Just Cottages
Just Cottages Specialist in cottages and smaller period homes
ESTATE AGENTSJust CottagesAUCTIONEERSJust CottagesVALUERS
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Telephone: 0845 3003165
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Choosing your Estate Agent
Just Cottages
Just Cottages
Just Cottages
is the first and probably the most important part of the house selling or letting process. Remember you can’t necessarily choose the agent that you buy through, but it is very important that you choose the right agent to sell through.
Just Cottages
Often sellers or landlords will go to the agent they bought or let through but times can change: new manager, staff, image, popularity - best look at a number of agents and choose ones that handle properties like yours, they will already have a database of buyers from their marketing of similar homes and will be best placed to advise on valuation from first hand experience. Also, think local, buyers do, and your property should be in the nearest suitable agents window, they are the most likely to have buyers looking in your locality and will also have viewing staff on tap nearby.
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Instinctively sellers and landlords would like the highest price for the lowest fee, but be cautious, this may not necessarily be the right thing to do. Valuers can be tempted to be a little over enthusiastic about the price in hopes of winning the instruction and usually the fee they charge relates to the quality and the standard of service they provide. Look very carefully at the service they offer, office network, their strength in the local market, advertising coverage, internet presence, viewing policy etc, and that in reaching their decision on value they have done their homework properly and can provide evidence to back up their opinion. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, make a list if necessary or compare what you are offered by others. Most important, choose the agent you believe you can trust.
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At Murrays we have spent many years upgrading and improving our service to both our clients and buyers and now provide what we believe is the most comprehensive marketing package in the area.

Murrays Independent Estate Agents
THREE LOCAL OFFICES AND LONDON
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Strategically situated in the areas three prime and most important locations, each offering and displaying all of Murrays properties and all linked by a highly sophisticated computer network complemented by our London office
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Stroud – Minchinhampton – Painswick – Mayfair
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
A FRIENDLY & EXPERIENCED TEAM
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Murrays is an independent family firm in which Richard and James Murray are ably supported by their team of Guy James, Annette Scarle, Niall Scott, Jennifer Selby, Julia Webb, Josh Ford-Loveday and Gill Stratford, our office administrator, who produces our excellent brochures as well as our distinctive media advertising. All live in the area, many for most of their lives. They are now joined by lettings manager Sarah McEwen, who has almost a decade of experience in the local rental market. We believe local knowledge, being part of the community and understanding our environment is an essential part of being a good estate agent. Local history, communications, schools, employment, places of interest, local events, local experiences to share and above all, our wealth of contacts.

OUR SALES TEAM ALONE HAS OVER FOUR DECADES OF LOCAL EXPERIENCE

CLIENT’S PERSONAL ADVISER
Murrays Independent Estate Agents

Every vendor is allocated a partner or manager to look after their property whilst still having the whole team working to find a buyer or tentant. They will be advised on preparation of the brochure, marketing plans, presentation of the property and many other aspects relating to the sale/let and, obviously, this will be a good opportunity for clients to ask about anything else they need to know or want Murrays to do for them. This will be followed up by regular meetings to discuss progress until the property is sold or let.
Just Cottages
SUPERB BROCHURE QUALITY
Murrays Independent Estate Agents

