Latest News

*** All staff, can you please be in at 9:30am on Monday 6th February, ready for all offcies to open at 10:00 ****

Please make sure that you drive carefully.

Metropolis are delighted to announce their nomination for The Best Valuer/Surveyor Awards for 2012. We would really appreciate your support. Thank you xx

Please visit the following website:

http://www.myintroducer.com/awards_vote.asp?c=ADABETA31,   Your Vote Counts!

Metropolis surveyors, part of the Kings Group, had the privilege of attending the Openwork Conference held at the Birmingham International Conference Centre (ICC). Openwork is the 3^rd largest Mortgage Network in the United Kingdom. The annual conference was attended by over 2000 advisors and businesses.

Openwork is supported by all major lenders, investment, pension and protection providers. The Openwork conference was hosted by Lenny Henry with key note speakers James Caan and Daley Thompson.  

Metropolis Surveyors attended the conference to offer and discuss the services available to Mortgage Brokers and Advisors and their clients. This enables the team at Metropolis surveyors to engage directly with mortgage and financial advisors to effectively discuss the benefits of using Metropolis Surveyors to assist their clients with the buying process.     

Through out the course of the day, they discussed with the brokers how they need to treat their customers fairly by explaining the benefits of using metropolis surveyors to conduct Homebuyers and building surveys.

Metropolis surveyors pride theirselves on providing an excellent service and this in turn keeps the advisors and their clients informed throughout the process.

Overall they had excellent feedback from the conference and as a result, plan to schedule many more through out the course of the year all over the United Kingdom.

For more information on Metropolis products and services, or if you want to know more about the survey process, contact them on 0844 8800 968 or info@metropolis-surveyors.com, or visit our website at www.metropolis-surveyors.com

Kings Support Local Soccer Team!

Kings Group are delighted to announce our support of one of our local Football teams, Sawbridgeworth Town FC.

Formed in 1897, the Club not only play in the Essex Senior League, but have teams from the under 7’s through to more senior teams.

Their ground is at Crofters End, and has a respectable capacity of 4500! Their most significant highlight was making the preliminary rounds of the FA Cup in the 2004/5 season.

Speaking of the support, Thomas Paine, Partner at Kings commented, “ We are delighted to be involved with the Club, especially as we believe in supporting “grass roots” football, as it is important in the community, and we hope to have a long and established relationship with Sawbridgeworth Town.”

For more information visit www.sawbosoccer.co.uk

Kings Group LLP are delighted to announce the opening their new Sales and Lettings office at 38-40 Grand Parade, Green Lanes,  Haringey, which opens for business on Monday 5 September.

The new office takes the Groups total up to 12 offices serving North London, East London, Essex and Hertfordshire, making Kings one of the largest Independently owned Estate Agents in the region.

Speaking about the acquisition of the new office, Karl Knipe and Thomas Paine, the two owners of Kings said, “ This represents a significant milestone for us in opening what we expect to be our flagship office, and the closest one to London so far. The last 4 years have seen a really difficult trading environment for Estate Agents in particular, but it is proof that if you have the right business model, a loyal customer base, and staff that genuinely care, growth can be achieved.”

“We are excited about Haringey, not only because this will be our first foray into more of a London Market, but because this is a vibrant, busy area, with a real sense of Community Spirit, and represents a great opportunity for us to bring our experience and brand to a new area. It is particularly exciting as this year marks the 20^th Anniversary since we started Kings, which back then, was also a pretty gloomy economic landscape, but it is through the hard work of our staff, and dedication to our customers that we have got to this point!” said the Partners.

For further details about the office or if you are thinking of buying or selling, letting or renting contact either Roydon Weekes for Sales, or Calia Ezer – Christie for lettings on 0208 802 5800. Or alternatively e mail at roydon.weekes@kings-group.net or calia-ezer.christie@kings-group.net

However, please feel free to call in and meet our staff! Our office hours are Monday to Friday 9am to 7pm and Saturday 9am to 6pm. We will look forward to seeing you!

But more importantly, watch out for more acquisition news, as Kings have not stopped yet!

Kings are delighted to announce the acquisition of a new site in Hackney, East London. The office in Mare Street is close to Hackney Station and the Famous Hackney Empire, and central to this bustling and vibrant area of London.

The 2 Partners of Kings, Karl Knipe and Thomas Paine, were delighted to speak of their most recent acquisition, " This represents a fantastic opportunity in an absolute prime location for Kings to move more into London, and will be an excellent link up to our already established network of offices."

Hackney has seen significant regeneration over recent months and years, and with the office on the edge of the Olympic development, this will be central to increased activity and interest over coming months.

The 2 Partners went on to add, "This is a difficult market we are still in, but our expertise and commitment to growth and expansion meant this felt it was the right time to do it. This is out 20th year in business and yet another step forwards for us. We open Haringey on 5 September, and this will not be out last acquisition this year!"

