The process of selling your house can be surprisingly time-consuming and emotionally challenging, especially if you’ve never done it before.
At times it may feel like an invasion of privacy because strangers will come into your home, open your cupboards and cabinets and generally poke around.
They will criticise your home which is probably more than four walls and a roof to you, and, to top it off, they will offer you less money than you think your home is worth.
The process will also take time, with no guarantee you’ll be able to sell your house fast when putting your house on the market.
Despite the negatives involved in the process of selling a house, there are a number of different paths to choose from when selling a property:
Estate agents are usually the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about the process of selling your house.
Estate agents will have experience in negotiating property sales and help you get more money than you potentially could on your own.
If any problems crop up during the process of selling your house – which they commonly do – the agent will be able to handle them for you.
Agents are also familiar with all the paperwork and pitfalls involved in the process of selling a house and can help make sure the process goes smoothly.
However, you must bear in mind that they charge a hefty commission – anything up to 3% plus of the sale price of your property.
As part of the process of selling your house, It is recommended that you invite at least 3 local estate agents to view your property and ‘interview’ them on how they will market your property:
In 2019, the average time to sell a house after starting the process was 4.2 months from the to the day of legal completion.
In a cold market, the average time to sell a house was 5.8 months. However, the house sale process can take longer if you’re part of a chain of buyers and sellers.
If you’re thinking about selling your property without an estate agent, learning the process to sell your house on your own is crucial.
You will need to prepare for all scenarios – good and bad!
Some people successfully sell their house on their own and save money not using an estate agent, but they need the skills to list their property at the right price, market their home to prospective buyers, negotiate the contract and then deal with any issues that arise during the mortgage application phases.
What you save on commission may result in a lower purchase price.
If you decide to sell your own home without an estate agent, remember to do your research first.
Look at recently sold properties in your area and properties currently on the market to determine an attractive selling price.
Keep in mind that most property prices have the estate agents commission factored in, so you may have to discount your price.
Make sure you set a reasonable sale price to attract interest, but it’s not too low that you sell yourself short. It’s also vital to factor in the time of year, as historically March is one of the best times to sell a home, and December is one of the worst.
You will be responsible for marketing your property, so you really need to get your home listed on a property portal like Rightmove or Zoopla to reach the widest number of buyers.
Also, make use of social media and its potential in the process of selling your home, as your personal Facebook or Instagram page could be crucial in finding the perfect person to sell your home to.
Unfortunately neither of these portals allow private sellers to list their properties directly. One way around this would be to use an online or hybrid estate agent who will list your property on one of these big portals for a fixed fee.
Some of them have a sliding scale of fees depending on how much involvement from them you require.
Part of this process will require you to photograph your home. Ensure that the pictures you take are crisp and clear and taken during the day when there is plenty of natural light.
You could consider hiring a professional photographer or adding a video/360 tour to enhance your listing.
With no experience and a complex, emotional transaction on your hands, it’s easy for first time sellers to make lots of mistakes.
However, with a little know-how you can avoid many of the pitfalls. Keep your emotions in check and stay focused on the business aspect and process of selling your house.
An important part of the process of selling your house is decluttering and cleaning your home.
Potential buyers need to be able to envisage their own belongings in a home – and that’s hard to do if all your family photos and favourite knick-knacks are filling every inch of the house.
To declutter your home sort everything into categories such as – store, sell, donate and rubbish.
Next, clean every room from floor to ceiling to make it feel like new.
Dust every surface, wipe down all the countertops and if the carpets are looking dirty, hire a carpet cleaner. Remember to replace broken light bulbs and clean the windows inside and out.
Adding a fresh coat of neutral paint to the walls and eliminating any smells will also make a good impression on potential buyers.
Spruce up your home’s curb appeal. The front of your house is the first thing buyers will see. Tidy up the front garden, pressure wash any tiles or paving and if your front door is looking tired, repaint it.
The aim is to ensure that the property looks like a clean, blank canvas that a potential buyer could put their own impression on, and that’s difficult to do with someone else’s clutter and dirt lying around.
Fix any major problems with your property as part of the process of selling your house.
Hiding them is not the solution, as most buyers will have a full building survey at the point of having their offer accepted, which will highlight these problems as well as others that you may not know about.
Ensure that you have a friend or relative to accompany you whilst you are conducting a viewing. Never leave prospective buyers unattended and make sure you hide your valuables during house viewings.
Ensure that you have instructed a solicitor in advance to handle the legal paperwork that is involved with selling a property.
All sellers in the UK need to have one of these during the process of selling their house.
Once you have accepted an offer on your property you will be responsible for drawing up a legal contract to transfer ownership. Remember an offer is not legally binding until contracts are exchanged.
If you’re still unsure about whether or not to go it alone, use an estate agent or sell your property through an auction house then there is another option to consider – a cash house buyer, like Halo House Buyers.
When you sell your property to a cash house buyer, it’s a no fuss, simple transaction. You don’t have to worry about preparing your house for sale, fixing any problems, clearing out the clutter and having numerous people viewing your home.
Here at Halo House Buyers, we allow you to sell your house fast with the minimum hassle or stress.
Why not take back control of the process of selling your house and sell your home to a reputable cash house buying company?
All it takes is one phone call and we will give you an immediate, guaranteed offer for your home. Offers will be up to 85% of the house value which is higher than many other cash house buying companies.
We will cover ALL your legal fees.
Once you accept our offer you will receive the proceeds from the sale into your bank account as quickly as 7 days later.
Remember you are in control of your house sale and are under no obligation to proceed with the sale if you change your mind, or at any cost to yourself.
Give Halo House Buyers a call or email today and get an offer on your property at no cost. If you decide to accept the offer, you also get to pick your move date!
Get your free cash offer today!