selling our house to my sister?

danniandrob

Hi all, this is my first post on mse so sorry if its a bit long but here's the situation:

we have had our house on the market since nov & are currently in the process of switching estate agents, my sister has always wanted to buy it but has never before been able to afford it (hence why we put it on the market instead of selling to her) she & her boyfriend now think they have enough money & are going to the bank tomorrow to make sure.
my question is can we sell it to her & avoid all the estate agents fees as they have not introduced the buyer? How do we then go about actually selling it to her without an agent & does anyone know what the solicitors are likely to charge for something like this?

hope someone can help, we are racing against another couple for the house that we want so would like to be able to get it sorted as soon as they get the thumbs up from the bank.

Thanks

Danni

Doozergirl

You will have to check your contract with your Estate agent to see what you are liable to pay. If they were instructed on a 'sole agency' basis then you should be able to sell to your sister without a fee being due. If however, it is a 'sole selling rights' agreement then you will have to pay the agent regardless of who you sell the property to.

Solicitor's fees will be the same as if you were selling to anyone else if you have a mortgage secured on the house. Usually around £500+VAT. Your sister will pay the same but there is usually another £500 in disbursements which a buyer needs to pay.