We have recently put our property on the market (at this exact moment in time, we haven’t yet sold it). We have never sold a property before and our current home was bought with my parents doing all of the clever work so this has been a learning curve. Even though it can seem daunting and at times stressful I have written an in depth and simple explanation of how you go about selling your house without help from mummy and daddy. Make sure you bookmark this page and come back to it when you are looking to move.
STEP 1 – HOW MUCH IS YOUR HOME WORTH?
•The first thing you need to do is work out how much your property is worth and what you are working with.
•Call at least three estate agents and request a valuation of your home.
•Estate agents don’t take any money from you upfront and work on a percentage of what they sell your property for. We have found that this can range from 0.5% to 2.5% and don’t forget this isn’t including the VAT they whack on top. You need to take this percentage into consideration before choosing your estate agents as you need to pay this money out of your own pocket. We really wanted to go with our local Foxtons as we liked the particular estate agent that worked there, but they don’t budge on their 2.5% (When they are your only estate agent. It’s an even higher percentage if you go on with multiple agents) and that was just too much money when every little penny counts. Some estate agents will negotiate their fees so you can ask. Be confident and say, this is how much I am willing to go with and see what they say, you can negotiate at this point.
• Another thing you can sometimes negotiate is the length of time you are tied in with an estate agent. From initially going on the market with our property to this moment of selling we were on with three estate agents.
•It is highly unlikely all of the estate agents say the exact same price/valuation of your property. We spoke to 5 estate agents and not one quoted the same price so be happy to shop around. DO NOT be swayed by the one that gives you the highest valuation. We were with our first estate agent and after being on the market less than two weeks with them they told us we needed to put our price down and it was on too high. Some estate agents will quote and woo you with a high valuation to try and hook you in.
STEP 2 – MORTGAGE ADVISOR
•Find a mortgage advisor that you are happy with. Going with word of (trustworthy) mouth is probably the best option. (Mine is absolutely amazing so private message me on Instagram @megantaylorlondon and I can share his details with you).
•If you are freelance you need to log onto HMRC and download your last three years’ SA302. This is basically the tax calculation to show how much you earned. While you are there I would also suggest downloading your TYO (Tax Year Overviews) for the last 3 years as well because you will need these later as well.
•You will also need a recent bill to prove you live where you do and a copy of the last three months of bank statements. If you have any loans such as a car you need to show how much you have left to pay. It is also helpful to scan in your passport for proof of ID and if you are marriage a copy of your marriage certificate as well.
•Lastly you also need to show how much you bought your house for and how much deposit is in it and if you have a repayment mortgage show how much you have paid off.
•We also provided our mortgage advisor with details of our mortgage, with how long we are tied in to it, incase of a cross over when moving.
•This whole process can be awfully timely and dull so we now have all of these documents stored away in a specific file on our computer, so even if we didn’t move or wanted to again in the next few year we would be prepared with most of the documents already.
•With all of this information (including the price that your chosen estate agent thinks they can sell your property for) your mortgage advisor can then get to work and see how much you can afford. With this information you can start provisionally hunting for your next home.
STEP 3 – HOME IMPROVEMENTS
•Now you know how much you can afford and you have chosen your estate agent. You will need to sign a contract with your estate agent saying that they are going to sell your house and how many weeks you are tied into being on solely with them (this tends to be between 12-15 weeks).
•If you have been in your property for more than 10 years you will need to get an EPC certificate which says how energy efficient your home is. This costs between £50-100. Your estate agent can provide someone or you can probably find someone cheaper on Google.
•Your estate agent will now need to book in their agents to come over in a group to learn all about your property and take photos of each room and the outside taken and have someone measure up each room.
•Ask your estate agent if there is anything they think you should improve quickly, maybe a lick of white paint? If not, book aside a good day to have a deep clean and declutter your home.
•When the agents come by for the tour and to photograph your home, if they are worth their buck they know how to make your room look presentable and may well take out loads of unnecessary bits of furniture which may clutter the image.
TOP TIPS
•Keep fresh flowers dotted around your house at all times. No dead ones and no wacky ones. Stick to pastels and whites or red roses and tulips.
•Do not be pushed around by an estate agent, they are working for you and you are going to pay them a small fortune for it.
•When “interviewing” for an estate agent think about whether you would like them if you were looking to buy.
•Keep home furnishings neutral. If your home isn’t a doer-upper then you should stick to white walls. When I see red and orange walls or avocado baths I am immediately thinking of the added cost I am going to have to put in as soon as I move in.
I hope these tips come in handy and help you if you are thinking of selling. I have learnt a lot along this long process of moving and have been taking notes along the way. I have created check lists, to do lists and want to put them into downloadable documents for you so they will be out very soon. Make sure you bookmark this page for later and share with your friends that are moving home. Let me know if you have any questions and I will answer them if I know them. Happy house hunting, don’t get too stressed…it’s all fun and games really.