Nether Edge and Abbeydale, #Sheffield - we talk about why this area is so great! #Spencer

 

We are back blogging! Sorry to have been missing for a while! 

It’s no secret that Spencer loves Sheffield but let us tell you about why we love Abbeydale & Nether Edge.

 

Abbeydale & Nether Edge offer something for everyone with super popular residential areas providing an enormous range of property, outstanding schools, shopping and a fabulous lifestyle to boot.

In this vibrant area of S7 there’s a whole host of pubs, bars, restaurants & takeaways to suit every palate. Particular favourites in our office are Bench, The Broadfield Pub, Two Thirds, Picture House Social and Forge Bakehouse to name but a few.

 

Of course there is also the Antiques Quarter to potter around and get lost in corners of, looking for a quirky piece of furniture or a trinket for your new home. If that isn’t your thing then there are plenty of charity shops, independent shops, artisan bakers, international supermarkets, health food shops and florists to keep you entertained.

As well as shops, you’re spoilt choice for green spaces to visit in the area. You can entertain the kids in Broadfield Park, Mount Pleasant Park or Chelsea Park or go for a stroll in Brincliffe Woods, which are part of the Round Sheffield Walk.

There are plenty of events in the area to take part in too! Nether Edge Neighbourhood Group is a well established friendly organisation that is responsible for the quarterly Farmers Market, the annual Nether Edge Festival, Open Gardens and much, much more.

When it comes to schools Nether Edge Primary, part of the Mercia Trust, is an outstanding primary school based on Abbeydale Road along with Mercia Academy further up the road in Bannerdale both of which are incredibly popular with families in the area.

 

If you’re looking for somewhere to live, the area has everything from apartments, terraced houses, Victorian villas to new build detached properties, something for every budget and every taste. What more could you want?!

Covid - how has it changed things for the better? Tom of Spencer has his say

What has changed since the first lockdown?  

"Although COVID has undoubtedly been a troublesome time for us all, in a perverse kind of way it has helped me to appreciate things that I probably took for granted before it happened.

"Beforehand, I think we were all guilty about taking our relationships for granted, but having not seen my family and a lot of my friends since Christmas, it made me realise how much I had missed them when restrictions were eased.

"The pint with my mates on a Friday night, the brew with my grandparents, the buzz of going to Hillsborough and the excitement of looking forward to a weekend away are still sorely missed, but I know when they do come round again (and they will), I will not take them for granted.

"I have discovered new music, learnt new skills, read more books and been able to break away into things that I may have not been able to do in the rat race of days gone by before all of this.

"The negatives of this wretched disease far outweigh the positives – there is absolutely no denying that. But it has given me a chance to reflect on what really is important in this crazy old world we live in and for that, I will be thankful."

Tom is in our Lettings Team and has worked with us for some time now - we don't know where we would be without him. 

www.spencersestateagents.co.uk 

Spencer has New Rules - Please Observe #estateagent #sheffield

Following recent government updates, please see attached from Spencer..... 

Agents now able to return to work - in a fashion. Guidelines attached #covid19 #estateagent

Corona Virus Update from last night and today's news 

Agents have been told they can reopen branches.

The Ministry of Housing has just updated its buying and selling guidance after saying the property market could reopen this morning.

It said estate agents can open for business but should consider how and when to reopen so they can follow Government guidance on safe working,

The guidance said:

• Agents should ask whether any party is showing symptoms or has been asked to self-isolate before going ahead with any viewing, or visits to offices.
• Agents should operate using an appointment system for visits to their offices and when conducting viewings.
• Agents should not carry out any open house viewings.
• Agents should strongly encourage clients to view properties virtually in the first instance and then only physically inspect properties which they have a strong interest in.
• Agents can accompany physical viewings and seek to maintain a minimum of 2 metres distance from others wherever possible. Where social distancing is not possible and the visit is within an enclosed space, they should consider wearing a face covering in line with government guidance.
• Where they do not accompany the visit, they should make sure that both buyers and sellers clearly understand how the viewing should be conducted safely.
• Agents should not drive clients to appointments.
• All parties viewing a property should wash their hands with soap and water (or hand sanitiser if not available) immediately after entering the properties, with internal doors opened and surfaces having been wiped down before they enter. Separate towels or paper towels should be used if possible and washed or disposed of safely after use.
• Agents should do what they can to promote flexibility when arranging move dates, for example advising clients to ensure contracts have explicit terms to manage the timing risks presented by coronavirus.
• Agents should work with their clients and other agents to broker a new date to move where sales are due to complete and one of the parties falls ill with coronavirus or has to self-isolate.
• Agents should ensure that any keys are appropriately cleaned before handover.

There is also guidance for sellers when their property is being viewed such as vacating the property, opening all internal doors and allowing access to handwashing facilities, ideally with separate towels.

All parties viewing a property are also advised to wash their hands and avoid touching surfaces.

Social distancing guidelines must be followed during the viewings and there should be minimal contact with the household.

Once the viewing has taken place, the home owner should ensure surfaces, such as door handles, are cleaned with standard household cleaning products and towels disposed of safely or washed as appropriate, the guidance said.

Letting agents and private landlords must follow the same guidance on viewings.

