6 common mistakes to avoid when selling your home

Are you thinking about selling your home? Do you want to achieve the best price for your home? Would you like a quick sale?

Estate agents see it all… from properties that literally fly off the shelf, to homes that hang around on the market for months and months, or even years.

Most vendors aim to achieve the highest possible price in the shortest possible time, which is considered the ultimate sale. It’s no fluke that some properties sell quickly, but you need to know what to do for the best, and how to market them correctly.

We have come up with 6 common mistakes that you should avoid when selling: -

1. Setting an unrealistic asking price

The ‘launch price’ and the 3 weeks after launch are the most critical time of your sale – this is when 70% of interest occurs. For this reason, it’s critical that you market your home for a realistic price right from the outset. It’s no good thinking that you can push your luck and ask for a larger amount, because it simply won’t work. Everyone likes to think they have got a bargain these days and no one will pay over the odds for a property. If you price your house too high, you will end up reducing the price a couple of months down the line… trust us, we have seen it many times!

2. Going with a cheap estate agent to save money

When it comes to choosing a good estate agent, you need to ask yourself this… What will this agent do to sell my house? Just like anything else you buy, you basically get what you pay for, and the same goes with estate agents. A cheap agent is cheap for a reason; perhaps they cut corners? Maybe they produce cheap brochures or amateur photographs? Go with an estate agent you trust and respect and follow your gut instinct. A good agent may charge half a percent more, but they are far more likely to sell the house for a higher price, saving you money.

3. Not being flexible on the price you will accept

Some vendors get a bit ‘stuck’ on their asking price and find it difficult to consider a slightly lower offer. It’s important to remember that a house price is an educated estimate of the value, and it’s worth being flexible. Let’s say you accept a slightly lower offer on your property… look at the positive side… you are now in a very strong position to bargain for your next property. You will probably save the same amount as you lost on your sale! It’s important to see the bigger picture.

4. Trying to sell without an agent

Sadly, estate agents still sometimes get bad press. Having been in the business for a while now, we can honestly say, hand on heart, that estate agents work extremely hard for their living. We don’t just sit back and wait for the phone to ring - houses don’t sell themselves. Here are just some of the things we do to help you to sell your home: -

• Value properties at the perfect level

• Offer professional photography to show your home at its best

• Write an informative and engaging property description giving just the right amount of information, but not too much.

• Use websites to promote your house nationwide and around the world

• Deal with any viewer’s objections and overcome them

• We continue to analyse your viewing figures and tweak things if we feel something needs to be improved

• We plan viewings, stage the home beforehand, and start and end in the best room of the house

• Negotiate the highest possible sales price for the vendor which is often 4% above their initial offer

• We offer friendly emotional and practical support throughout the sale process.

• Liaise with surveyors and solicitors and ensure the progress of the sale does not slow down.

So, as you can see, we do more than you may realise.

5. Refuse an early offer thinking a better one will come along

According to a survey carried out by Rightmove, 70% of interest in a property comes within the first 3 weeks of it being launched onto the market. If you get a decent offer in this time, grab it and run! Don’t be one of the people who refuse and end up accepting a lower offer later down the line.

6. Being too relaxed about selling – ‘I’m in no rush’.

The longer a house remains on the market, the lower your chance of achieving the asking price. It’s that simple. Most viewers want to know how long a house has been on the market, or may even know themselves from their own research. Sadly, houses that sit on the market for years will inevitably sell for a lower price. Try not to be too fussy about offers and don’t miss a good sale for the sake of a few quid!

If you follow these simple tips, you should get the right price, in the right timescale.

Have you experienced a slow sale? What happened? Did you eventually sell? Did you change agents? We would love to hear your tales.

Send us an email at [email protected] or give us a call on 01733 893520