Thinking of selling soon?
With an average homeowner banking £100,000 tax-free profit when they sell, should you sell your home yourself?
Most sellers use one of 50,000 estate agents in the UK. With 1 in 3 sales collapsing, it isn’t unsurprising to learn that half of homeowners switch estate agents.
With life, children and work commitments, should you sell your house yourself?
Table of Contents
What are the Advantages of Selling Your Home Yourself?
Many sellers choose to sell their homes without the help of an estate agent. There are several advantages to this, but the most significant one is the amount of money you can save. The average estate agent fees in the UK are 1.5% of the value of the home.
For example, if you have a £250,000 home, you would expect to pay £3,750 of your profits to the estate agent. Even the most affordable estate agents can be costly, especially in cities such as London, where the fees of the top ten estate agents are even higher.
Besides saving money, there are other benefits to selling your property yourself. You are the best person to represent your home as you know it better than anyone else.
It gives you complete control over the sale, from marketing to negotiations. An estate agent may be responsible for selling multiple homes at the same time, whereas you are solely focused on selling yours.
If you don’t have time or energy to sell your own home, then you can incentivise your estate agent to sell.
What Are the Disadvantages of Selling a House Privately?
Whilst there are financial benefits to selling your home yourself, these are some of the obvious disadvantages:
- It can be tricky to price your home correctly. Estate agents will have a comprehensive understanding of the local property market and can help you set the right price from the get-go, which is important for a successful sale.
- Lack of availability: when you’re responsible for selling your home yourself, it can be a stressful experience, particularly if you’re also working.
- Looking to buy another property while selling yours can be extremely stressful as you will be worried about moving home.
- The time it takes to sell can cost you thousands of pounds in mortgage repayments, insurance, council tax and utility bills. This can be really painful if this is a second home or you have an inherited house to sell.
How Do I Sell Unregistered Property?
Despite the legal requirement for land registration in England and Wales for over three decades, a significant portion of land is still unregistered.
These unregistered properties are those which have not been transferred since the 1980s or which have recently been divided from larger ones.
If you are selling an unregistered property, you will need to go through some extra steps and pay more fees for the first registration with HM Land Registry. With the transfer deed, the seller must submit the FR1 form in order to begin the registration process and acquire a registered title for the property.
Registering an unregistered property provides many advantages to the owner, such as a secure title, an increase in property value, and more straightforward future property sale.
How To Sell Your House On Your Own?
If you’re trying to learn how to sell a house on your own, there are a few things you need to do. You have to get your home ready.
Fix any neglected repairs
Fixing the leaky tap in the sink, re-silicon around the bath, scrubbing up condensation stains and repainting can make a property look ready to move in.
Jetwash the driveway and cut any overgrown grass.
Spring Clean & De-Clutter
There are a few easy ways to make your home more attractive to buyers, which can help you to sell it faster. Start by decluttering your home. Clutter not only makes the home look dirty but also makes it look smaller – both of which can discourage potential buyers.
Give the house a good spring clean, get the carpets cleaned, and make a list of items that you can sell on eBay or donate to your local charities.
If you have too many items, get rid of them or pack them away in a self-storage until your sale is complete. This will help to make the home feel more spacious.
Do a deep cleaning of your home. Even if you usually let things go, get serious about cleaning your house before you put it on the market, and stay serious about it while it’s on the market. Cleaner homes are more attractive to buyers, so consider hiring a professional to clean your home.
Staging Your Home
Remember, you aren’t just selling your home. You are selling a life-style so:
- Arrange the furniture in a way that makes the property look inviting and spacious.
- Add some personal touches to make the property feel warm and inviting.
- Use fresh flowers or plants to add a touch of colour and life to the property.
- Make the property smell fresh by using a scented candle or air freshener.
Price to entice
If you set a high asking price, your house could be sitting on the market for much longer. Estate agents tend to over-value properties to win the instruction.
On the other hand, if you set the price too low, such as a guide price at auction, then you could lose out on thousands of pounds.
The best way to start is by looking at how much similar homes in your area have sold for. You can use sites like Zoopla and Rightmove.
