How to Sell a House Fast in a Slow Market

Market conditions can considerably impact how easily and how quickly you can sell your house.

In a slow market, simply selling your house is difficult, let alone selling it fast…

But there are steps you can take to sell you house faster – even in challenging market conditions.

Keep reading for our top tips on how to sell your house fast in a slow market.

What is a slow market?

A slow housing market means that there is very little buyer activity.

This can be caused by several factors, including:

High mortgage rates (which make buying a house more expensive)
High cost of living
Recession or economic uncertainty

Local conditions also matter

A local housing market can be slow too, even if the wider nation’s market is not.

For example, if crime in a particular area has increased or a successful school has recently closed, potential buyers may look to move elsewhere.

Sometimes, the housing market can even slow down on a specific street...

This might happen if new developments are coming soon, such as a main road, obtrusive streetlights, or the removal of priority parking for residents.

Measuring a slow market

It isn’t easy to gain accurate data on precisely how fast or slow a specific market is at any given time.

And even if you do, each property and house sale is different.

However, it is worth understanding how long it takes to sell a house on average and what goes into the process.

How long does it take to sell a house on average in the UK?

According to Zoopla’s 2023 figures, it currently takes between 17 – 34 weeks (4.2 – 8.5 months) on average to sell a house in the UK.

Ways to sell faster in a slow market

1. Improve your property’s marketing

Aside from listing with local and/or online estate agents, there are many ways to raise awareness that your property is for sale, including:

List your house on local magazines and websites
Put a ‘For Sale’ sign outside your house
Host Open Viewings that anyone can attend
Post about the house sale in local Facebook groups
Contact local property investors

Sometimes, you must be creative and ‘outside the box’ to sell your house in a slow market.

If you do what everyone else is doing, your results will be the same, and you could be waiting up to a year (or longer) to find a suitable buyer.

2. Find ways to negotiate on price and ‘sweeten the deal’

In an ideal world, you would get an excellent price for your house and make a substantial profit.

But this is rarely possible when forced to sell in a slow market.

If you are open to negotiation, you will gain a wider choice of buyers. If there are many sellers on the market and few buyers (i.e., ‘a buyer’s market’), buyers hold the power.

It would help if you kept your difficult position private from potential buyers.

For example, keep negative points about your selling process private – such as low viewings or your property being on the market for a long time.

Your negotiating power diminishes when you reveal these details.

You should also think about ways to sweeten the deal for potential buyers.

For example, can you include some – or all – of your furniture in the deal to make your asking price more palatable?

Or you could offer to cover the cost of their survey or legal fees.

3. Find a way to become chain-free

If you are still trying to complete a sale, then everyone else is probably, too…

This increases the likelihood that a chain will break down.

Therefore, if you are a chain-free seller, buyers may view you more favourably and decide to buy your house over others.

After all, they will see that a sale involving you is more likely to proceed.

To become chain-free, you must organise other accommodation while the selling process continues.

For example, you could ask a friend or family member to stay with them or temporarily stay in rented accommodation.

(This can be challenging because it requires money or reliable family members with resources to house you.)

If you own another house that you are letting out, you could perhaps move into it for a while.

If you can’t become a chain-free seller, all is not lost. There are still other ways to sell your house quickly in a slow market…

4. Completed all documents in advance

Having your paperwork together is a key part of selling a house fast.

The conveyancing process is undoubtedly the main cause of delays when selling a house.

So, if you can get this moving along quickly, it will be an enormous help.

Transferring funds, completing surveys and searches, signing contracts and getting your Energy Performance Certificate sorted are all time-consuming.

The more steps you can complete before listing your house on the market, the faster your sale will proceed.

It is equally important that you hire an efficient solicitor who will handle your case well.

Ask friends or family for recommendations and read online reviews to see which companies are rated as the fastest.

Regularly following up with them to ensure you stay on their priority list is also helpful.

5. Make sure your house is ready for the market

Before you hire an estate agent to help you sell your house, you can ensure that the property is ‘up to scratch’.

Your curb appeal makes a major difference in whether buyers are interested in the house.

Likewise, keeping it clean and functional will prevent you from having to make these fixes later – once a buyer spots them.

(Examples include fixing cracks in the wall, leaks in the roof, broken lightbulbs, etc.)

By removing personal items, your house becomes a ‘blank canvas’ that viewers can imagine themselves living in.

A fresh coat of paint can also liven up the building for minimal price.

Select your estate agent carefully

If you decide to sell your house on the open market, you must select your estate agent carefully. Some companies and professionals are more efficient than others.

Choosing a company with an excellent track record of moving deals through quickly will help. This may involve slightly higher commissions on the final sale.

Read reviews and try to get references from former clients of any estate agent.