Watch out for more exciting news on Kings expansion plans over the coming weeks. There will be more!

For further details, please contact chris.bramham@kings-group.net

Back in January we heard the sad story about Brandon Foster, who had his brand new BMX stolen by callous thieves in Turnford.

We saw the story in the Cheshunt Mercury and were outraged that someone could carry out such a malicious act. We know that this goes on every day of the week, but felt inclined to do something positive, especially when we heard how Brandon suffered from behavioural problems, and the bike was his release to some of his agression.

We contacted his mum Sally, via the Mercury, and agreed to help try and replace the bike, and met with her in Cheshunt soon after. We met at Stanley Bridge Cycles in Cheshunt, and Brandon picked out a new bike, and took it away, which was paid for from our Kings in the Community Charity.

The staff a Stanley Bridge cycles were fantastic and really helped us and Brandon get the best possible replacement for him!

Chris Bramham, director of Kings Group said, "This was a story that touched us, and one of the main reasons why we set up the Charity, to give something back locally. We cant help everyone but when we heard how Sally had worked hard to pay for the bike, only to have it stolen, we had to act! The guys at Stanley Bridge cycles were great, and we couldnt have done this without their assistance, and we would really like to thank them, and also Gemma at the Mercury for taking the time to report on the original story and follow this up."

" This is a small gesture but hopefully one that will see the right person is not disadvantaged by callous thieves!" said Mr Bramham.

Innovation and market leading ideas have always been the Kings Group ethos. “You must be mad “ or “ I’d run a mile “ is what most agents would say at the prospect of allowing clients to comment in a public forum about the service or perceived service they have received from their estate agent.

Kings Group however have the confidence to take this very public and what some would consider, risky venture and have begun rolling this out firstly in their Enfield Town and Church Langley offices with the others to follow over the next few weeks. In doing so they are once again leading the industry and clearing away the “smoke and mirrors” that a hand full of agents have created and championing the industry itself .

Karl Knipe one of the founding partners of Kings Group said “We’ve taken the step to put ourselves on to Agent tracker. The new website for the public to comment constructively, be it good or bad, about their agent and the service they’re receiving .The feed back, praise or cutting will help Kings formulate what is required in 2011and beyond to satisfy our clients needs and in doing so keep the pressure on the agents who have and still continue to offer both a poor service and poor value for money. I’m sure, it won’t all be how great we were, in dealing with our client’s sales and there’s bound to be days when we think why we did this, but it shows Kings Group’s commitment to this very public forum.

It’s my view that this level of clarity and openness will become the new standard, that all agents will come to be judged by over the next few years. We feel that Agent Tracker like Kings Group are pioneering these new high level of customer service standards in the market place and we at Kings Group believe that once the public familiarises themselves with concept of Agent Tracker, quite quickly they’ll insist their agent of choice gives them that voice in the new cyber world of Facebook and Twitter that we live in and Agent tracker will be one of the first ports of calls before instructing an agent to sell their property.

Kings Group is proud to be in at the very beginning of this new age .Visit www.agent-tracker.co.uk and revue your local Kings Group office today. The question is, can you find independent reviews of other agents there and if not why not??

Is it worth risking your largest financial asset any where else?

Kings are delighted to announce the opening of their 3rd Franchised office in as many years. The new office based in South Woodford and close to the station, naturally complements the already established nearby offices in Chingford and Walthamstow.

Set up to do Sales and Lettings, this will see Kings make their mark on this vibrant and popular suburb, and the experienced staff are ready to offer Kings customary exemplary service to the community.

Steven Celimon, Franchisee and Owner of both the new office and Kings in Chingford, is delighted after many months of planning and preparation, he can finally open the doors!

"This is a great move for me as a Franchisee and someone who has worked with Kings for so many years, to tap into a new area, but one that offers such potential to me as a new business. Some people may think I am mad opening a new estate agency office in the current market, but fortune favours the brave!"

Karl Knipe, partner at Kings says, "This is a real testimony to the determination we have as a business and with our Franchisees, to make sure we continue to grow, whatever the economic conditions. We set up Kings in a recession in 1991, and are confident in our own destiny to make sure this and all our offices and businesses are succesful. Steve has our full backing, but he has laready established himself as leading Estate Agent in the short time he has been open in Chingford, and we have no doubt he can replicate that success in Woodford."

For more details about the new office either call or visit us at 97 George Lane,, South Woodford,, London, E18 1AN
Tel: 0208-530-2323 • Fax: 0208 318 0996

Kings Group have joined in with The Home Move Box, the latest initiative to buyers and tenants, to provide them with a welcome gift on moving in.

The idea is very simple, once Kings have confirmed the date the buyer or tenant move in, the box is delivered, completely free of charge to them.

It contains the basic groceries such as tea, milk, coffee, toilet rolls etc, and the little things that are often in the last box you can find when you really need to have a cup of tea!

Other partners included in the scheme are Virgin Media, who enclose a special offer in the pack, and British Gas PLC, who offer a free boiler check. In addition one of the leading publishers offers a way of ordering your daily newspaper at a special price.

Speaking about The Home Move Box, Karl Knipe partner at Kings Group says, “We chose to partner with the Home Move Box because it is such a simple idea, as these things often are, but it is a great concept. So many times we hear people talk about how they wish they had thought to have some basics available on moving day. All we do is tell them the moving day, and they do the rest”

“Moving is such a stressful time for everyone and every little helps, especially a cup of tea when you need one most!” Says Karl.

Pictured is Mrs Linda Pailing who recently moved into Church Langley with Ben Coss, Branch Manager.

“What a great idea, and it arrived on moving day as promised” says Linda.

For more details, please contact any Kings Group lettings or sales office, or visit www.kings-group.net

Well it does happen, as Kings know well, in the last 4 months we have had 3 Zurich claims all for Kings clients under the age of 40, married with children. Two died and one suffered a critical illness. The claims that were paid out, have given some peace of mind that the family they left behind will not suffer financially.

Chancellor Alistair Darling has today announced a welcome shot in the arm for the Housing Market, by raising the 0% Stamp Duty rate on property transactions to £250000. This has replaced the previous band of £125000, and is a welcome relief to many trying to get on the property ladder.

The change in mortgage lending over the past 2 years has meant First Time Buyers have had to find bigger deposits as lending has tightened, so this is a massive help to them in obtaining the total funds they need.

Speaking after the Budget, Roydon Weekes, Estate Agency Operations Manager for Kings said, " We have waited for this news for sometime, and many people in the industry have been lobbying the Government for months to assist the Housing Market, and in particular the First Time Buyers, and this is a real boost to them being able to get on the property ladder!"

If you are interested in speaking to one of our property professionals about how this can help you, please visit our offices or call one of the team.

Kings Group are delighted to announce that we have achieved 3RD place in the Best Mortgage Broker Category, at the Mortgage Strategy Awards in London on 24 February.

The prestiguous awards ceremony at the Grosvenor House Hotel in Park Lane, is held annually by the leading industry magazine, Mortgage Strategy. Nominations for each of the categories are made nationally, with a shortlist being judged by a panel of key individuals from the Mortgage Industry, including heads of all the main UK lenders.

This is a fantastic achievement for Kings as this is a national award, and proves that even the smaller firms can raise the bar, and perception of what we can deliver as a business. We would hope to be No 1 next year!

If the industry hadnt heard much about Kings before, they certainly have now!

In addition to the great news about our placing at the Mortgage Strategy Awards, the evening went on to introduce The M Factor, the Mortgage Industry's own version of the talent show. The 4 finalists were chosen from the many, many entries that were sent in, and were asked to perform in front of the 700 strong audience - live!

Our very own showbiz legend, Chris Bramham, performed a lively and slightly comedic tribute to the famous Barry Manilow song, Copacabana! With the help of Lola, also known as Maria Harris, head of Lloyds Banking Groups Corporate accounts team, the crowd went wild with excitement as a taste of Las Vegas was brought to Central London!

Behind the lighthearted attempt at raising Chris's flagging singing career was a serious message in that he was sponsored to appear to raise money for Great Ormond Street and the Strafish Appeal at KCH, for Childrens Cancer.

After the event, Chris said " Having done a bit of karaoke, and badly, the idea of singing in front of 700 of my peers, live and without lyric, seemed like a challenge, but i really wanted to do something for these young children who face so much suffering and battles just to stay alive, so that inspired me to do it. The level of support I received from people was fantastic, and I would like to say a big thanks to everyone who helped to raise over £1400 so far. I would also like to say a massive thanks to Maria, who was magnificent as my own Las Vegas Showgirl".

Kings Group are proud to announce the launch of their new Wealth Management Company, Thomas Oliver UK LLP.

At a time when finance, wealth and future provision are uppermost in almost everyone's mind, the need for quality, professional and face to face advice has never been more critical. Thomas Oliver is a specialist Wealth Management business, specifically created to provide professional advice on all aspects of finance and wealth for clients.The Financial Advisers at Thomas Oliver are on hand and equipped with knowledge of Pensions, Investments, Savings, Protection, and Wills.

The question you may ask is "I am not wealthy, why do I need a Financial Adviser to help me?

The simple answer is that we do not only look after high net worth individuals, but anyone can speak, without obligation or cost, to one of our advisers.

For instance, you may have a pension that you have been paying in to for many years. Is that Pension really doing the best for you and your future provision? We can look at your pension arrangements, and help you to understand what are the best options for you. Do you know what the State Pension will pay you when you retire, if you don't have a pension? We can tell you, and you may be surprised how little that may be!

