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New service targets failed property transactions

Wednesday, 9 November 2011 2:51 PM

A new online service to reduce the number of failed property transactions has been launched.

AssuredSale is an online service which acts as a middle-man between buyers and sellers.

Both parties agree to put funds into a secure bank account in the form of a bond, which they then forfeit if the deal is subsequently cancelled.

The cost of the bond relates to the value of the property, so could range from £500 to £1,000 for a three-bedroom family home with a UK average price of £162,000.

Tim Price, AssuredSale founder, said: "Alarmingly, almost one third of all property sales - equating to about 200,000 transactions and costing a buyer or seller on average £1,000 - fail each and every year.

"This is mainly because the entire sale process is based purely on non-binding verbal offers that cause widespread gazumping, gazanging and gazundering.

The innovation is based on the personal experience of entrepreneur Price, after he lost £2,000 and two months of wasted time when the owner of a home he wanted to buy pulled out.

He added: “The house-buying process in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is stuck in its ways with customers seemingly resigned to how bad it is. In our research, everybody has, or knows somebody who has had a bad experience.

"It’s not just about protecting the seller, because both seller and buyer stand to lose out financially if one pulls out on the other."

Both buyer and seller are required to pay a fee relating to the bond value, usually around £150.

Tom Parker, chairman of the e-homebuying forum, said: "Initiatives such as those from AssuredSale could go a long way to bring greater transparency and efficiency to the homebuying and selling process and we look forward to seeing the results in the coming months."

AssuredSale was launched at the Innovative Property Show at Wembley Stadium last week and was nominated for the Innovation of the Year award.

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