or the Government in the form of tax? Some do, yes but we sense the tide is turning…
We’re finding vendors are reacting too. Keen for their homes not to be over-exposed in what some describe as an uncertain market, many are returning to old-fashioned methods of discreet, word-of-mouth, off-market selling to ensure privacy, the best price and the appropriate “serious” buyers.
In essence, neither party wants their time wasted. So, where or to whom do they turn for that? Not to Rightmove or Zoopla I assure you (where the world knows your inside-leg measurement); but to an experienced local agent who understands buyers’ requirements, has unparalleled knowledge of the area’s housing stock and a long list of established relationships. The larger houses in our area, despite what multi-office agents try telling you, most frequently sell to local buyers we know, who’ve had their eye on a location for a while – in some cases, years.
The timing of your sale is all important and doing your research is vital. Many people planning to move house often choose not to put their own property on the market until they’ve found a suitable property to buy – it feels more comfortable that way and they’re usually made to feel confident that their own home will sell fast anyway.
But in our experience (that’s several decades’ worth), we’ve seen very few people succeed at this. Sometimes their house may not sell as fast as they/we think it will (despite the assurances or all the estate agents) meaning they often lose out on that house of their dreams. But even if your own property does get interest quickly, the other one you are after is often snapped up by someone in a better position (already under offer for example). If you’ve already set your heart on a particular property, it’ll also be very stressful selling under pressure which goes against our efforts to maximise your selling price.
1. Bite the bullet – sell up and commit to renting in your new chosen area initially. Yes, it means moving twice but it negates the problems highlighted above and is something which may help you find your preferred location before committing to a purchase.