Private Sale v Estate Agents

sunniehol

My property is being valued and advertised with an estate agents from tomorrow. In the meantime I have put a private ad in the local paper. I have had interest already from the private ad, can anyone advise me where I would stand if I had it advertisesd with an estate agents but didn't sell it through them and sold it privately? Would there still be fees to pay the EA? The property I've had an offer accepted on is with the same agent but I'm in a position to lose the new house if someone comes along with no house to sell so I'm doing this all very quickly.

Doozergirl

You need to make sure that the agreement you sign is for sole agency, not giving them sole selling rights to claim commission for any buyer. You want the contract to only state buyers introduced by them.

Read the contract very carefully. If you've signed it already, you shuld double check.

And you don't want the potential buyers from your ad speaking to the EA either, just in case.

googler

OK, here's a question.

If the OP has signed a Sole Agency contract, and they put a private advert out, are they in breach of that contract? They've granted sole rights to the agency, but they're allowing another party to advertise it (even though it's themselves!)

nc35

^^^ Yep usually.

EA still try to look out for themselves and catch out the un-weary.
Most standard contracts are for Sole Agency and will still claim commission for any sale (plus any advertising etc)
You will also probably be tied in too.

firstaspect

Sole Agency would usually mean only that 1 agency can be used but you can also sell through other means privately without paying them commission.

Sole Selling Rights would usually mean that only that agency can be used and you cannot sell through any other means.

It's down to the individual contract wording though so is worth checking that.

sunniehol

Thanks everyone, I think I'm right in saying I'd like a Sole Agency contract rather than the Sole Selling Rights, I'll read through the contract thoroughly when the EA been this afternoon with the paperwork.

sonastin

2 other alternatives if the advice above doesn't work out:

1) specifically exclude the interest that you've currently got from the ad (but if anyone else gets in touch after you sign up with the EA, that's fair game - but ONLY if the EA insist and you really want to deal with them).

or

2) hang on signing with the EA until you know whether or not the interest from the private ad is going to come to something.

nomoneytoday

There maybe a clause where you name anyone with a previous interest, and don't pay commission if they specifically complete