The soft sell

With house prices buoyant, there’s no shortage of properties for sale as homeowners try to cash in on their property’s increase in value. But recent figures from the National Association of Estate Agents (NAEA) suggest that the number of people looking to buy fell in June by 6 per cent. Hometrack’s June report also notes a widening gap between the number of people looking to buy, up 5 per cent in June, and the number of new properties coming to the market, up 12.4 per cent.

The time it takes to sell a property has also increased, further indicating that new buyers are becoming less keen: according to the NAEA, it now takes an average of 17.8 weeks to sell, after an average of 12 viewings, up from 16.5 weeks and 11 viewings in May.

Find your ideal house, flat or apartment here

Value for money

So with buying confidence dented, you need to get it right when selling – and one of the most crucial issues is the valuation. Start by checking local estate agents and local papers for similarly sized homes in your area.

“Try to establish a realistic idea of what your home is actually worth,” advises NAEA’s vice-president Chris Wood. “That way, you’ll know whether you can trust the valuations proposed by the estate agents. You should invite valuations from three good agents, and they should be able to provide credible evidence for their estimates – such as the agreed sales price for a similar house around the corner, for example.”

Wood suggests that, unless your house is very unusual, you should be wary of any agent who suggests an outlandish valuation for your home. “Don’t just go with the highest valuation suggested,” he adds. “You need to be realistic.”

Find out how much your home is worth

Once you settle on a valuation, the next step is to choose an estate agent. Using someone local makes sense because he or she will better understand the local market, and a word-of-mouth recommendation is worthwhile because former clients are the best barometer of the level of service offered by any professional.

Failing that, Wood suggests looking for an agent who belongs to a professional body like the NAEA, and who has a minimum level of qualifications. “Unfortunately, you don’t need any qualifications to set up as an estate agent, which can lead to instances of bad practice,” he points out.

Contracting out

You can choose either a sole-agency or a multi-agency arrangement with your estate agent. Sole-agent contracts do exactly what they say on the tin: there is one estate agent responsible for marketing your property. These contracts usually allow you to do some private marketing off your own bat as well (see page 28), though Wood advises checking your contract terms very carefully before you sign anything.

With a multi-agent arrangement, you engage several estate agents to market your home. In theory this should lead to a faster sale because there will be more people working on selling your property, but Wood is not a fan.

“Seeing several agencies advertising the same property suggests to buyers that the seller is desperate to sell – which in turn suggests there’s something wrong with the property,” he says. “And property selling is a winner-takes-all business, so if agent A has a potential buyer, he will likely recommend selling at whatever price that buyer offers, even if agent B has a better offer, because otherwise he won’t make any money from the sale.”

Once you sign a contract you’ll be tied to it for the contract term, which can range from nothing to six months, though eight to ten weeks is pretty standard. Most properties find a buyer within four to six weeks, according to Wood, so if nothing

has happened in that period, it’s time either to review the price or to have a look at how effective your agent is.

“If you’re getting bad service you might be able to sort things out by talking to the office manager,” says Wood. “If the service is really bad – perhaps the agent hasn’t arranged any viewings or placed your property details in promised ads – you might have grounds for ending your contract. But the service would have to be pretty dreadful for this.”

Fees vary enormously: expect to pay anything from 1.25 to 2 per cent of the selling price for a sole-agency contract, and from 2 to 3 per cent for a multi-agent arrangement.

Doing it yourself

Even while you have an agent sweating away on your behalf, you can do some sideline marketing yourself. There are several property websites that will market your property for you online for as little as £89. For that one-off fee, you get a picture (or pictures) of your home on its own web page, alongside the property details and your contact details.

But beware: choosing the wrong type of website could mean you still end up paying your estate agent the sales commission. To avoid this, you need to use a website that offers no agency services, so it mustn’t operate a database of buyers, arrange viewings, pass on offers, put up For Sale boards with the website company’s number on it, or take pictures or write up property details on behalf of the seller. You need to supply all those things yourself.

Aside from getting an accurate valuation and finding a good estate agent, selling is all about appealing to buyers. According to home stager Ann Maurice, of House

Doctor fame, clutter is the greatest contributor to a house not selling, or selling at a reduced price. “A clean house shows buyers your home has been looked after,” she explains. “Pack up and store anything non-essential, and pay special attention to kitchens and bathrooms.”

Buyers need to imagine living in your home with their own things around them, so make it easy for them by depersonalising: get rid of family photos, ornaments, posters and pets. If feasible, repaint in a neutral colour throughout – magnolia emulsion is not expensive, and makes surfaces look clean, fresh and ready to have a new style imposed on them.

First impressions are vital – Maurice maintains that most buyers make up their mind about a property before they get through the front door, so ensure your home has ‘kerb appeal’ by tidying the front garden, cleaning the windows, polishing the door knocker till it gleams and providing a welcome mat for wiping feet on.