Sell

The first task is to find out what your home is worth.  Idealse can help you for a free valuation of your home.

You must remember that there is no guarantee your home will sell for the full asking price, so it’s important to consider the local market conditions along with your expectations.

You may find that you get differing market valuations so it’s important to remember that the highest price is not always the best to go with. If your property is ‘too expensive’ potential buyers are less likely to view and once a property has sat on the market for a long time the final sales price achieved is likely to be much lower. In comparison if you price your property keenly, you may receive interest from multiple buyers, this can result in the possibility of ‘sealed bids’, which can achieve in excess of an asking price.

So choosing the right price based on the current market conditions and bearing in mind your own situation and the reason for selling, is very important.

Idealse can show potential buyers around your home. However, many people prefer to do it themselves. You’ll be able to talk more enthusiastically about living there and answer specific questions your buyer might have (such as utility bills, and what the neighbours are like etc.) This is an added advantage and many of our home owners like to take charge in showing potential buyers around, whilst some are happy for Idealse to do the viewings.

Whichever is the option – but if you decide to do the viewings.  These are points you should consider –

• Always greet viewers with a smile and remain business-like but friendly
• Decide on the best rooms in your home and show them first, then revisit at the end
• Always open the door and let the viewer enter the room first
• Emphasise the positives as much as possible
• Try to give the viewer some time to wander around your home on their own

It’s usually a good sign if a viewer has lots of questions they’d like to ask. Here are some examples of questions you might be asked:

• Why are you selling?
• Have you already bought somewhere else?
• How quickly are you willing to move?
• Have you done any major work to the property?
• How much is the council tax?
• What are the average utility bills?
• Is there allocated parking?
• Is the garden private or shared?
• What are the neighbours like?
• How far is the nearest public transport?
• Where are the nearest shops?

By answering these questions both truthfully and accurately, you’ll help someone decide if this is the right property for them. The chances are, if they like what they see, they’ll arrange a second, third and even possibly fourth viewing. Remember, this is an expensive purchase, so one they want to ensure is right for them.

There is no way to know how much time or how many viewings it will take before you receive an offer, but it is wise to have a figure in mind, based on the realistic market conditions, that you would accept for the property.

Idealse are legally bound to tell you about and confirm in writing every offer that is made, regardless of its amount. While Idealse will be happy to advise you on how good an offer is, it is your decision on whether to accept it or not.

When a potential buyer makes an offer, Idealse will take on the role of managing the negotiations and if needs be encouraging buyers to increase their offers to a price you are willing to accept. If several offers are received, Idealse can advise based on each buyers position which offer might be best for you. Remember once you are in receipt of an offer this may put you in a stronger position for any onward purchase, therefore it is worth considering what the offer allows you to achieve, even if it below the level you had originally anticipated. This is where Idealse  can help with negotiation and chain building.

Sooner or later, you should start receiving offers from potential buyers. You don’t have to accept the first one. It is worth discussing with Idealse whether you think more could be achieved by giving more time for more viewings and also considering the reason for selling. As soon as you accept an offer, Idealse can move on to the next stage of the sale, subject to survey and contract. There is no legal reason for you to take the property off the market at this point, but it is common for the buyer to request you do so. This potentially assures the buyer that you are not carrying out further viewings.

Conveyancing is the legal process that sees the transfer of a property from one person to another, and requires a solicitor or a licensed conveyancer.

Idealse can introduce your to solicitors and/or  conveyancers that are fully qualified and insured to handle your house sales. They do all the legal paperwork, Land Registry and council searches, draft the contract and handle the exchange of money. The primary difference is that conveyancers are specialist property lawyers.

You don’t have to go with the solicitor or conveyancer Idealse suggests, you can find a qualified solicitor to handle the sell on your behalf.

When you accept a buyer’s offer, they usually would begin the process of applying for their mortgage. One of the requirements of this will be for a formal valuation of the property by an independent surveyor and many buyers will also ask for either a RICS Home Buyers Report or Structural Survey at that same time.

A buyer’s survey would visit the house to carry out survey and report back to the buyer’s lender.  This survey report would determine the value of the property as seen by the surveyor in comparison with other properties in the area.

At some point in the sale process, the buyers solicitors would raise questions regarding the sale through your solicitors. Your solicitors would liaise with you and Idealse to respond to these questions. Questions include – if structural work was carried out on the property in the last 10 years. This could also include double glazing, chimney, boiler replacement, etc. These are part of the process. If the survey reveal damp or structural concern, both solicitors and yourself would address the concerns and move to exchange contract.

At this stage, you become legally committed to the sale of your property.  Your buyer also becomes legally liable and either of you could face legal action if you decide to back out of the deal.

There is usually a signed contract between the buyer and the seller and the buyer pays a non-refundable deposit via their conveyancer to your conveyancer of, in most cases, 10% of the purchase price.

This is the ‘Moving Day’ where all monies (from the lender, if applicableor from the buyer directly) is transferred to your solicitor.  Your solicitor would deduct his fees, redeem your outstanding mortgage (if applicable) and transfer the balance to you.

You will vacate the property and hand over all the keys to Idealse . This is the time we say to you ‘Congratulations your home is sold’.  Idealse gets on the phone to the new owner for them to collect the keys.