I was looking back through a piece of marketing and found an old advert that I ran back in the early 1990’s when I was the Nailsea manager of much loved, “good old”, cj Hole. The title was “Who will sell your house in this area?” and underneath was my photograph and the words “I will”. Well, I found the photo that was used for the article! I was rather younger then than I am now with fewer wrinkles or grey hairs, that’s for sure!
I had already been selling property for over a decade when that photo was taken and we were in the middle of another very difficult time in the property market as many would know. It reminded me of something quite profound that a buyer said to me at that time that has stuck with me but now takes on a new meaning and I’d like to share it with you.
I was selling a very run down house at auction that needed complete renovation and updating but it had a fabulous garden…not particularly large but beautifully laid out, well stocked with lots of interest and different areas and the previous owners of the house had obviously cultivated this garden over decades and quite possibly generations. There was lots of interest (excuse the pun!) and all the builders were focused on the renovations that could take place. The property sold at way, way over any expected price and when I spoke to the successful bidder afterwards and commented that the price was higher than expected he replied… “I just wanted that garden Steve. I can change the house but no amount of money that I spend will create that garden again. That’s taken years of work and care and you just can’t buy that.” Well, of course, he HAD bought it, but you knew what he meant.
There’s a saying that “you can’t buy experience” but actually you can - MINE! And on a no sale: no charge basis! When it comes to steering a path through this very difficult property market, relevant experience really comes into its own. Since starting my career in 1982 at 19 (yep, that makes me 45 now!), estate agency is all I have ever done. I worked at Chappell & Matthews in Bristol throughout the 1980’s (the towns and villages to the south west centred on Nailsea were my “patch”) and since then I worked directly in Nailsea and Backwell at cj Hole since 1991. During that time I have seen many thousands of properties and helped literally thousands of people move home. I love doing what I do.
Times come and go. The property market moves in cycles. Now, by looking afresh at how things could be done, adapted, used the best of the modern whilst combining it with all that relevant experience, I really seem to have found a niche that buyers and sellers relate to.
So if you want to talk about property please ‘phone me, fax me, email me, checkout my website or simply stop me around town to have a chat. It’s taken 26 years worth of experience to get these greying hairs and I’m pleased to share them!
Stephen Pring
“Without doubt Stephen Pring is one of the most professional people that I have had the pleasure of dealing with in the eight house purchases over the last 20 years”