Selling Process
The best start – sound advice.
If you are thinking of selling your house, it’s important that you get reliable advice from experts who know the market. Such advice should include not only a valuation, but also suggestions on how your property should be marketed and presented in the best possible way. Our fully trained and experienced Valuers know the local property market inside out – you can be sure that you can rely on their advice. We do not charge for this service, which includes an appraisal of your property.
Getting your property on the market.
We need to gather as much information about your property – and your own plans – in order to start looking for interested buyers. We will arrange for a Home Information Pack (HIP), unless you have already arranged one, measure up, take digital photographs, discuss what items you intend to leave in the house etc. In order to comply with the law, we also have to ask you to show us your photo-identification – passport or driving licence (all agents have to do this).
Once you have approved the proof copy of the printed details of your property, we will arrange press and internet advertising, ‘for sale’ board and start to contact active buyers who are looking for a property like yours.
Appointing a Solicitor.
It is advisable to appoint a Solicitor to act in your sale transaction when you first place your property on the market; this will speed things up when we find you a buyer. Our valuer will advise you of a local choice of solicitors who are our Conveyancing Partners and who will deliver high standards of service to our clients to ensure a speedy and efficient transaction.
Selling homes in today’s market..
Estate agency is a very different business now from what it was even 5 years ago. Every month thousands of potential buyers visit our web site and search for properties; they can view and download individual details, including photographs, and can contact us to request viewings. We communicate with active applicants by mail, e-mail and telephone. We advertise in colour in the property pages of the local paper and, of course display details in our prominent town centre branch. All these activities ensure the widest promotion of your property.
Viewings.
Wherever possible, we speak to prospective buyers who have viewed your property, and give feed back to you.
Negotiating a sale.
Leave it to us! We will handle all the negotiations with prospective buyers, including checking on their financial arrangements and whether they have a house to sell – a buyer is not a buyer if they are not in a position to proceed. Although the final decision rests with you, our helpful and experienced sales staff will advise and guide you throughout. Once all the details have been agreed, we will issue instructions to both your and the buyer’s solicitor – we can also offer you access to a choice of approved local conveyancing solicitors.
Progressing the sale.
If you are a first time seller, we will guide you through the selling process and one of our trained and experienced staff will be responsible for monitoring progress as part of smoothing the transaction for you. This includes liaising with solicitors and, if we are helping to arrange the mortgage for your buyer, we will track that too.
Exchange of contracts.
When the buyers solicitors have received all the information they need, including searches, title documents etc., they will ask you to sign a sale contract. Your solicitor and the buyer’s solicitor will then exchange contracts; from that moment, both you and your buyer are committed to completing the transaction.
Completion.
This is generally set for a few days after exchange of contracts, depending on each party’s personal requirements. On completion day, the money will be transferred to your solicitor from the buyer’s solicitor who, once he or she receives the funds, will contact us to release the keys (if we hold them) to the new owners. We will not release the keys without your solicitor’s authority.
