Step by Step Guide: How to Sell a Property Successfully

Step by Step Guide: How to Sell a Property Successfully.

Are you thinking hot to sell your property successfully? Check out our Ultimate step by Step Guide to selling it quickly and maximise the purchasing price.

1 – VALUATION

The first step in achieving a successful sale is to know exactly what the value of your property is. Get in touch with us today for a FREE and DETAILED valuation of your home. Our team will arrange an appointment at your suitable time to sit and understand your aspirations over timescales and what value you are trying to achieve.

Our local experts have extensive knowledge of the areas we are working on. When it comes down to evaluating your property, we put your interests as our priority. Your property is your most valuable asset and our job is to preserve its value in the long term. We use our knowledge and expertise to offer you an honest appraisal for sales and lettings, analysing a wide array of aspects such as the market demand and supply, location and local amenities. You are willing to have a savvy consultant sitting next to you to guide you through the property market with her expertise to prepare a strategy in regards to price and pitching your property to the right audience.

Marylebone Properties International offers a “no obligation and no pressure” valuation. Selling your home is one of the biggest financial decision you can make and we know you want to think about it carefully.

2 – PREPARING THE PROPERTY

Once you have decided to offer your property to the market, we suggest to present it in the best possible way to attract more buyers. Some new furniture, tidying up the garden or a fresh lick of paint will make the magic in catching more attention. Sometimes, you need more than some DIY or refreshing the walls. If you think that your home needs some refurbishment, get in touch today with our Team that will offer a cost-effective and bespoke service to add more value to your property.

Even when the property is fresh and decorated you should aim to keep it on top of cleanliness, dusting and decluttering every day, tidying up the kids’ toys in case the of unexpected viewings. Dust and dirt can give the impression that further works are required and they can scare potential buyers.

Get rid of the things you don’t need anymore, such as that old piece of furniture left in the backyard to collect dust. Decluttering your home can also speed up the selling process. Contact the Council to remove large items, sometimes it is for free, or think about offering some pieces to the local charity.

To improve the experience of the buyers that will visit your home, why don’t you light up some scented candles or open the windows for some fresh air? Some smalls tricks can let the buyer envision herself inside the house, making it hers.

You have also to decide what to include in the sale. Usually, fixtures and fittings are included, but in the case of moveable things, you can open room for negotiation.

Give your agent some useful documents and facts about your property which they can mention and show to any potential buyer:

Gas and electrical certificate checks.

Building regulations certificates.

Council tax, utility, buildings, and contents insurance bills – so potential buyers can estimate running costs.

Service charges and ground rent bills (for flats).

Some other documents that might be appealing to buyers and can speed up the conveyancing process are Environmental Searches (flood risk, radon level…) and a Home Condition Report (also if possibly the buyer will still wish to have her own survey done).

3 – IT IS TIME TO MARKET THE PROPERTY

Ready for the first viewings?

When you have decided to sell your property, we will arrange a suitable time for you for the photo shooting.

Nowadays people’s attention is captured by the photos and their decision will be driven by the images first and then by the description of the property. It is a good tip to present the rooms at their best, decluttering and putting in the storage the things you don’t really need to be around.

We can also assist you in preparing some other documents that are vital for the marketing, such as EPC and floor plan.

Then we will prepare the description of your property, to attract the interest of any potential buyer. Our description will never be like the ones you see with the other agencies. Storytelling helps us in truly understand the unique characteristics of your property and helps people in figuring themselves living there.

Once the marketing copies are ready, we will advertise your property on the major marketing portals: Zoopla, Prime Location,, major newspapers such us The Times, Telegraph, MailOnline and our phone will start ringing soon after the listings are live.

We will also call, email and text all of our buyers that are looking for a property like yours. All of our applicants are carefully scrutinised, in order to propose your property only to people that are keen in buying.

4 – VIEWING TIME

After a few days, your property is listed, we will book in for the first viewings. We will always call you before a viewing, even if the property is empty and you are not living there. We will never go to the property without being not announced. We don’t want to surprise you getting out of the shower and we are sure you don’t want the same as well.

