More people checking value of homes
Updated on 24 April 2008
A house price website has said it has seen a near 300% surge in the number of people looking up the value of their home during the first quarter of the year.
Mouseprice.net, which provides free online valuations, said around 23,000 people visited its site each day during the three months to the end of March, compared with just 8,000 a day during the same period of 2007.
It said reports of house price falls and the impact the credit crunch was having on the property market had boosted homeowners' interest in the value of their home, as they fretted that their most valuable asset could be declining in price.
Selwyn Lim, director of Mouseprice, said: "Despite a significant drop in property transaction volumes, interest in house prices amongst the general public has increased massively.
"This concern appears to be much more widespread than originally anticipated. With no immediate signs of recovery, the desire for housing related information is bound to remain high."
Meanwhile, a new website has been launched under which estate agents will compete against each other for homeowners' business.
Sellers using the Estate Agency Fees Direct website fill out a form giving details on their property, which is then circulated to up to 10 local estate agents.
Estate agents then produce a quote for the fees they would charge to sell the property, as well as any additional services they provide, such as producing a Home Information Pack.
Homeowners can then select the agent whose quote they like most.
The free service can be accessed at www.estateagencyfeesdirect.com.
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