Insights

Why a property’s asking price will never define its true value, with Rohan Agarwal and Aayushi Sen

A property’s asking price never defines its true value. Not understanding this can cost homeowners, investors and businesses tens if not hundreds of thousands of pounds in the long-term.

Ensuring you get good value for money courtesy of Oxford Property Consulting’s extensive local knowledge and black book of contacts is a core part of our service.

It’s why Rohan Agarwal and Aayushi Sen were recommended to Oxford Property Consulting by high-profile property expert Henry Pryor while they explored moving locally for work.

Now happily settled in Wheatley, just six miles from Oxford city centre, we spoke to Mr Agarwal to learn more about the true value of hiring a trusted independent property buying agency.

Strong reputation

Mr Agarwal and Ms Sen’s search for a new home started in July 2020.

Initially, the couple found it difficult to locate a property which ticked their boxes. This led to a call with Oxford Property Consulting Managing Director Ben Proctor.

“Ben was very well spoken, polite and intelligent,” said Mr Agarwal. “We were confident his expert knowledge would help us find the right place.

“We had a conversation which led to us viewing several different properties, all of which were very different.”

Market experts

Finding suitable properties is only part of the service Oxford Property Consulting provides.

We are also expert valuators and can advise clients through the negotiation phase, so they end up paying the right price for the right property. This knowledge proved to be invaluable to Mr Agarwal and Ms Sen.

He said: “We were ready to offer the asking price for a house we really liked. But Ben used his industry knowledge to inform us the asking price was well above the property’s value.

“He told us not to go ahead with our proposed offer unless we were really keen. His advice really made us think twice and I believe without Ben’s guidance we would have paid over the odds.

“That knowledge and understanding of the market really is important when you’re purchasing something as big as a new home.”

READ MORE: How to negotiate property effectively

Excellent contacts

After deciding not to go ahead with their proposed offer, Mr Agarwal and Ms Sen were introduced to a property in Wheatley.

The property was not listed on the market by the vendor. Oxford Property Consulting’s extensive contacts of regional estate agents allowed Mr Agarwal and Ms Sen to attend an exclusive viewing before the property was listed publicly.

This helped place the couple in the driving seat to avoid any potentially unwanted bidding wars and consequently save both money and time.

“Our new property was purchased off-market, which is great because it means we wouldn’t be living here without Oxford Property Consulting’s help,” said Mr Agarwal. “Ben arranged our surveyors and really helped keep us grounded through the entire process.

“Our fee to Oxford Property Consulting more than made up for itself. We saved money by working with Ben and more importantly found a home we are extremely happy with.”

Client care

Asked what was most pleasing about his experience working with Oxford Property Consulting, Mr Agarwal said Ben always put the interests of his client first.

He added: “Ben didn’t push us towards expensive houses or use that as a motive to make more money, which we really liked.

“The Oxford Property Consulting team are genuine and there do advise and support the client first. He even visited us with a special hamper after we moved in which was a lovely touch.”

If you are searching for your dream home in Oxfordshire or the surrounding areas and would like to arrange an appointment with Oxford Property Consulting, please email info@oxfordpropertyconsulting.co.uk or call 01865 553956.

READ MORE: Brits reveal how happy they are with their homes