How to sell your house without an estate agent

Selling a house can be a stressful experience. Even so, more and more sellers are choosing to decline the use of an agent in favour of more profitable options.

For the majority of people looking to sell their house fast, the use of an estate agent seems like a great idea. While agents do take a cut of the profits, many sellers prefer to avoid the stress of self-marketing and will happily pay to avoid the headaches.

However, with the advent of numerous online property portals; the increased ability to reach a wider audience of potential buyers through social media; and the ability to cut down on expenses – as a seller, you may find yourself wondering whether it’s possible to learn how to sell your house without an agent.

It is, however, important to realise that in most cases, managing your own sale requires a great deal of time and devotion, as well as being ‘available’ 24/7 to take calls regarding offers and general enquiries.

In this blog, we will be looking at the most popular methods you could employ when setting out to discover how to sell your house yourself.

Make your house sellable

As with all planned property transactions, a buyer is less likely to buy if they view a house that is unkempt and messy. When you use an estate agent, you can often gain pointers from their sales specialists with regard to making your house marketable. When you decide to shoulder the responsibility yourself however, you need to make the judgement calls on your own. Luckily, there are a huge number of internet-based resources that can help you bring your house up to showroom quality.

Once your house is in tip-top shape, consider employing the services of a professional photographer to take the marketing pictures. Photos taken by amateurs often stand out a mile in listings by making your home look ‘cheap’ and claustrophobic – whereas a professional, by comparison, can make your home look open, palatial and desirable.

How to sell your house yourself

No matter which method you choose, it’s always important to learn the value of your home. Set the asking price too low, and you risk losing a vast amount of your investment – set the asking price too high, and you risk deterring potential buyers and finding yourself waiting a long time for the possibility of a sale.

In these situations, it’s always a great idea to employ an RICS-accredited surveyor to carry out a valuation. With a much lower price than a homebuyer’s report, a valuation is an important step in finding out how to sell your house without an agent.

Choosing the right path

Many vendors choose to employ the services of auction houses in an effort to sell fast. However, it’s important to remember that most buyers at auctions are there because they’re looking for a bargain. While unusual homes and derelict houses at the lower end of the scale tend to make the seller (and auctioneer) a lot of money, an average standard house is liable to perform less well during the bidding process.

Even if you set your reserve price at the price point advised by your surveyor, many auctioneers will forgo the chance of including your home in their auction if they feel the price won’t entice enough potential buyers. It’s also worth remembering that auctioneers make a great deal of money in commission from both the seller and the buyer if the property sells – and even if your house does not sell during the auction, you would still liable for the attached administration fees.

Luckily, there are alternatives. Online property portals such as Purplebricks or Tepilo offer you the chance to sell your home through their websites at a fixed fee, rather than a percentage-based fee with an agent. However, as with many great offers, there are strings attached.

Many property portals require you to use their services for valuations – services that have, on many occasions, required additional fees. There have also been numerous complaints against Purplebricks that have been upheld by the advertising watchdog regarding misleading marketing claims. For example, the obscuration of the fact that the fixed fee itself is payable whether or not your house manages to sell, and their 2016 claim to save a vendor an average of £4,158 in fees versus standard estate agents, which was heavily criticised due to the fact that the claim was based on commission figures published five years previously.

Ultimately, any company that is willing to help you sell your house is doing so with the aim of making a profit – and so it is up to the client to read the small print before deciding to sign on the dotted line.

Cheaper alternatives?

If you wish to find out how to sell your house yourself without having to deal with additional commission fees, there are better options, and these are house buying companies.

Companies such as National Homebuyers offer you the chance to sell your home in as little as seven days – great for those who need to move house fast due to a change in personal circumstances. With a small upfront fee that is refunded upon completion of the sale, National Homebuyers will buy any house for cash, regardless of condition or location for a competitive price – even offering the seller additional financial support to cover any legal fees associated with the sale.

With an ever-increasing number of satisfied customers, why not make an enquiry and see how easy the house selling process can be?

Prefer to avoid estate agents? Why not ask National Homebuyers for advice, as we buy any house. Call 08000 443 911 or request a call back to find out how much you could get for your property.