Resuming normal service

Strange things have been happening in the property world for several months now. November, usually a very quiet month, saw a lot of movement in the market. And the first half of December was also unseasonably busy. So it was expected that the New Year would see a busy start, with things picking up, before a quiet time around the time of the General Election - and the big money seems to be on May 6 for that.

Then the snow came. Looking out of the window at the mid-January sunshine today, it's hard to believe that the region was virtually at a standstill for a couple of weeks. And the buying and selling of homes was the last thing on any everyone's mind - we were too busy stockpiling everything from de-icer to toilet rolls!

But estate agents and builders are reporting that interest has picked up again, with a marked increase in enquiries, phone calls and visitors.

"The phones were ringing constantly at the weekend," an agent told me. "We're arranging for more staff to cover next Saturday."

She was concerned that many home owners simply aren't aware of the rules of buying and selling - and no surprise as many folk haven't moved for 15, 20 or even 30 years. And things are VERY different.

For example, the days of phoning an estate agent one day and your property going on to the market the next have gone - at least while the rules on Home Information Packs stay the same (a pack has to be available before your property can be marketed).

Isn't it crazy that in these fast-moving days when we're used to getting what we want by making a quick phone call or with a simple click of a mouse we can't put our homes up sale when we want to.

Is this progress?