This is so important; a poor quality sales brochure depicts a poor quality property. Your property deserves the best, and to this end we aim high. All our brochures are of an extremely high standard, most are laminated and are illustrated with excellent colour photographs, together with floor, boundary and location plans where appropriate.
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THE MAYFAIR OFFICE
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Much better than a head office in London that only sells London properties, our Mayfair office is ‘our office in London’ devoted to the sale of country property and pointing London, National and International buyers in our direction. They are also a very effective marketing machine, constantly encouraging property journalists who write for the National press to promote us and our properties in most of the National papers and magazines; last year alone they achieved over £2 million worth of equivalent advertising space for their members. In the Spring and Autumn, The Murrays Group hold Cotswold property presentations at the Mayfair Office inviting London buyers to meet and discuss our Gloucestershire and Cotswold properties on their own doorstep.
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INTERNET PRESENCE
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Combining immense local strength with National and International exposure Murrays and Just Cottages have an excellent internet website which links to several major property portals including the Digital Property Group which includes Prime Location, Find a Property and Globrix, where some of the finest houses in the country can be found, together with Rightmove, Zoopla, Think Property, and Vebra. Rated as the most popular sites with all types of agents and buyers across the country, all available properties are advertised on these sites, including the websites of Country Life, The Telegraph, The Times and many others. Each with several pictures, location maps, aerial views etc and full particulars can be downloaded anywhere in the world if required, as well as instant email notification of new properties to registered buyers as soon as they come on to the market.
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www.murraysestateagents.co.uk
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
ACCOMPANIED VIEWING POLICY
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Accompanied viewings are an integral part of our service – in fact, we prefer to do them ourselves, a good opportunity to encourage interested buyers to offer then and there. This is a critical part of the marketing process and one that needs planning, preparation and skill to execute properly. Meeting and getting to know the buyer helps to identify their needs and relate them positively to each property. That is why we only use experienced negotiators who know the properties and can, if needs be, conduct a sale on the doorstep. A well-conducted viewing can ensure the viewer is focussed on the property and can often establish quickly their potential as a likely buyer or tenant.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
NATIONAL ADVERTISING
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Prime properties are advertised in the national press and glossy magazines, attracting buyers from all over the UK, Europe and all over the World.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Together members of Mayfair Office group are one of the largest property advertisers in the Daily Telegraph, Country Life and Horse and Hound, not to mention The Times and Sunday Times, FT, Evening Standard and many more. As a result excellent rates have been negotiated, sometimes half standard rate card, the benefit of which are of course passed on to clients at cost, saving hundreds, sometimes thousands of pounds through our London advertising agents.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
FEEDBACK AND MARKETING REPORTS

Murrays Independent Estate Agents
One of the most common complaints about estate agents is lack of feedback. Following each viewing, Murrays provide prompt response with viewers recations and comments. On a regular basis the manager or partner allocated to look after your property will arrange to meet with you to discuss the progress of your sale/let, usually in the form of visiting you at your home or often having a meeting in our office where information regarding mailings, enquiries, viewings, responses, offers, sales/letting progress and advertising are instantly available. In addition we pride ourselves on maintaining continued contact throughout the sale on all matters of importance.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
FREE MARKET APPRAISALS
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
The valuation process is as important as choosing the right agent. You, the client, and your property deserve that full and careful consideration is given to both valuation and marketing.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
At Murrays we take this process very seriously – we do not make snap judgements, we take time to reflect on all the elements involved, including the current market conditions, demand, your timeframe, as well as age, history, appearance, accommodation, condition, presentation, location, and any special features of the property. Comparative prices achieved and similar properties currently for sale/let must also be taken into account and we also involve the views of our colleagues who are part of our daily valuation meetings.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Valuation is a fine line and although it is most important to achieve the best price, asking too much can sometimes ruin your chances of an early sale or let. Most successful sales or lettings happen in the first weeks of marketing, frequently at the asking price and often more if there is competitive interest. If however one misses those so valuable early buyers, crucial time can be lost, often resulting in a lower price being achieved because the property has lingered in the market for too long.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
From all this we decide on probable value, we don’t inflate it just to please you and win your instruction, we try to be realistic and hopefully do better on the day.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Finally, we discuss it with you and once we have considered all the information to hand, including other opinions if appropriate, we decide between us the most suitable asking price. We will also advise on method of sale, private treaty, public auction or perhaps tender. Our own Richard Murray is a qualified property auctioneer.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
EMAILING, DISTRIBUTION AND TELEPHONE SALES

Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Latest technology and our superb computer software now enable us to notify buyers and tenants as soon as you instruct us to put your property on the market.

Immediately we are given the green light a high percentage of our buyers and tentants are instantly notified by email, taking them directly to our website where they can download full particulars if they wish.

Anyone registered with Prime Location, Rightmove and many more property portals looking for a similar property will also be notified automatically as soon as the property is put on the market.

Immediately the brochures are printed, they are mailed to our most suitable buyers or tentants.

All of this continues to be backed up by our sales and lettings team constantly contacting buyers by phone. Personal contact we believe is still the most effective way of getting the buyers to the right properties.

