First of all we visit your property in order to value it and decide on an asking price with you. We will then prepare details of the house to send out to people who are interested in buying it. These details will include the number and size of the rooms, a floor plan and sometimes the fixtures and fittings which will be left in the house. We also arrange for the property to be advertised in various ways that may include the internet, magazines and newspapers, direct mailings and a for sale board.
We do all of the viewings ourselves except on the rare occasion where we ask you to be in to supervise the viewing yourself.
You can sell the house to whoever you want and do not have to sell to the buyer who offers the most money. You may wish to take into account whether the buyer:-
We obtain this information for you and advise you as to who we think the best prospective purchaser will be.
It is unlawful for a seller who uses an estate agent to discriminate against a prospective buyer on grounds of race, sex or disability, either by refusing to sell the property, or by offering it on less favourable terms.
We will negotiate with the potential buyer(s) about the price. We will try and obtain the best possible price for you. You do not.
Even if you have accepted an offer, there is nothing in law to prevent you from changing your mind and accepting a higher offer from someone else. You should also bear in mind that when an offer is made and accepted the potential buyer can also withdraw, for example, they may not get a mortgage, or the survey may show up some structural problem.
When you have accepted an offer you need to inform whoever is doing the legal work. You could:-
Most firms of solicitors offer a conveyancing service. Although all solicitors can legally do conveyancing, it is advisable to choose a solicitor who has experience of this work.
You can use a licensed conveyancer to do your conveyancing. Licensed conveyancers are not solicitors but are licensed by the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.
If you want to find out if a local conveyancer is licensed you can write to the Council of Licensed Conveyancers.
Before making a choice as to who will do the conveyancing, you should find out the probable cost. It is important to contact more than one solicitor or licensed conveyancer as there is no set scale of fees for conveyancing. You should:-
When contracts are exchanged, and before completion, the buyer may wish to visit the house, for example, to measure up for carpets or to get an estimate for building work. However, you should not allow any work to be done by the buyer before completion.
You should inform the fuel companies and phone company that you are leaving and ask for final readings to be made of the meters on completion day. You should also inform the person at the council responsible for council tax, or in Northern Ireland, the Rate Collection Agency responsible for rates collection.
If the buyer is paying a deposit, this will be paid to your solicitor at exchange of contracts. The solicitor will hold this deposit until completion.
You must arrange to leave the house empty by completion day and to hand over all the keys.
Your solicitor will receive the rest of the purchase price from the buyer and will pass this, together with the deposit, to you.
Click here for 'A Guide To Buying'