A first time seller will not know what to expect and with so much to consider to ensure everything runs smoothly the process can appear a little daunting. Equally they are selling what will have been their very first home and sentiments will be running high.
The Costs
The first step has to be finding out how much the property is worth. A local estate agent familiar with the area and the local market will readily provide an expert valuation and discuss current market conditions, comparable properties sold/selling, and your personal plans. You will be given a quote of how much the estate agent will charge by way of commission, as well as have them take details about your home, what you may have had done to it during your ownership, and the benefits of living there.
You will now be privy to the accurate valuation of your home and the cost of the estate agent. Consideration also needs to be given to your budget at this stage and you will need to make sure you don’t encounter any nasty financial surprises later on in the sale.
Costs you most commonly need to consider include:
- Estate agent's selling fees
- Conveyancer's legal fees
- Energy Performance Certificate (EPC)
- Removal costs
- Any management pack fee if your property is subject to a charge for maintenance of the common areas
It is also useful at this stage to obtain a settlement figure from your mortgage lender so that you are aware of any likely early repayment penalty as well as the amount needed to redeem the mortgage in full.
You may or may not be buying another property but either way you will need to consider the costs of your next accommodation whether that be a purchase or a rental.
The estate agent appointed will likely take numerous photographs to use in their marketing and online portfolio and will come out and take professional imagery for use. Most estate agents now provide floorplans and organise the EPC for you.
The Marketing
When the estate agent has everything needed, your property is then launched onto the market. Your estate agent will be trying to capture the widest possible audience and a signboard at the front of your home is likely to be put up at this stage.
Hopefully, once your property has caught the interest of a prospective buyer, then a viewing will be arranged and your estate agent will contact you to schedule an appropriate time where they can show the viewer your property. You may have agreed with your estate agent that you will handle the viewings yourself. You should be wary of giving any negative vibes to the potential buyer during their viewing.
After each viewing, your estate agent will provide you with feedback from the viewer. Should any adjustments or improvements need to be made to the manner in which the property is presented, then consideration may be given to this, as recommended by the estate agent.
A property is as likely to sell at the first viewing as at any other; essentially, you only need to impress one party enough for them to make an offer. You will then be contacted by your estate agent to let you know if someone has made an offer on your property. The estate agent will be communicating between you and the potential buyer to ensure that you are happy with the agreed price should you choose to accept the offer. If you are not happy with the offer, it is perfectly acceptable to decline and continue marketing or ask the estate agent to see if a higher offer can be made by the prospective buyer.
The Conveyancer
It is possible to instruct a conveyancer when you have accepted an offer on your property or before that stage is reached. However, once the offer is accepted, you need to tell the estate agent who is acting for you so that a memorandum of sale can be issued to the seller’s and buyer’s conveyancers.
You will receive initial forms from your conveyancer and be asked to provide your ID and payment upfront, as well as information about your mortgage lender and any work you may have undertaken on the property. It is useful in advance of this stage to gather documents such as recent central heating servicing reports, FENSA certificates, GasSafe compliance certificates, any planning or building control documents, and electrical reports. Your conveyancer will send you forms that form part of the contract pack, including the 'Property Information form' and 'Fittings and Contents form', which need to be completed by you with accurate information about your home. This information will then be sent to the buyer’s conveyancer. Although the paperwork might seem complicated and extensive, it forms the history of the property for the buyer to consider.
Your conveyancer will download the title documents from the Land Registry and assemble the draft contract pack. This contains the title documents or deeds, draft contract, some of the forms you completed, and other relevant certificates or documents you provide.
The Process
Once a contract pack has been issued by your conveyancer, it is likely that more enquiries will be raised by the buyer’s conveyancer so be ready to answer anything which is referred to you by your conveyancer. If you don’t know the answer, then ‘not known’ is a perfectly acceptable response.
Remember the sale is not legally binding at this stage. It only becomes legally binding at the point of exchange of contracts. Until this point, you or the buyer may withdraw from the sale.
Once the buyer’s enquiries have been dealt with, you will need to sign the contract and transfer deed. Remember that by signing at this stage, you are not committing yourself legally to the sale. The signed documents are held on file so that when both you and the buyer have agreed a completion date and the conveyancers are ready to exchange contracts then the exchange of contracts can take place.
At this point the sale is legally binding and the completion date is fixed. You must make sure you have vacated the property by the time set in the contract which could be any time between noon and 2pm on the date of completion and this also includes removing any rubbish.
The important question -How long does it take to sell a house?
The time it takes for a sale to complete varies in each case and can be affected by many different factors such as:
- the length of the chain
- how long it takes for searches
- the time taken by buyers to obtain a mortgage offer
On average a sale of a house could take anywhere between 12 and 20 weeks.
Completion Day – Moving Out
By this time you should be fully packed and ready to move out. A final tour of inspection for any items you have forgotten should be undertaken as well as the reading of the meters and remember to make those final payments.
Your buyer’s solicitor will have undertaken final checks and will then transfer the funds into your conveyancer’s account.
You will have then completed the selling process and will need to move out of your property. Now is the time to say goodbye to your first home.
The estate agents will then release the keys for the property to the new owner.
Your conveyancer will deal with paying off your mortgage (if you have one); paying the estate agents and their own conveyancing fees, and finally pay you any outstanding balance.
Your conveyancer will also send the necessary paperwork to the new owner’s solicitors so they can register the change of ownership at the Land Registry.
Next Steps...
If you have any questions regarding this blog or any other conveyancing matters, please do not hesitate to get in touch. You can contact the conveyancing team at legal@timms-law.com or by freephone 0800 011 6666. Alternatively, you can visit the conveyancing page of our website here.
