Selling Your Home In Ten Steps

Selling Your Home In Ten Steps

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There are more Croydon homes for sale than there are buyers to snap them up thats the current state of the housing market. If youre looking to sell between now and 2011, follow our 10 step guide to getting your home sold

1. Set Your Date To Sell

Timing is everything and there will be reasons why you get more viewers during spring and summer than you would during gloomy November. Take your agents advice on the best time to launch but the time-frame is generally between March and August.

2. Plan Your Selling Strategy

Create a fall-back position in case you are not getting viewings or offers. Will a new price help? Is there a problem with the presentation? Is it the agency? Will you be better off staying where you are? Try to get a plan in place six months prior to the property going on the market.

3. Get The Right Price

Speak to a least three agents and get some valuations on the property. Property valuations that are too high in what is essentailly a buyers market should be avoided as the price will put buyers off. Similarly, low valuations pose a problem as most buyers will offer less than the advertised price. Go for the median valuation that falls between the highest and lowest valuations that you receive.

4. Be Prudent When Choosing Your Agent

Despite the various cost savings in selling your own property, it can be become a logistical nightmare to conduct viewings, work and still have social life. It is far better to use an agent with knowledge of the local market, who comes with a good reputation and has sold homes similar to yours in the area recently. Always ask whether it will be advertised in regional, local papers and on internet property portals plus when they can come round to put the For Sale up?

5. Negotiate With The Agent

Get their quotes for their commission and the lock-in period. Most will want a percentage of the sales price. Try them down to1 per cent or below. Try to negotiate over the ''lock-in period/exclusity, i.e. the time in which you cannot switch agents. Most agents are willing to cut or even waive this period. The exclusivity period asks as an incentive to the agent to get the property sold within a certain time frame. If its not sold in this timed window, look for another agent.

6. Clean Like You Have Never Cleaned Before

Attract quality buyers (and more importantly offers), with an attractive home that looks like one they could live-in. start re-grouting the bathroom tiles, smarten up kitchen cupboards, de-scuff floors, paint skirting boards and clean carpets. Start de-cluttering the main living spaces, keep windowsills clear. Ditto,for mantle-pieces, dressers and fireplaces. This will require a little ruthlessness, but the short-term inconvenience will pay dividends in the long-term.

7. Scrub Her Up

Get the look that sells the best assets of the property. On the exterior get quotes from a professional painter, look into getting a new front door and paint the rooms in neutral colours to make your room appear bigger and more spacious.

8. Choosing the best buyer

The buyer who offers the highest price may not be the best person to sell to. Speak to the agent and get more information on the buyer financial circumstances. Are they in a chain? Is it a cash-purchase? If so, ask to see a mortgage in principle letter from their lender. Is it a first-time buyer? It may seem over-fussy but asking questions at this stage of the game can help prevent delays, deals falling through later down the line and gazundering.

9. Push & Push Again

Keep regualr communication with your agent and solicitor by giving them a call twice a week to gauge the progress of the contract exchange. Kept abreast of what surveyors reports is revealing and the keeness of the buyer.

10. Wait it out and extend

Its common for agents to tell you that there are loads of buyers interested in purchasing your property. If youre not hearing the pounding of footsteps of eager buyers, there is no shame in waiting a little longer before your sell. Consider taking the property off the market and explore rental income opportunities or try selling the property when the market picks. If you need more space, consider getting an extension as according to a Nationwide report the additional bedroom space can often increase a properties value by over 10%.

About the Author:
This article was written for Properties4Croydon by Jason Ojukwu, Principal at Crystal Words.



Article Originally Published On: http://www.articlesnatch.com


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