It could take a few months for Land Registry statistics to update, but if you keep an eye on them, you should be able to get an idea of how prices are in your area.
You can also use the UK House Price Index to look at trends in your area and nationwide.
You can also use online valuation tools from Rightmove and Zoopla to understand what they think your home is worth. This data should give you an idea of how to price your home.
Writing a Honest Description of your Home
You’ll need a description of your home, but keep it brief. Think of all the reasons you fell in love with your home when you bought it.
Highlight the main features, and don’t write too much. You will also need professional-level photos.
Make sure they show off the best features of your property, like if you have a rural property with lots of land or a modern property with built-in features. You should also include a floor plan if you can.
Advertise your home online
You need to advertise your home online. There are several websites in the UK where you can list for free. These include Gumtree and The House Shop.
You should consider listing your home on Facebook Marketplace and the local groups on Facebook in your area. If your house is on a busy road, it may be worth erecting a for-sale board. You can buy these off eBay.
Share the listing on your feed and ask your friends & family to share on theirs, too. Word-of-mouth marketing is very powerful.
Viewings
When you have an interested party, be friendly towards their viewing request; however, you will need to qualify your potential buyers. Ask them if they have a home to sell and what their position is – for instance, have they got their deposit and a mortgage decision in principle?
Prior to any viewings, de-personalise your home. Remove any personal photographs or banners of a football that you support. Put away family photos and collections that are personal to you. This will help buyers imagine themselves in the space.
Have a friend or partner with you during viewings for safety.
When you have a buyer, you need to negotiate a price. Decide on your bottom line and don’t go below it. If you have to turn down an offer, do so carefully.
Don’t forget to leave the door open for a counteroffer. When you accept an offer, instruct your conveyancing solicitor to handle the legal paperwork. This will make things easier. Once you exchange contracts, your hard work is done and completion day is near.
Never accept the first offer
When you have a buyer, you need to negotiate a price. Decide on your bottom line, and don’t go below it. If you have to turn down an offer, do so carefully.
Don’t forget to leave the door open for a counteroffer. When you accept an offer, instruct your conveyancing solicitor to handle the legal paperwork. This will make things easier. Once you exchange contracts, your hard work is done, and completion day is near.
Alternative Ways To Sell Your Home
Another option to consider is auctioning your home. However, you’d have to set a really low reserve price and pay upfront fees. There’s no guarantee of selling.
It can take up to 6 months to agree a sale of your house and a further 3 months for conveyancing to complete. If you want to sell privately, you can turn to a cash-for-homes buyer.
Property Saviour are genuine cash home buyers that buy properties all over the UK with the intention of either selling them right away or renting them to tenants after renovating them.
A big advantage of working with a cash-for-homes buyer is that you don’t have to come up with a property marketing plan. All you have to do is contact the company; they come and evaluate your property and then make a cash offer.
We will buy homes in as-is condition, so even if your house needs repairs, you don’t have to do them.
Although you may get less money than you would on the open market, you don’t have to worry about estate agent fees, conveyancing fees, or repairs to your home. We’ll even pay £1,500 towards your legal fees too.
Ready to sell your home?
Are you looking to sell your house? We buy houses in any condition.
Get in touch if you are thinking of selling. Here’s why sellers love us:
Property Saviour Price Promise
- The price we’ll offer is the price that you will receive with no hidden deductions.
- Be careful with ‘cash buyers’ who require a valuation needed for a mortgage or bridging loan.
- These valuations or surveys result in delays and price reductions later on.
- We are cash buyers. There are no surveys.
- We always provide proof of funds with every formal offer issued.
We'll Pay £1,500 Towards Your Legal Fees
- No long exclusivity agreement to sign because we are the buyers.
- You are welcome to use your own solicitor.
- If you don’t have one, we can ask our solicitors for recommendations.
- We share our solicitor’s details and issue a Memorandum of Sale.
Sell With Certainty & Speed
- Our approach is transparent and ethical, which is why sellers trust us.
- 100% Discretion guaranteed.
- If you have another buyer, you can put us in a contracts race to see who completes first.
- Complete in 10 days or at a timescale that works for you. You are in control.
