Selling your property can be a stressful task, and it’s the basic requirement of any sales agent to make sure the process runs as quickly and smoothly as possible.
However, at NGU Homesales & Lettings it is our core goal to get as much money as we can for your property. It’s our job to present it correctly with expert advice and marketing, generate as much interest as possible, and negotiate hard on your behalf to get the best price.
What’s a once-in-a-lifetime way to make £10,000 tax-free?
It’s from selling your home for more than you expected, and that’s why you need an agent whose sole focus is to do so.
1. Choose an Estate Agent
Choosing an agent is a difficult decision since all agents will present you with a polished proposal to sell your home.
You need to make sure the agent you choose has a marketing plan to sell your home which is more than taking some nice photographs and advertising on Rightmove. They must also be experienced, and knowledgeable of the local area.
Your agent should look to launch your property with maximum exposure - by sending the details to their database and advertising on all the major portals. This should ensure within the first week you generate enough interest to have a block viewing, create competition and make sure that you get the best price.
It's the job of an estate agent to sell your property for the best price they can, not just to sell it to the first person who makes an offer – choosing your agent is vital!
2. Get a Valuation
Getting the valuation right is key to making sure you get the highest price in the shortest time.
It’s tempting to go for an agent who overprices your property but be wary; this can lead to it staying on the market for a long time which often means you will receive less.
Under-pricing for a quick sale is also common and of course, something that you want to avoid.
The modern way to value a property is to price it competitively to generate as much interest as you can, then use that interest to generate the highest price possible. There’s no better feeling than receiving several offers and negotiating with them to get more than you expected.
For an instant valuation on your property, click here.
3. Prepare your Property for Sale
Our top tips for making your property buyer-friendly;
- Declutter and tidy up: This simple step will help to show your property at its best and make it more appealing to potential buyers. Remember, you’re not showing off your home, you’re showing a buyer their new home! Buyers want to be able to imagine themselves living there.
- Keep pets in a safe place: Not everyone will love your furry companions as much as you do so to keep the buyers focused on your home it's important pets are kept out of the way for viewings where possible.
- Temperature control: If you’re selling in the winter, you want your home to feel warm and cosy, and if in the summer, your home should be cool and airy so get those windows open.
- Freshly baked bread: The no.1 way to sell a house? The stats confirm it's the smell of freshly baked bread!! We’re not expecting you to make a loaf for every viewing, but be mindful of your property's scent; this stat shows just how important smell is to a sale. So, take some honest feedback and get your home smelling clean and fresh.
- Get your documents up to date: this mainly applies to your EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) which is required to be in date by the time of sale.
4. Block viewings – A Modern Way of Selling
We believe block viewings are the best way to get a sale secured at the highest possible price for you.
Not only does it mean you only have to clean your house once (it’s the biggest headache making your house a showroom every weekend), but it also saves time by getting all viewers at the property on the same day thus increasing urgency.
By creating competition, it means that those interested will come to the decision to offer much faster and could help you in getting multiple offers at the same time. This is a very desirable position to be in when it comes to negotiating and choosing a buyer that's best for you.
5. Dealing with Offers
If you have priced your property correctly and carried out a block viewing, you will likely receive multiple offers. In this case, we would ask each potential buyer to put forward their best and final offer; because they don't know what the others have offered, you are likely to receive at least one offer way above the rest.
You will also likely receive offers about 5-10% below the asking price- don't be disheartened if that happens, it's very common, and that's where we come in.
Our job is to negotiate the offers and to get you the best price possible.
6. Appoint a Solicitor or Conveyancer
This is one of your most important choices throughout the process. Your solicitor or conveyancer will take you from getting the offer accepted right through to you handing over the keys. They deal with all the legalities and guide you through every step of the way.
At NGU Homesales & Lettings we work closely with recommended solicitors who we choose to work with ourselves when selling a property. Selling a house can be extremely stressful, especially when using a solicitor whose communication is poor. That’s why we recommend using a solicitor you’ve used before or going with our recommendation.
The typical time frame to sell a property is between 12-16 weeks although this can vary depending on the seller/buyer's circumstances.
7. Before Handing over the Keys
The contracts have been signed and exchanged, now it's time to go pick up the keys to your new home and drop off the keys for your old one. Below we have included a quick checklist of some of the things you will need to make sure are done before the moving day:
- Arrange home insurance for your new property making sure to cover the moving day.
- Organise removal for all your items and transport them to your next home.
- Amend your address with your bank, the post office, and any financially linked companies to ensure all your post is forwarded to the new address and your billing address is correct.
- Inform the council to stop council tax at your old address.
- Take final meter readings and inform your energy supplier.