Who is Carl Hemming?
Ginger’s founder Carl Hemming brings 20 years of property market expertise to the West Midlands having forged a successful career buying and selling properties nationwide.

“I joined our family business 20 years ago and quickly discovered a real passion for property”, says Carl.

“In all those years I’ve seen it all when it comes to buying and selling properties, dealt with many Estate Agents and seen the many pitfalls to be had when buying and selling properties.”

It was Carl’s experiences, a combination of frustrations about the industry, passion for property and a great deal of encouragement from customers that inspired Carl’s vision for Ginger, a high-touch, luxury consultancy-style service tailored to the needs of today’s busy lifestyle.

Carl’s Story
After joining the family business 20 years ago, buying and selling properties throughout the UK, Carl soon discovered he had a passion for property.

The idea of working closely with home-owners and assuming responsibility for their needs was not only enjoyable for Carl, but fundamental to achieving success on a consistent basis.

“I desperately wanted to make every home-moving journey as smooth, timely and hassle-free as possible”, explains Carl;

“Building relationships, understanding personal circumstances and the lifestyle reasons for moving is something that really makes a difference in this industry.  I’ve seen it all in my 20 years buying and selling homes nationwide, good and bad and I wanted to  bring a genuinely fresh approach to the market place that allows me to share the benefit of my experience with others.”

So how did Carl become the property expert he is today?
“The two big things for me in those early days was that buying properties for resale with your own money really focuses the mind and that delays are bad news.  

That strong emotional investment was all the motivation I needed to develop a workman-like habit, to work quickly to high standards in order to get the most from every investment.”

“Then realising the dangers delays can have on your finances I very quickly found myself becoming a project manager, managing refurbishment works, landscaping, home-maintenance and tidy-up projects.  What I learned over the course of time is that you have to get all these areas 100% right, including managing everybody involved, to avoid losses and maximize investments.”

“Another big lesson for me on my journey was developing the art of finding the right buyer and I eventually realised there is a lot  more to this than meets the eye.  It’s an area where the unwary can fall with absurd regularity, but what happened is I learned there are many things you can do to mitigate the chances of things going wrong.  For example, whilst it’s easy to go with the first offer, or highest offer, the truth is your first, or highest offer, isn’t always the best one.  I soon discovered the immense worth of taking my time to understand and validate a potential buyer’s situation from the outset.”

“Key elements to this included checking deposits and mortgage approvals were in place and that reputable local solicitors were involved.  Informed decisions about potential buyers were impossible without these questions being answered and corner-cutting in these areas would almost inevitably spell disaster.”

“The fact my money was on the line, every time, made it important for me, as a seller, to fully manage the whole sales process, ensuring agents were on top of their game, solicitors were performing on time and that buyers were playing their part too.  I would never leave the sales process alone.  In fact, managing the sales process was 60% of my job and I found this gave me the best view of emerging issues and warning signs, giving me the flexibility to fix things before they became a real problem.”

“I bring all the benefits of all this experience and have grafted these into the ‘Ginger Way’, to help you make well-informed decisions over which offers to accept.

A life in Balsall Common
Carl moved to Balsall Common in the West Midlands in 2008 and quickly involved himself in community life.  In addition to a three-year stint as Chairman of local dramatics group Centre Stage, he is well-known as the face and voice of a number of community events. These include the Balsall Common Lions Charity Bonfire and Balsall Common Festival, both of which attract thousands of visitors, plus Balsall’s Got the Voice, which runs through the summer each year.

Formula Ford
Carl is a recognisable figure in the world of motor sports thanks to his years as a Formula Ford driver has rubbed shoulders with some of the latest and greatest from F1 racing.  Carl is also a qualified driver coach.

Carl’s Mission
Carl’s mission is to revolutionise the way homes are bought and sold locally, bring a sense of style and fun to the market place, mixing traditional values with a modern approach.  Carl says:

“We want to transform the way things are done and educate our customers along the way.  We help buyers find dream homes and vendors find the right buyer for the right price in the shortest possible time.  It’s all about creating a high quality, stress-free journey, with a suite of services provide by Ginger and our carefully selected partners.”

Carl currently serves clients in Balsall Common, Kenilworth and Solihull, including areas such as Knowle, Dorridge, Berkswell, Meriden, Hampton in Arden and Bentley Heath.