NEWSbeat


COMMUNITY Barbon trials Prince’s Trust initiative at Homelet


As part of Barbon’s ‘Give Something Back’ campaign, the company is trialling an


initiative that allows employees to take one day’s paid leave per year to undertake community activities and projects in support of the Prince’s Trust. Currently offered at Barbon’s


HomeLet Division in Lincoln with a view to rolling it out across the


Group, the initiative has already had 20 applications from employees. HomeLet MD John Boyle, says, “This partnership with The Prince’s Trust gives our employees the opportunity to volunteer to support young people who are preparing to enter the world of work. It also gives them the chance for personal development by undertaking training, coaching or even being a buddy to a young person in the office.”


Plans are underway at HomeLet


to match opportunities to the company’s budding coaches and volunteers and to ensure that they have the correct skills to take on the responsibility. CEO of Barbon Insurance Group,


Martin Oliver, (pictured) added, “With around one in five young people in the UK not in work, education or training, it is important to support initiatives such as the Prince’s Trust, which does so much in this area.”


HOUSING MARKET


House price/ sales confusion


Do you remember the nursery rhyme, “…When they were up they were up and when they were


down they were down, and when they were only half way up they were neither up nor down…” The house price indices, are


rather like the rhyme, some are up, some are down, some are neither. The latest LSL/Acadametrics


House Price Index states that “Average house prices 0.3% in October, the sixth consecutive month with a marginal gain. Year on year growth slowed to 6.1%, and is expected to slow further”. LSL say transactions rose by


2.0%, but are down 7.3% compared to last October. Meanwhile according to the


Chesterton Humberts/CEBR Poll of Polls, house prices declined by 0.3% in October, the third monthly fall recorded so far in 2010. Average price rose by 2.7% or £4,774 since the end of 2009. In between these two indices


BRANDING New identity for Chancellors Group


2010 has been busy for The Chancellors Group of Estate Agents as the company embarked on a complete rebrand.


The decision to invest in


refreshing the company’s identity and revising its marketing strategy was taken in 2009 by MD Robert Scott- Lee, believing that the company needed a more contemporary brand identity that would reflect its “pioneering approach to estate agency”. Over the last 20 months, Chancellors has invested in systems that have provided a competitive edge, embraced social media, maximised its online profile, increased its market share and created


8 DECEMBER 2010 PROPERTYdrum


a joined-up service that is impressing clients and winning new business.


The Chancellors Group is


well established, with the same image in place for the last 20 years. Its three brands: Chancellors, Anscombe & Ringland and Russell Baldwin & Bright, operate across the Home Counties, London, Herefordshire and mid Wales. The new brand image


was developed by TC Communications. Robert Scott-Lee said, “As the existing


‘The branding provides a dynamic platform for growth.’


brand is very recognisable, we focused our efforts on ensuring that the changes we have made provide us with an identity that reflects our innovative approach within the industry and a dynamic platform from which we can continue to grow over the next five years.” “I believe that we are in an unequalled position to focus on providing outstanding quality to all our clients. As we roll out our new branding, we are offering a “Fees for Free” prize draw entry for every market appraisal carried out before 31 January 2011.” The new fascia and office


re-fit programme is under way and due to be completed by the end of the year.


which focus on price, the latest NAEA report focuses on activity – with infomation supplied by the NAEA members. The average number of sales agreed per branch remained the same with an average of seven sales made across September and October. “The number of sales made in October remained stable which is encouraging news for the housing market. Although this is down on this time last year, sales continue to remain strong for the final part of the year. It is reassuring that despite falling supply and demand, the number of sales has held up.”


But while sales may be holding up, stock levels are going down. “The average number of properties available for sale per branch decreased from 72 in September to 67 in October. The number of sellers bringing homes to the market decreased for the first time since June.”


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