To find a bargain you need to know the market, yet for all the talk about the property market in the UK, there isn’t really one property market. In fact, the British property market is like a fly’s eye – it looks one whole but in fact it is split into lots of fragmented pieces. What is happening here in Rotherham obviously is going to be different to other areas in the UK. Even in Rotherham, our property market is split into different patches due to school catchment boundaries or differing postcodes.

So what is going on in Rotherham?

We have noticed that the top end of the market (above £500,000) and the surrounding areas are proving a little tougher to shift than a few years ago. However, this can’t all be blamed on Brexit, as buyers have long been flinching at overestimated asking prices and excessive stamp duty rates.

Overall in Rotherham, 27.7% of properties for sale have reduced their asking price in the last 3 months by an average of 6.2%.

This is a lot less than the reductions that are being seen in central London. In fact, the property market in Rotherham is looking reasonably good with 41.8% of properties on the market in Rotherham being shown as under offer and sold subject to contract.

Are there any bargains in Rotherham? And if so, how do you find one?

To find a bargain you must know the local property market.

Start by comparing and contrasting properties, using sites such as Zoopla and Rightmove to see what’s for sale.  The art here is to click on the ‘include Sold stc’ in the filters and then arrange them in price order. You will begin to get a feel for what properties are roughly selling for. You can also view recent sales (in Rightmove click on ‘House Prices’ on the main menu and then ‘Find Sold House prices’ on the drop down menu – you can even type in a street or street plus 0.25/0/5miles). There is a similar function in Zoopla (feel free to contact us if you need a hand with that).

Once you have found what you think is a bargain make sure you view it. Ask the agent why the sellers are moving. By doing your research on the seller, finding out how long it has been on the market, whether they have reduced the asking price (if you ask an agent they have to tell you and by how much) — you could cut a better deal if they are compelled to sell. It’s also vital to ensure that you are aware of the rental yields for that area – you can always get in touch for the expert advice if you are not sure how to estimate this. Push home your advantage (i.e. you don’t have a property to sell or you are a cash purchaser). This can make all the difference.

Expectations are probably at the lowest they’ve been for a good 10 years so landlords that use their heads are going to be able to take advantage of this ‘doom and gloom’ atmosphere that the media are creating. If you can find owners who are in the ‘got to sell’ category (instead of the ‘would like to sell’ category) then you may be able to find a dream property to purchase for your portfolio.

Like anything in life… buying a property bargain comes down to putting the hard-work in, doing your homework and jumping at opportunities. We do of course like to help landlords out – please visit out very helpful featured investment property deals page where we list bargains that we see on the market to get you started.