Selling privately

schneckster

First post, so please be gentle!!

This has to be THE utopia of selling - no estate agents!!

Has anyone tried this, and what's your story if you have?

Basically, my estate agent seems to have over priced my house, and then ceased marketing when I got a stupidly low offer put in. One of them even said he was holding off put someone in for a viewing because of this offer! And then, they try to squeeze me to take this offer telling me that they can squeeze a vendor on my behalf when I come to buy!!

So, considering this sort of stuff, is it worth me sacking them and selling it privately (own board, leaflets, etc.) instead of replacing them with another toerag estate agent?

Cheers,

Schneckster

ps. Already listed on homesforsale.co.uk and first4sale.co.uk - free listings, of course!

grownupgirly

I am hopefully selling my place privately to someone I vaguely know. I told a friend that I was selling my place, who put me in touch with this other lady, (who I used to know better than I do now). so, maybe word of mouth to friends/colleagues etc may help? The lady I am hopefully selling to is a buy-to-let investor.

(I say I am hopefully selling my place privately as its all going to be finalised tomorrow. So heres hoping.)

Grownupgirly

courtjester

You don't have to sack the agent to sell privately, a sole agency agreement does not prevent you from advertising the property yourself, although you do need to be careful who you choose to advertise with online as some of the less professional services could cause a problem with existing agents.

Also, you need to consider whether you are likely to be more successful with a free listing or a paid for service. Like most things, with internet property marketing you tend to get what you pay for and if you pay nothing...

pcwilkins

A house near me was recently sold using houseladder.co.uk (I think). It sold relatively quickly, a lot quicker than some of the agency advertised houses nearby. The price wasn't cheap, either.

Selling privately is obviously cheaper but obviously more work for you. Whether an estate agency's services are worth the money is a personal opinion, not a fact.

Peter