It said:

• Private landlords and letting agents should not conduct viewings in properties where tenants are symptomatic or self-isolating, or where it has been determined that they are clinically extremely vulnerable and are shielding.
• In other cases, where viewings can proceed, they should be conducted in line with the guidance on viewings earlier in this document.
• Any visits to a property must be made in accordance with Government’s guidelines on working in other people’s homes and social distancing.
• If possible, necessary repairs, gas and electrical safety checks should be conducted in the period between a property being vacated and a new tenant moving in. If this is not possible and visits are needed to an occupied property, this should be done by appointment with measures put in place to ensure physical contact is minimised, for example with residents staying in another room during the visit.
• Landlords should make every effort to abide by gas and electrical safety requirements. This may be more difficult due to restrictions associated with the coronavirus outbreak, for example where a tenant has coronavirus symptoms, is self-isolating or shielding. Under such circumstances, provided the landlord can demonstrate they have taken reasonable steps to comply, they would not be in breach. Letting agents may also want to consider obtaining landlord and tenant consent for inventory clerk appointments to also occur before a tenant moves in or after a tenant moves out during vacant periods if possible.
• Letting agents and landlords should take steps to ensure any properties are prepared ready for new tenants, this may include cleaning to minimise any potential spread of the virus in line with Government advice.
• Letting agents and landlords should consider how best to conduct tenancy check-ins for new tenancies agreed while broader measures remain in place, taking care to follow Government advice on social distancing to minimise possible spread of coronavirus.
• Letting agents and landlords are reminded of the temporary COVID-19 measures that adjust right to rent checks, temporarily allowing these checks to be conducted remotely. Lettings agents and landlords should consider other areas where in person payments, referencing or checks can be conducted remotely instead and take further advice if required.

We will be reporting shortly to all our clients as to when and how we will be returning to work in the safest possible way for all our staff, clients, tenants, and contractors. 

Watch this space........... 

Letter to landlords - #Sheffield from #Spencer

Dear landlords,

We hope you all keeping well and as safe as possible in these quite surreal times.

Here at Spencer, we are all obviously working within the Government guidelines in regards Covid 19, but at the same time, we are maintaining the highest possible standard of property management as you have come to expect.

We are all working tirelessly to make sure everything runs as smoothly as possible for you all, so if you do have any questions or queries, please do not hesitate to contact us. 

Some of you may have noticed that we have been looking to renew some of your tenancies a bit earlier than we normally would. The reason as to why this is simply because the Government has introduced a 3 month notice period, rather than the usual 2 months. Therefore, to protect your tenancies (and ultimately your income) we have made a very conscious effort to make sure we are on top of this. 

As well as this, we are also fully aware that the Government has also introduced new measures in granting mortgage payment holidays. We have found that some tenants maybe using this as a bit of an excuse to ask for a reduction in rent and subsequently using it to their advantage. There are obviously some cases where tenants will be affected financially because of this crisis, but we are making sure that every time this happens we are happy it's a legitimate reason to ask for a reduction to help with their circumstances. So far, its only been a very small percentage asking for such a claim and we are hopeful it will continue in this manner. 

At the same time, we are managing all the usual things that come with property management as we normally would. Whilst we are not doing any physical viewings, we are doing virtual viewings for any properties we have on the market and despite it not being ideal, we are finding this way to be quite successful with lets being agreed fairly quickly. As well as this, we are generating new business too, so there is also a constant stream of properties available despite the limitations of what we can do - which is obviously great news and testament to the lettings department. 

We are also working in such a way that we can still organise emergency repairs to your properties and such legal aspects as annual gas checks, so you know that your properties are legally up to date as much as possible. 

I hope this email helps to reassure you that its certainly business as usual with us and your continued support is always appreciated. 

Keep safe and stay well. 

Spencer

www.spencersestateagents.co.uk  

#Covid19Update Offices are CLOSED - All staff working safely from home #spencers #sheffield #wearespencer

Dear All,

Our offices are now CLOSED but staff are ALL still working from home. Our phone lines are still open diverted to all staff, we are conducting valuations via video phone, and all urgent repairs are being undertaken as safely as possible by contractors.

If you have an urgent issue please call us on 0114 2683682 during work hours or my personal mobile number is 07770 768896 if you want to call me, Nicola. We are all working on safe ways to continue key handovers for completions, check outs, check ins, and urgent maintenance. 

My own personal circumstances are that my mum has cancer, my dad has serious heart issues, I have five-year-old twins, and a 94 year old grandma with dementia, all who I am shopping for and trying to keep safe. I am sure you all have similar stories and you will want to keep your people safe, just as I am trying to keep mine safe too.

I would like to personally reassure all our tenants, clients, vendors, landlords, and buyers, as well as future clients, that our business will survive this and that I will do everything that I can to ensure that we are still here on the other side.

Thank you in the meantime for your patience and all of your wonderful messages of support of us at Spencer, we have great staff who are all doing their best for the business, each other, and for our clients, as well as for their families too. These are difficult times but I can promise a “no surrender” attitude to keeping everyone safe as well as to keeping staff and our business running as effectively as possible.

We will maintain our social responsibility throughout this time and will promise our best attention at all times.

Stay safe.

With love and best wishes

Nicola