Cheapest way to sell our house :o)

Lizbetty

Hi everyone!

After a lot of wondering and umming and arring, we have finally decided to look into putting our house on the market. I've lived here for 15 years, and it'll be a bit scary but we need to be closer to school/our allotment and need some grass for the kids to throw themselves about on.

We're on a tight budget..as is everyone I know. In the olden days, the estate agents used to be no sale no fee - it seems that has changed a lot! Our mortgage is relatively small, we have some decent equity and we're not wanting to increase the mortgage too much, about £20k maybe, if you can. But as for funds upfront, we'd have to save up some. But I want to get it on the market asap!

I'm not sure if there might be a cheaper (but still as effective) way to sell it, rather than the usual high street estate agency route? Or are there any estate agencies doing no sale no fee? I tend to go on Rightmove all the time and so I guess this is one of the most important places to advertise, whatever route we take.

I know it's a baaad time to sell, but I can't see when it'll be a good one, can anyone else??

All advice would be welcomed. We have thought of buy to let but I think our income would be insufficient and I'm not all that well read on it to be honest. I'd rather sever all ties than have a stranger living here! (What a wuss, eh.)

Lucy x

GAH

The best thing to do is ring around estate agencies in your area, and ask if they work on a No Sale No fee basis,

A lot of Agencies still do, some charge an up front marketing fee, and some will charge you a fee for costs if you decide to take it off the market.

Whatever you do decide though, make sure you read the Terms and Condiditions, because normally a lot of people don't and only realise at a later date when they are being stung for a fee they didn't think they needed to pay.

In Regards to actual fees to pay, if you are looking cheap, you could pay £400-£500 (upfront) and employ an online agency, but you will have to do all the work yourself such as viewings etc.

Or, A High Street agent, which will typically charge anything from 1-2% of the sale price, and they generally will have a bigger list of buyers.

hcb42

I got agents round last year - still not got on market mind - but they were all no sale no fee.

googler

I think the only agencies not offering 'no sale no fee' are the online ones who take their whole fee, or a proportion of it, upfront.

I think you'll find the majority of agencies up and down the country are still on a no-sale no-fee basis

womble12345

Dont all agents do no sale no fee? Mine all did. The only thing I have heard of is one that charged £100 upfront for the photos.

The cheapest way to sell your flat is put a poster up in your garden and invite potential buyers to call you. But if you want to actually sell it I would go for a high street estate agent, and dont necessarily go for the one with the lowest fee of the one that values your house the highest.

Littleweedj

I had a similar dilema - how to sell at a reasonable cost.
After much researching on the internet decided to go with a local online estate agent. Got a really good deal of £99 up front then £500 when property sells.

So far the contact, communication has been excellent. They have taken excellent photos, put me in touch with a surveyor for a Home Report at really reasonable cost. However, they weren't the least bit pushy and said if I had my own Report then that would be fine or see if I could get a better deal (which I couldn't!!) so it has all been pretty seamless so far.

My house is now on Rightmove and other websites so can only wait and see how things go. But as traditional high street estate agents are charging percentages which amount to thousands of pounds it would seem cost effective to go with a trusted and recommended online agent, but as this is my first time doing it this way I can only comment on service to date. Hopefully, in the future, I can report a sale and positive feedback.

Racky_Roo

I sold online with House Network and found they worked for me. I got some local agents round so I could use their valuations and I didn't mind doing my own viewings (only had a few anyway before I sold at £1500 under the asking price) My only grumble was that because I paid the full fee upfront of £425 plus VAT rather than one of the other options, my personal agent seemed to lose interest once a sale was agreed and I found myself chasing him for info once the chain went a bit wobbly. It was only thanks to the EA of my seller that I ever found out anything and, if I'm being honest, he probably held the chain together, which took 5 months with only 3 properties involved

My advice, go with an online agent, but chose one of the options which means they get the balance on completion, therefore giving them a vested interest in getting the sale through. and good luck with the whole business - it's very stressful and I can't wait until I move on Friday so it's all over!!

m1ntie

Many years ago I was living in Pembrokeshire and needed to move. I got a couple of Estate Agents round to give me a market appraisal, after discuusing their fees I decided to market it myself.

I made a for sale board and errected it in my front garden. whilst I was making the post secure, my wife called me in the house to take a telephone call from a neighbour who had just driven past and seen the sign. He was interested in the house for his elderly sister, who lived in Swansea and now wanted to move close to her brother.

She bought the house for the full asking price, without even viewing it
and the whole transaction took about 6 weeks.

Give it a try - you never know.

Littleweedj

I agree totally with post about only paying the online agent so much up front and the rest on completion of sale.

Although this option will work out dearer I'm hopeful it will be more of an incentive to them to get the property sold as soon as possible.
The market is still not very bouyant so they will need to work really hard to achieve this. It's a good idea to look up reviews on each company beforehand. Hence the reason I chose a company online but with an office in a town, very close to me, should I want to visit.

I'd also recommend using one in your own country as the conveyancing laws in Engand and Scotland are completely different.

lesleymarr

In 1996 I bought my current house, from Queenie, through LOOT and sold the previous using an estate agent. Queenie paid nothing and got 2 viewers, the second was me and I wanted it at once. I got about 15 timewasters over a year and eventually 2 people tussled for it, but I paid lots to the estate agent and wished I'd put it in LOOT. If LOOT or Gumtree don't work, try ebay. I saw on Ebay people are putting in ads for 1p which say, don't bid but here's some details about a house i'm selling, come and see it. Even estate agents do this.

anna.donerson86

Hi!

I completely understand... I didn't fantastic about selling my house last year, especially because I lived there for over 6 years. I decided to approach traditional high street estate agents, but their fees are ridiculously high. My previous experience with high street estate agents have been poor. They have been inefficient and lazy. So to sell my property I ventured into using an online estate agency. I looked at the popular sites such as Rightmove and Zoopla, but my friends and family recommended eMoov.co.uk . Trusting my family and friends I sold my property through them. They sold my property within 2 months! :rotfl: I saved over £2,000 in estate agency fees. :j I think you should definitely consider using an online estate company, as you can sell your property quick and at a low cost.


Goodluck! :T