Home Counties Buying and Selling

HINTS ON MOVING HOME

Decide whether you want to move. Although this sounds a silly question, many people approach the process having not clearly thought through their objective. If you are not sure whether you are likely to find what you want, look in the papers covering the areas that you are interested in and also search on the internet, to ascertain whether the type of property your require is likely to be available within your budget. Do not try to find your ideal property before you place yours on the market, unless you are able and prepared to purchase it without selling your current one.
Approach an estate agent(s) for a valuation. Choose those agents in your locality that market your type of property, because they are more likely to have a better grasp of the value of your type of property. Their marketing is also likely to be more suitable for your home.
When estate agents value your home, ask them on what basis they have arrived at the figure, and what other local properties they have used as comparables for their valuation. Most importantly enquire what their Unique Selling Points are. Why should you choose them to undertake the marketing?
Do not select the agent that values your house the highest, just because they do so. Any agent can quote any price. Those that are significantly high or low, may not have a good grasp of pricing for your type of house, or worse may artificially over value to gain an instruction. This is because many vendors instruct the agent that quotes the highest price regardless of the merit of the valuation. A poor basis for making a decision!
If you choose to instruct the agent with the lowest fees, dont expect a high standard of marketing, the chances are that they simply do not have the money available to provide it. You get what you pay for!. Remember that you only pay if the agent is successful, and a very small difference in the price the agent achieves can cover the difference in fees, even between the cheapest and most expensive agents.
Do not sign an agency agreement that ties you to an agent for an extended period of time. If the agent is confident of providing a quality service, whether or not they sell your property quickly, they should be prepared to provide you with the freedom of dis-instructing them if they dont live up to their promises. Expect to have the freedom to dis-instruct an agent with two weeks notice at any time.
Once you have selected an agent that you consider appropriate, let them know the speed that you wish to move. In particular whether you have found a property that you would like to purchase, or whether you believe that it may take some time before you find your desired home.
Instruct a solicitor to undertake the conveyancing work and ask them to obtain the deeds from your lender (if there is one). Do not wait until you have a buyer. This single action can shorten the timescale for the legal work by two weeks.
Once an acceptable offer has been obtained, ensure that your agent has checked the chain.If there is no chain, ensure that your agent obtains confirmation of this, ie that your buyer has the financial resources to proceed independently of selling a property. Remember, never withdraw your property from the market, until you are sure that the buyer is in a position to proceed with the purchase.
Instruct your solicitor to proceed, relax and put your feet up!

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