Selling My House

DRP

For us it was well worth paying 1%+VAT to our agent to deal with all the marketing, viewings and 'middle man' stuff.

We both work and have a young child - in different circumstances it would have been better to use an online EA and do the hands-on stuff ourselves. Just make sure any online agent uses rightmove.

In terms of getting the place looking good for sale , I would agree with Phil99

phill99 wrote: »

Relocate clutter to a storage unit.
Garden maintenance.
A few household repairs.
A fresh coat of paint throughout.
Re-carpet certain areas.

I am a great believer in the benefit of de-personalising, so de-cluttering is important, especially as it sounds like you have a substantial household!!

pacey1986

Thank you all for your feedback. I'm happy with what I have to do with my house to get it in selling condition, the biggest problem I have is 3x cats and 2x dogs and the smells they bring with it.

cabbage

My daughter bought a house recently and the EA persuaded the sellers to use their in house conveyancer. We used our own and I prefer that.

Re the EA, we did not receive one call from them asking about progress or giving us an update. I thought that was very poor.

We dropped a note through the sellers door offering our mobile number and that arrangement worked really well up to and including moving in day, any problems or queries were quickly resolved.

On moving in day we agreed that as we were not moving in, they could take as long as they wanted to move out. They eventually handed over the keys at 7pm. This worked well for both parties. We would have preferred an earlier time but as they had been accommodating throughout negotiations it was nice to give them some leeway.

pacey1986

Made the decision to install a new kitchen and upstairs bathroom.

MidLifeCrisis_3

Get quotes from 3 Estate Agents and go with quote that your happiest with. This should be in line with what seems about right based on your own research for similar houses in your area on Rightmove. Price it too high, you won't get people through the door and it could be stuck on the market for months, price it too low people may wonder what's wrong with it.

Always negotiate EA fees downwards.

Add kerb appeal by tending to outside maintenance and front garden/driveway to attract viewings from drivebys. Freshly painted fences/windows/guttering, repaired stones, weeding, fresh gravel or few carefully placed pots can make a world of difference.

Declutter and tidy away, get rid of or store any excess furniture, knicknacks, toys, etc to a friend's place or storage unit.

Clean, scrub, mop, degrease and demould. Pay special attention to kitchen, bathrooms, doors, flooring and paintwork. Anything that looks at all tired, grubby or grimy has the potential to put viewers off unless it is reflected in the price.

Ensure enitre decor and flooring is neutral and welcoming, depersonalise by removing photos, pictures and ornaments, Tone down any bright colours and if possible replace heavily patterned or old fashioned wallpaper or carpet. Use tile paint to spruce up old fashioned tiles and consider updating older kitchen units with paint. Make sure all bathrooms have tiled, laminate or vinyl floors, carpet is a big no no.

It's hard work, but make sure house is spotlessly clean and tidy for every viewing, as near to show home standard as possible. Vacuum, dust, make beds, plump up sofa, cushions and pillows, Spray febreze on beds, sofas, curtains, carpets and if possible air the house by opening windows to rid any odours and condensation for a few hours before viewings, allowing enough time to warm house back through as the house should ideally be of median temperature.

Do you have a garage you can store pet beds/dishes in?

Let viewers walk into rooms first it makes rooms feel bigger and never say you are moving because you need a bigger house, it implies your's is too small

bouicca21

Before going to any expense it would be worth finding out what the market is like in your area. If there are too many buyers and not enough properties then you won't have to make nearly as much effort as in an area where the market is stagnant.

As for the pets - yes get rid of the smell, hide the animals, especially the dogs. You might be surprised to discover just how many people are terrified of even the most placid and staid of dogs. Though having said that the people who bought my house turned out to be dog lovers who spent more time playing with my pooch than looking at the house.

TBagpuss

When chosing an agent, check out their listings on rightmove and on their own website, to get an idea of how well they present properties - if they are happy to put up out-of-focus photos and scrappy particulars for other customers, they will do the same for our property.

Make sure your dogs are not in the house when people view it - and get a non-dog owning friend to pop in once you have cleaned and tell you whether you have successfully got rid of the doggy smell.

If your cats are indoor cats with litter trays then make sure you have cleaned the trays before any viewings, and also make sure that you have cleared the garden of any cat or dog mess.


Good luck.

aliby21

pacey1986 wrote: »

Made the decision to install a new kitchen and upstairs bathroom.

Noooo!
Honestly, I wouldn't be putting in a new kitchen. Found it very off putting when looking at houses where owners had done this, and knowing I'd be wanting to rip it out because it just wasn't how I would want it.

Bathroom might be more worthwhile if you haven't got an upstairs one at present, but again I'd be more inclined to get plans and quotes so purchasers can see what is possible, but let them do it how they want.

bouicca21 wrote: »

Before going to any expense it would be worth finding out what the market is like in your area. If there are too many buyers and not enough properties then you won't have to make nearly as much effort as in an area where the market is stagnant.

Agree with this

Speaking from the huge experience of having moved house once I'd say the important things are:

-Price it right
-Ensure it is clean and tidy, inside and out.

Mojisola

aliby21 wrote: »

Noooo!

I'd be more inclined to get plans and quotes so purchasers can see what is possible, but let them do it how they want.

Definitely this!

Save your money to spend on your new home.

I discussed putting in a new kitchen because the house I'm selling has the original 1970s kitchen. The EA advised against it and the house is priced to allow the necessary changes.

I'm glad it was done that way - every one of the viewers who talked about what they would do to the house had different ideas about the work they would do. Our buyers are actually considering leaving the "period features" in place because they love the look.:)

Ky-An

Installing a new kitchen and bathroom you may not see any return. As for your pets the smell usually lingers in carpets and wherever they lay their head. Either a deep clean or replace the carpets and keep pets out when it comes to any viewings. Good luck.