You may be a homeowner who needs to move for work.
Perhaps your family is growing, and you need to find a more suitable property. Maybe you’re moving closer to relatives to help with care needs.
Sometimes, there are other family members involved. Sometimes, you’re dealing with it all on your own. Both situations come with challenges.
You may experience lots of different feelings at the same time as coping with the extra tasks you need to undertake.
We understand how it can feel. And that’s why we can assure you you’ll always receive a patient, polite, and professional service should you decide to sell your home with us.
We aim to help and guide you throughout the process to make the decisions that best suit you and your situation.
After reading this guide, you may find it helpful to have a no-obligation, no-pressure chat with us to talk through any questions you may have.
Getting started
Moving motivation
If you are considering selling your property, the first thing to look at is your motivation. Don’t underestimate what you’d be undertaking. Disruption of our routines can be stressful. You don’t want to put yourself, or your buyer, in a position where you might end up changing your mind.
Simple steps, like chatting with family and friends, can help shore up the decision. You may also like to write a list of pros and cons to ruminate on for a while. Finally, some people find a visual aid, like creating a vision board, can help clarify their ideas.
When you’re sure that a move is the right step, there are a few things you can do to make sure you give yourself the best possible experience.
Finances
Independent mortgage advisers are the first port of call.
With the help of your independent mortgage adviser, you’ll be able to estimate the amount of money you will have at the end of the property sale. They can also advise on your options if you’re looking to buy a new property.
If you’re buying another property, you may hear the term ‘port (or porting) your mortgage’. This sounds like you’re taking your current one with you. In fact, you’ll be paying off one mortgage and taking out a new one. There may be early repayment charges on your original mortgage to be aware of.
What is your home worth?
There are online tools that you can use to give you an approximate idea of the value of your home. Of course, it won’t be as accurate as one of our expert valuations, but it’s a decent starting point.
The technology collects property data to give you an estimate. But it can’t take into consideration your actual property, timescales, marketing strategy, or market forces.
Putting your property on the market
Putting your property on the market
Agent selection process
Recommendations from family and friends can be helpful. However, most people only use the services of an estate agent once every few years. This doesn’t give them a broad set of experiences from which to advise you. A lot can change in a short time. It’s better to do your research.
Invite three different agents to come over to value your property. When they give you their opinion on the achievable price, ensure they back that up with evidence.
Don’t be lured into a decision based solely on the highest valuation. It may be a vanity figure just to obtain your instruction. This can cost you unnecessary time and money, and even lose you the chance of securing your next home.
It can seem tempting to base your decision on the agent’s fee. However, is it realistic to expect the cheapest agent to deliver the best result? Choosing a cheap agent can turn out to be a very expensive decision. The best value for money agent is the one who is achieving the best prices in your area.
First impressions
An independent estate agent will often have buyers registered. They can tell these people about your home straightaway. This provides invaluable early feedback.
Together, you can tweak the presentation or marketing, or even the price. When the property goes online, it’s presented in the best possible light. These valuable conversations could result in early viewings and even an offer.
Finding a legal eagle
Your estate agent will likely recommend a solicitor. They deal with solicitors every day so can give you the best advice on who has the staff to handle the work and experience with your type of property.
There are a few forms to fill in, so getting them done quickly can help keep things ticking along later on.
Preparing your property
Your estate agent will be able to help you arrange an EPC (Energy Performance Certificate). This is a legal requirement for every home to be able to be sold.
Staging your home sounds like a big task. It just means ensuring everyone that visits will be able to appreciate it. For example, use cardboard boxes with freshly made bed linens to demonstrate how a double bed will fit in a spare room.
Most people don’t move home very often. It can be hard to imagine things in a new home as they would like them, so help them out.
Some examples of things to do prior to going on the market:
- Replace any blown lightbulbs
- Paint chipped skirting boards
- Fix peeling wallpaper
- Clean windows
- Pop a vase of fresh flowers out
- Keep pet and children’s items tidied away before photos/viewings
For some tailored suggestions for you and your property, feel free to get in touch for a no-obligation chat.
If the property seems clean and well-cared for, this helps potential buyers trust that more significant things have been taken care of, too. Your estate agent can help put you in touch with local trusted tradespeople if you need an extra pair of hands.
You want to ensure the appeal of the property is as broad as possible. Never assume you know who will buy it. In our careers, we’ve sold mansions to single people and flats to families.
Properties present better when they’re relatively sparsely decorated. Removing personal items, like photos and ornaments, can help viewers imagine their things in the home.
So get packing. You could designate one evening a week for sorting and sifting. The sooner you start, the easier it is nearer the actual move date.
Your FAQs answered
How long will it take to sell my property?
If your agent has provided you with realistic valuation advice and has first-class advertising and marketing to an extensive database of buyers, you should be in a position to accept an offer of asking price or more in 4 weeks or less.
Currently, there are more buyers than there are properties for sale.
Once you have accepted an offer your solicitor is responsible for the progression of your sale to a successful completion. Therefore, it is important to choose your solicitor carefully.
Sales progression post Covid-19 is generally taking longer than average. We can advise you on which solicitors are achieving the quickest completions of between 8-10 weeks. But it can be much longer, and the longer it takes, the more risk the sale has to fall through.
How much will I pay my estate agent?
Fees vary considerably and most agents are willing to negotiate a fair price for you and themselves. But remember if it sounds too good to be true it usually is, and the cheapest agents are usually the most expensive because they don’t achieve the best prices.
What paperwork do I need?
You’ll need your ID documents, first and foremost. Your title deeds are likely to be electronic these days.
If you have a leasehold property, you’ll need a copy of your lease. In this circumstance, or if you own a share of the freehold, you’ll need to request a management pack. Asking for this as soon as you’ve thought about selling is a top tip. Getting hold of these can delay whole chains, so it’s well worth doing early on.
Your solicitor, or conveyancer, will provide you with the property information form and the fittings & contents form. Get these filled out early on as well. That way, if there are any areas you need to research, you’ve got plenty of time and don’t end up causing delays later on.
The EPC is another important document, as we’ve already mentioned. Once the energy assessor has visited, the EPC gets uploaded to epcregister.com, so you don’t need a paper copy.
You might need warranty documents if your property is less than ten years old. You may also have to get indemnity insurance. This is often required for something called ‘chancel repair liability’ and costs about £10. Your solicitor will advise on this, however.
How can I trust your valuation? Are there any circumstances I pay a fee if you do not negotiate a sale?Why should I choose you?
There are other factors to consider when choosing an agent and we consider these the 3 best questions to ask.
Why we can help you
Experience
We’ve been helping the people of Wigan buy and sell their property for the past 38 years.
Results
We achieve great results through expert marketing, ensuring your property is presented in the best possible light to attract the right buyers and achieve premium prices.
Always Looking Ahead
We have invested heavily in virtual viewings, video tours, and a raft of other new technologies.
You Focused
We are focused on you. That means getting you the results you are looking for. And we don’t just talk the talk, we walk the walk. We will be with you every step of the way to advise, support, and celebrate with you.
We’ve built our reputation on the quality of our relationships rather than the number of transactions. This has led to most of our business coming from word of mouth.
Reviews
Check out our 5 Star Google and Facebook reviews and we would be happy to put you in touch with some of our past clients so you can hear their experiences with us.
Thanks for taking the time to read our guide. If you want to chat about anything contained in this guide or have any questions, please don’t hesitate to call us on 01942 233999.