OPEN HOUSES

Murrays Independent Estate Agents
A popular marketing idea used by many agents and long practiced by realtors in the US. A service we are happy to offer to our clients but which we normally apply to new homes and empty houses.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
We are concerned that our occupied furnished properties may be at risk and in some cases not covered by insurance.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
The nature of open houses is that advertising and boards invite visitors off the street that we may not know or have had previous contact with, and although we make every effort to obtain their details our normal stringent rules of always taking names and addresses of applicants before they view could be less secure.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
We will of course be happy to discuss the highly effective marketing strategy with you further and of course receive out your instructions if you would like an open house arranged.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
REALISTIC FEE STRUCTURE
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Fees - Should you decide to place the property with Murrays to sell our inclusive sole agencycommission is based on 1.75%. This is based on the final price agreed and is subject to the current rate of VAT. We frequently work with other agents on a joint agency basis and although a higher fee is involved we can usually agree a competitive rate.

From time to time we vary our commission structure based on the level of service required and will be very happy to discuss this in more detail when the decision is made to place the property on the market. As you will see from our Services & Marketing we include a great deal more than many other agents within our fee, but we also appreciate that where savings can be made, we should be able to make an allowances too. Often we might have a buyer who will buy within days, clearly reducing our costs, and allowing us to pass on that benefit to you, alternatively you may wish us to work on a discreet low key basis for which various fee structures can be agreed. Please call us if you wish to know more.

Our clients don't choose Murrays and Just Cottages because we're the cheapest estate agent. We hope they appreciate the value of a top quality service coupled with a generous level of marketing and genuine effort to achieve a sale at the best possible price. After all, using an agent who is most likely to find you a buyer and also do their best to achieve, for you, the best possible price, must be more attractive than an agent dependent on volume and making sales regardless of the price achieved. Surely, a few thousand on your price is worth a lot more than a few hundred off your fee!

Under EU regulations sellers are required prior to marketing to commission an EPC (Energy Performance Certificate). This is required whenever a property is built, sold or rented out. The certificate provides 'A' to 'G' ratings, with 'A' being the most energy efficient. We are able to advise you about this and all other statutory requirements, organise inspection, answer any questions and where necessary initiate the compilation of the documentation.

RE-INVESTING IN THE COMMUNITY AND OUR COMMITMENT TO CANCER RESEARCH
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Murrays support local charities, schools, and hospitals and sponsor local events as well as cancer research nationally. Almost £20,000 has been raised in a single year.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
CONVEYANCING
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
This is an essential part of selling your home. It is therefore very important to instruct a solicitor or conveyancer as soon as you decide to sell your home. The legal process takes time to prepare and once you have found a buyer, you need to get contract documents to their conveyancer as quickly as possible otherwise valuable time (often weeks) can be lost. At Murrays, we recommend you contact your existing solicitor who will most probably be familiar with your property or a good local solicitor who will have the benefit of local knowledge and contacts. We can also offer, through the Mayfair office, the services of MyHomeMove who provide a fast effecient service at competitive rates. With a dynamic and innovative approach to conveyancing, 8:00am - 8:00pm opening and 24/7 online tracking they aim to ensure that clients are always kept fully up to date and receive an unrivalled level of service.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
MORTGAGE FINANCE
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Although Murrays have always resisted getting involved in financial services, we do recognise the importance in being able to help both our clients and their purchasers with the means of getting best advice on mortgages. Murrays can introduce you to brokers familiar with local property and their financial aspects who may well be able to provide sources of finance to suit your particular circumstances.
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Offices at:
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
50/51 London Road, Stroud, Gloucestershire. GL5 2AD
01453 755552 fax 758580
stroud@murraysestateagents.co.uk
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
3 High Street, Minchinhampton, Gloucestershire. GL6 9BN
01453 886334 fax 883030
minchinhampton@murraysestateagents.co.uk
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
The Old Baptist Chapel, New Street, Painswick, Gloucestershire. GL6 6XH
01452 814655 fax 814650
painswick@murraysestateagents.co.uk
Murrays Independent Estate Agents
Cashel House 15 Thayer St London. W1U 3JT
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