To arrange the viewings, you can also leave us the property’s keys to arrange viewings quicker. Of course, the keys will be kept secure and safe and we will never put the address of your house on the tag, just to add further precaution.

Please inform us if there is any pet in the property. Just to let us know if we need to bring some bones to befriend with your dog.

We will also accompany our clients to viewings and for your and our own security, we will collect as many information as we can about them. After each viewing, we will follow the applicants to understand the outcome. Sometimes we will receive a negative feedback and, even if frustrating, this information can be useful to understand what they did not like about the property and we can resolve objections to guarantee a better outcome next time.

Buying a property is definitely a big step and crucial financial decision. People interested in a property will usually schedule again for a second viewing. In these cases, it can also be useful for you to meet them to answer to some of their questions about the quality of the life in the area. Your negotiator will advise you on what is best in these circumstances.

5 – RECEIVING THE OFFERS

If you are selling your property through an estate agent, then any interested parties must make an offer through them. If there is more than one interested party, your agent will keep you up to date with competing offers. You don’t have to choose the highest bidder; you should consider your aims and how this relates to the buyer’s situation. If you want to move quickly, a chain free first-time buyer or someone who has already sold their property may be the best option.

6 – CONVEYANCING

Conveyancing can be a long and exhausting process and we strongly advise our clients to employ either a solicitor or licensed conveyancer to do it for you.

When you are choosing the conveyancer you are willing to work with, we advise to collect at least three conveyancer quotes. Ask you friends, your real estate agency or also your family if they can introduce you to a good solicitor. When you are meeting them, ask all the questions that are running through your mind and inform them when you would like to exchange contracts and complete. Compare the quotes and also try to negotiate a no sale – no fee deal so that if the deal falls through, you will have to pay nothing.

Conveyancing is very time consuming and complex, so you will need to employ either a solicitor or a licensed conveyancer to do it for you.

Once you have hired a conveyancer, you will need to provide some basic information, such as your mortgage roll number or your ID. The conveyancer will also ask you to fill a questionnaire about the property, covering points such as the boundaries, if you have had any dispute with the neighbors. It is a legal requirement and all of the conveyancers will ask for these documents. Prepare them beforehand.

7 – EXCHANGE THE CONTRACTS

Exchanging the contracts is the final step of the legal process after which the buyer cannot pull out anymore.

The buyer and seller contracts must be signed by both parties and provided to the respective conveyances.

In this step, completion, the date of completion is usually set. Normally it’s two weeks after the exchange date, in order to let the seller to arranging for the removal of her belongings. Once the agreed price is paid, your conveyancer will inform the agency, in order to give the keys to the new owner.

Even at this point, try to be carefully and check if the conveyancer’s completion statement is reflecting the original quotation.

8 – TIME TO MOVE OUT

You are now ready to start a new chapter of your life in a new house. Organising your moving out in advance will reduce stress and make it easier.

Let’s make this as smooth as possible.

If you need a removal firm to transport your belongings to your new house, your friends or neighbors can offer some recommendations. They might have been in this situation before you and can advise about the best removal companies in the area.

Organise yourself. When you are moving your belongings from a place to another, you will need to schedule days in advance to avoid the stress of the very last minute and to squeeze everything on the last day, without being surrounded by piles of boxes. This can also be the time to clean the house, decorating or doing some works. And of course to plan what to do with the last things you are not in need to bring with you.

We suggest avoiding Mondays and Fridays. These are the busiest days of the week for moving and the traffic will be massive.

Remember to take records of the meter readings on your moving-out day. You will need these to close your current accounts. You can also set up to be redirected a few weeks before your move out of the property with the Royal Mail, in order to do not lose your letters and also to safeguard yourself against identity theft.

The Internett is now an important element of our life. Then, plan in advance to start your contract with a provider and also an installation date, in order to avoid to be in the new property without any connection.

9 – CELEBRATE

Welcome to the end of the Step by Step Guide: how to sell a property successfully.

Now it is the time to celebrate.

The old house has been sold and you settled in the new one. Congratulations!

A new chapter of your life is now yours to be written.