First time seller questions...

scottishgirl87

We were FTBs back in 2013 and are now looking to put our flat on the market in the next couple of months in order to buy a house.

An identical flat on our estate has recently sold within a month of going up and with a closing date, which would give me the impression that there was more than one interested party. Would a good starting point be to contact the estate agent who sold that property? I'm assuming they can't tell me how much it sold for?

I actually managed to get a copy of the Home Report and know that it was valued at £18,000 more than what ours was when we bought it in 2013 which is a good start.

Also, what should I be looking for in terms of an estate agent? Apart from putting it on RightMove, etc. I'm currently leaning towards online purely down to cost reasons but I'm not sure if that's the right decision.

marliepanda

scottishgirl87 wrote: »

We were FTBs back in 2013 and are now looking to put our flat on the market in the next couple of months in order to buy a house.

An identical flat on our estate has recently sold within a month of going up and with a closing date, which would give me the impression that there was more than one interested party. Would a good starting point be to contact the estate agent who sold that property? I'm assuming they can't tell me how much it sold for?

I actually managed to get a copy of the Home Report and know that it was valued at £18,000 more than what ours was when we bought it in 2013 which is a good start.

Also, what should I be looking for in terms of an estate agent? Apart from putting it on RightMove, etc. I'm currently leaning towards online purely down to cost reasons but I'm not sure if that's the right decision.

You can find out how much it sold for online, usually.

Other than that though, what are you contacting the agent for? There may have been more parties interested but you won't get that info unless you sign up with them.

saajan_12

If you're looking to save money, you could chance a message to the vendors of the other place or their EA, asking if they could pass on contact details / put you in touch with other interested parties for a reduced fee if you end up selling to them (given no advertising etc needed).. unlikely to work but may be worth a shot?

Other than that, you're just selling a property in a chain as usual. Remember if an agent is able to help you get a few thousand more on the sale price or sell a bit quicker the saving can be more than the difference in fees.. the trouble is knowing which agent is most likely to get that higher price! Also once a buyer is found and offer accepted, a good (high street) agent can help keep the chain together (a collapse can cause extra costs on your purchase and lots of extra stress!)

mysterymurdoch

I do think you've a better chance of getting top price with a local agent, whether this is enough to cover the extra selling costs is a gamble.

googler

Depending on your location in Scotland, being in the local SPC may be more beneficial than Rightmove.