By Julian Whittle

Last updated at 12:18, Monday, 27 September 2010

An estate agent told a west Cumbrian family it would no longer sell their home unless they dropped the price – then sent them a bill for nearly £500.

Nick Elgey

Shaun and Katrina Ritchie, of Derwent Bank, in Seaton, Workington, are furious. They say they are being asked to pay for a service they have not had and are now threatening to take the case to the national watchdog.

The couple put their three-bedroomed semi on the market with the Cumberland Estate Agency for £155,000 in 2008.

They have since dropped the price to £145,000.

Earlier this month the Cumberland recommended they cut it again to between £135,000 and £139,950. When they refused, the firm said it would no longer market the property.

The estate agent then sent an invoice for £360 for preparation of a home information pack (HIP) plus a £117.50 administration fee.

Mr Ritchie, 41, a railwayman, said: “We always knew we had to pay for the HIP but only when the house was sold. They’re asking me to pay for a service I haven’t had.

“I can’t afford to drop the price to the level they want and I haven’t got the £477.50, not with two daughters and Christmas coming up.”

The Ritchies say they have recently spent £4,000 redecorating their home and buying new kitchen equipment.

And they say potential buyers still want to view, undermining the Cumberland’s argument that they must drop the price to generate interest.

Mr Ritchie intends to go to the Property Ombudsman if the Cumberland does not waive its fees.

He claims his contract backs him up. It says the £360 HIP charge is payable only when the property is sold, or if the vendor withdraws or fails to progress a sale. None of these has happened.

Nick Elgey, managing director of the Cumberland Estate Agency, has promised to investigate.

He said: “We are constantly reviewing stock. We have some that has been on the market for more than two years.

“We are trying to work with sellers to make sure they are in tune with the market place. We regularly review prices to see if there is a better chance of a sale and we have been parting company with some stock.

“People have the opportunity to go to other estate agents if they are not in agreement with what we believe is an appropriate price. The market is a buyers’ market and is extremely price sensitive.”

Official figures from the Land Registry show that house prices in Cumbria have fallen by 9.7 per cent since the market peaked in May 2008.

Mr Elgey says there has been an influx of properties onto the market since HIPs were abolished in May.

This, coupled, with uncertainty about government spending cuts, is also depressing the market.

He added: “We are in for a challenging autumn. People don’t know yet what the impact of the austerity measures and spending cuts is going to do them. That is having a numbing effect.

“What you can say is that any property will sell in any market – at the right price.”

First published at 11:33, Monday, 27 September 2010
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk