Property buyers advised to research the market

Careful research is the key to picking up a property bargain, a market expert has advised.

Conditions in the residential property market currently favour buyers, as interest rates have plummeted to a record low and according to figures compiled by Halifax, house prices have fallen by 17.7 per cent in the past 12 months.

However, buyers still need to do some work in order to secure the best possible deal.

Mike Bickerton of property adviser DTZ Residential explained that spending time researching the local market before making an offer is a crucial step towards securing a good price.

He recommended searching online for information about the prices houses in the area buyers are looking actually sold for.

"By this means, it is a reasonably straightforward process to establish the likely value of a property compared to the seller's expectation and make an offer accordingly," said Mr Bickerton.

The Land Registry website is one of the best places to find sale price information, he added.