London estate agents offering buyers free cars, iPads and travel deals to win sales
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Version 0 of 1. Thinking about buying a new iPad or even a new car? You could get one completely free, but you might have to buy a house. Estate agents struggling to sell properties in London have reportedly turned to luring buyers with incentives including giving away brand new cars, iPads and travel deals, in an effort to encourage their customers to buy a house in the capital’s affluent areas. Buying agent Garrington Property Finders, told the Guardian that the previously coveted central London market has been reduced to a “burnt out core” prompting developers to come up with creative solutions to push up sales. Sales agents at a development’s launch night in Muswell Hill gave away Renault Zoe electric cars to every house buyer, the Guardian reported. In addition to the usual prosecco and snacks, anyone willing to secure a £2,500 deposit on the night could also go home with a new iPad. Across the capital others have reportedly handed out John Lewis vouchers, travel deals and free furniture packages worth up to £20,000. According to the latest survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyor (Rics) published in April, the number of homes sitting on estate agents' books has fallen to a record low amid a lack of impetus in the housing market. On average, the number of properties sitting on estate agents’ books dropped to just 43 per branch in March - the lowest figure since Rics started collecting the data in 1978. The report also showed new home buyer enquiries remaining flat for a third successive month and surveyors cutting their sales growth forecast. “Prices in central London have progressively deteriorated and at negative 49 per cent, the net balance was the weakest since 2009,” RICS said at the time. Earlier in April, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported that house prices rose 5.8 per cent in the year to February, roughly half the rate of growth seen before last year’s Brexit vote. |