There are lots of different ways to sell your house.
Many people contact an estate agent who helps them sell on the open market. But this is not the only choice.
You can take matters into your own hands by selling your house privately.
If you’re unsure what this means and how you can do it, the blog below explains everything.
What is selling a house privately?
When you sell a house privately, it means that an estate agent is not involved with the process.
You must find your way of hosting viewings and advertising the property. You should also decide on a price and negotiate with buyers.
Selling your house privately gives you more control over the entire process.
You will not be dependent on an estate agent to respond to enquiries quickly and to always follow best practice.
Why sell your house privately?
This route is particularly attractive for people who have had negative experiences with estate agents.
Arguably the hardest part of selling your house privately is getting people through the door.
Estate agencies can have enormous databases of potential buyers in the local area, which you do not have.
Experience in advertising or marketing may therefore be an advantage if you opt for this route.
There could be other reasons, too.
For example, perhaps your house is in a bad condition but you know somebody who would like to buy it and fix it up. Or perhaps it is in a neighbourhood unfavourable to most buyers.
How to sell a house privately
1. Property preparation
The first step of selling your house privately is getting the property ready for sale. This means:
- It should be in excellent condition
- You should tidy inside and outside of it
- Appliances should be working
- Get an updated Energy Performance Certificate.
The more attractive your house looks, the better your viewings are likely to go. (However, in some cases, you maybe able to negotiate with the buyer on what you will and won’t fix).
2. Valuation
Once your house is looking good, you need to decide on your asking price.
Many estate agents will value your house for free, even if you aren’t using their services, so you can use this as a benchmark.
You may want to pay a small fee (around £250) to pay an independent valuer to look at your house and reach a figure.
If you don’t want to an outsider’s opinion, you could look at selling prices of similar properties in the area.
This information could be found on Zoopla, in local magazines, or you could speak to neighbours and ask for these details.
3. Photography
Taking high-quality photographs is the next order of business. If you have a professional camera, you could do this yourself, or ask a friend to do it for you as a friend (if they have the equipment).
In some cases, high-quality smartphones will have a good enough to provide clear photos of the house.
These photographs should show what your property looks like. It must be in-focus and show the entire property. A phone camera is often good enough.
4. Listing
At this point, the marketing of your property begins. Listing your house on Rightmove and Zoopla is an important step.
You shouldn’t price it too high, so it is visible to more people. The more details you provide about the house on these platforms, the more likely you are to receive enquiries. Extra research may be needed.
Don’t be afraid to explore other methods of marketing your house, too. Social media is a powerful tool in the modern day, and paying for a listing in the local magazines is worth considering, too.
5. Viewings
Once you’ve started advertising your house, the enquiries should hopefully start rolling in.
From this point, you will need to host the viewings yourself, and negotiate with any potential buyers on price.
Even if you decide to sell your house privately, you should get a conveyancer to support you.
Completing searches and transferring funds is not straightforward. Neither is exchanging contracts.
You could be sued if you get something wrong. So, paying a solicitor is often worth your money.
Advantages of selling a house privately
1. Reduces cost
Selling your house privately can reduces your costs. After all, it is one of the cheaper ways to sell your house.
Estate agencies charge a commission on the final sale of your property.
This usually equates to several thousands of pounds. When you remove this cost from the process, you can save all this money.
2. Gives you control
You maintain full control by selling your house privately. You don’t need to get permission from your estate agents for certain marketing methods.
You can also set your asking price without running it past them. Your online listings can be designed however you choose.
3. Speeds up the selling process
Selling a house can take a long time.
In some cases, selling your house privately can be faster. Cutting out the middleman means that negotiations can move along faster.
The process can be sorted quickly if you already have a buyer lined up.
Disadvantages of selling a house privately
1. Difficult to generate interest
Generating high-interest levels in your house when you sell privately is challenging.
An estate agent has a database of potential buyers in the area who they can call immediately to arrange a viewing. You don’t have access to this resource.
2. Getting costs right
You may incur other costs when selling privately. Advertising in local magazines often costs money.
Creating a high-quality sign for your property’s exterior does, too. Rightmove and Zoopla often charge for certain packages on their sites.
There are more likely to be mistakes when selling privately – especially if you don’t have prior experience. This will slow down the selling process further, and may even cost you money.
You need lots of time to sell your house privately, as coordinating all aspects of the property sale is no small feat.
For instance, hosting viewings at your house requires you to find time away from work to do this. Especially since each viewing can take up to 30 minutes (not including the time it takes to arrange and re-arrange them).
How much does an estate agent charge?
A common estate agency commission fee is 1.5%. Figures can go higher than this, often up to 3%, but they can also be slightly lower.
On a £200,000 property, the estate agent takes £3,000 out of the selling price. Meanwhile, if your house costs £500,000, the estate agent takes around £7,500.
If your house costs £1 million, an average estate agent will charge £15,000, and for a £1.5 million property, it will go up to £22,500.
So, selling your house privately lets you save a sizeable chunk of these fees.
Questions to consider before selling your house privately
You should not jump into selling your house privately, without considering a few factors first.
For example, do you already know someone who’s interested in buying the house? This might sway your decision and make your life much easier.
Another question to consider is: do you have lots of free time available to handle everything?
Coordinating a house sale is not easy, so you need the time to do so.
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