Did you know that 50% of the UK Population don't have Life Insurance! Yet 23% of the Population have Pet Insurance! On average £11.50 per month can get your cat covered for up to £2500, but £11 per month could get your Income protected up to £1000 per month if you lose your job!

What happens if you get ill? 1 in 4 adults will contract a critical illness of some type, including Cancer at some stage in their lives, and whilst mortality rates are falling and treatment is improving, the fact remains that treatment can be debilitating and long, and you may not be able to work! What happens to your ability to support your home and family, if you are unwell and you are not protected with Critical Illness cover?

Would you rather lose your home - or lose your Mortgage, if you are taken ill?

Do you have a Will? If you don't, do you know what happens to your estate if you die? Many people believe that their estate passes to their immediate family, but Laws of Intestacy apply, and this may apply if there is no Will. At Thomas Oliver we deal with specialist Will Writers who know how to protect your estate, and make sure it goes where you want!

Remember, we offer our advice free and without obligation, you have nothing to lose!

If you want advice on any of our services, please call us on 01707 872000, and speak to one of our Advisers, or e mail us at callme@thomasoliver.co.uk

Kings Group recently held their first Landlord's Seminar at the De Vere Theobalds Park in Cheshunt, on Thursday 24 September.

The event was open to all Landlords, whether they have one property or several, and was an opportunity to listen to various speakers associated with the Lettings Industry, as well as meet the Kings senior management and lettings staff. Also there were the Financial Advisers on hand from Thomas Oliver Wealth Management, as well as Metropolis Surveyors, to answer any questions that Landlords may have in relation to the market, legislation, and finance.

Key note speakers included:-

Ian Potter - ARLA, David Smith Smith - Paine Smith, Homelet, Kevin Baker - Inventory Clerk, and the newly formed Lloyds Banking Group.

Landlords were given an insight to the changes in regulation, the impact of the "credit crunch", as well as ways how they can make their investment work better for them, and avoid some of the pitfalls that many Landlords can fall into.

The event was well attended, and was followed by an opportunity for the guests to meet the speakers and ask questions, as well as talk to the different staff from the Kings Group businesses.

We would like to take this opportunity to thank all our guests for attending, and to our speakers, some of who travelled a great distance to be there.

This event is planned to happen on an annual basis, and future seminars planned are a Wealth Management and Financial Services Seminar for guests in 2010.

For any advice on any aspect of our services, please call us on 01707 872000, or e mail us at helpineedadvice@kings-group.net

The culmination of 2 1/2 years of fund raising for the Joseph Clarke School for the Visually Impaired, saw the School take delivery of their fantastic new mini bus this week.

The striking red minibus will be seen around the local area in weeks to come as the School takes the children and their message out into the wider community.

The official handover is next week where there will be an official press launch, but on Sunday 28 June there will be a Charity Cricket Match in Buckhurst Hill to help raise additional funds for the school.

A couple of celebrities will be playing in the school team, notably Barry Hearn, and ex Durham and England Cricket international, Simon Brown. Everyone is welcome and there will be a raffle, auction, and a great afternoon should be had by all. Please see the link below if you are unable to attend, but would like to support, www.justgiving.com/buckhursthillcharitycricket

The School, Staff, Parents, and most of all the children are delighted with this donation, and Kings Group would like to say a big thankyou to all who have played their part in making this happen, from those who attended some of our events, the ones that bought wristbands, and those that went that extra mile to do something worthwhile. We couldnt have done it without you!

We would also like to thank Openwork and their charity, Kids to Care 4, whose financial support got us that extra disctance, and of course, thanks to Gordon at Signs and Designs for making it look striking!

In the current economic climate, this is a great feelgood story, and we are proud that despite the rotten press we receive as an industry, this is positive proof that we are not all bad guys!

• Kings pleased to announce the acquisition of their new Haringey Office!
• IT Support Assistant Position Availible
• Letter from The Joseph Clarke School Trust.
• Property Slump makes this a Great Time to Rent!!!
• Landlords must have proof to challenge Tenancy Deposit disputes
• KINGS MAKE IT A GREAT EIGHT
• This is not just a Sale, this is a Kings Sale!
• Kings Group - The True Financial Services Professionals!
• Tenants Lose Deposit Protection
• Let there be Light!!
• The Rightmove House Price Index - April 2009
• THIS IS NOT JUST A SALE A THIS IS A KINGS SALE!
• Kings Leading The Way In The Property Price Reduction Arena
• The Credit Crunch - How does this affect me?
• CREDIT CRUNCH - WHY YOU SHOULD CALL A PROFESSIONAL
• KINGS OPEN 2 NEW OFFICES IN CHINGFORD AND HERTFORD