Thinking of selling your home without the help of an agent? Selling your home privately could save you a lot in estate agent fees, but it’s a lot of work.
Agency fee usually ranges between 0.5% to 2.5% (+VAT). That means if your house is valued at £250,000, you’d be paying between £1,250 to £7,500 commission to your estate agent. The potential for saving is immense if you can pull it off without an agent.
When a home is put on the market without a listing agent, it’s known as “For Sale by Owner”, or FSBO (pronounced “Fizz-boh”).
But FSBO is not a walk in the park. In 2017, 36% of homeowners attempted to sell a home without an agent. However, only 11% succeeded in completing sales. Still, it’s doable. Here are the steps to follow if you wish to sell your home without an estate agent.
1. Determine your home’s value
First and foremost, you’ll need to know how much your home is worth. This will help you to price your home accordingly.
Many approaches exist that can help you assess your home’s value. You could research comparable homes in your area that have sold recently to get a sense of how much your home is worth. But for the most accurate results, it’s recommended to find a chartered surveyor to conduct a survey and give a valuation report.
2. Prepare your home for sale
The next step is to get the property fixed and “show ready.” Your home needs to be presentable for showings. That said, you may want to:
- Declutter and remove personal items
- Do necessary repairs
- Repaint the walls
- Deep clean the house
- Ensure the bushes and lawn are manicured
Once you’re done preparing your home for sale, hire a professional photographer to take quality photos for listings. Also, one tip in successfully helping your sale is removing some of your items is to store them in a London storage unit.
3. Market the property for sale
Since you’re selling without an estate agent, you’ll have to do all the marketing yourself.
If you want to sell your home fast and can’t afford to be let down, you might want to consider selling it to a property buying company. Many companies, such as Molae Properties, exist that specialise in helping you sell your home quickly.
But if you want to sell your property for a top-notch price and you’re not tied by deadlines, consider listing it online. Make use of FSBO websites, such as houseladder.co.uk to list your home online for free.
You won’t be able to list your property to major portals such as Zoopla or Rightmove as these sites only accept advertisements from estate agents. But you can expand your reach by leveraging social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Also, be sure to erect a “For Sale by Owner” sign to inform the neighborhood that you’re selling.
4. Arrange viewings
You don’t need an estate agent to host an open house. Be prepared to show your house to all potential buyers and keep appointments. Also, have some brochures around your home that visitors can take with them.
5. Negotiate and close
The estate agent is typically in charge of negotiating the price and seeing the buyer through closure. But when selling an FSBO, the ball rolls on your side.
You’ll have to negotiate the best price with the buyer and exchange contracts if there are no problems or delays. Once you’ve accepted the offer, you’ll need to instruct a solicitor to handle all the legal work and close the deal.
That’s it! You just sold your house without an estate agent.
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