On Wednesday last week, it was officially announced estate agents in England could go back to work as part of the Government’s phased relaxation of the lockdown.

And we’re open again but only because we are fully ready to do so thanks to preparing in advance.

Some agencies have rushed blindly out of the traps, unprepared and dived straight back in.

When Elvis Presley sang “….Only fools rush in’ he could have been singing about certain sections of the property industry.

And just like the King of Rock and Roll that’s not our approach either.

We took our time under lockdown to ensure we have enough Personal Protective Equipment, we have also stocked up on santisers and prepared our Be Clean Be Safe protocols and policies.

We’re definitely not foolishly rushing in.

The key parts of the Government’s advice for people looking to move or purchase a home are summarised below. We want to reassure home sellers and buyers in Cheshire we will be following these guidelines thoroughly.

• BUYERS: Initial viewings should be carried out virtually wherever this is possible, and estate agents should help you to do this. Viewers can use our video tours to enable this first step and can request a remote viewing if they so wish.
• BUYERS: All physical viewings should be limited to members of the same household, and open house viewings (where multiple viewers are in the house at the same time) should not take place.
• BUYERS: When physically viewing properties, where possible, you should avoid touching surfaces, wash your hands regularly, and bring your own hand sanitiser. The number of people on a viewing should be minimised to those from your household that have to be there. If you need to be accompanied by small children, you should try to keep them from touching surfaces and ensure they wash their hands regularly.
• SELLERS: If people are being shown around your current home, you should open all internal doors and windows and ensure surfaces, such as door handles, are cleaned after each viewing with standard household cleaning products. We will also carry hand sanitiser and ‘clean as we go’.
• SELLERS: As most people choose to, we recommend you leave your property while viewings are taking place to minimise your contact with those not in your household.
• EVERYONE: Anyone involved in any aspect of the home moving process should practice social distancing in line with public health advice.
• MOVERS: When moving between properties, you and those in your household should try to do as much of the packing yourself as you can. Where this is not possible, you should speak to removal firms in advance.
• MOVERS: If you are particularly worried about the risk of infection, then speak to the professionals involved, your estate agent, landlord or removers as they may be able to put in place extra measures.

In addition to these and our other measures we have also created a Safe Homes Hotline where we will answer any questions you have about how we are protecting people.

We’re expecting a very busy few months as buyers and sellers who have been put on hold by lockdown are now released.

Property portals reported record numbers of people visiting their sites in the 24 hours after lockdown, and we look set for a busy summer, especially as overseas holidays look unlikely to happen.

And we are ready, and looking forward to serving our clients safely, sensibly and successfully.

Thanks for reading.

To read the full document visit this website.