It is a tough property market at the moment but some people make it tougher for themselves. The very first step to achieving a fast house sale is knowing what your property is worth. A good Estate Agent will be able to give you a valuation but you need to make it clear to them …. what price do you suggest marketing the property for, what price do they think they can actually sell for, and finally what price a RICS (Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors) will most likely value the property.
Knowing these 3 figures is key:
The price an Estate Agent will market your house for is the “asking price” and it is always negotiable in the eyes of the buyer, especially in a market where prices are falling. Don’t place hopes on achieving this price, especially if you want a fast house sale.
The price the Estate Agent thinks you will achieve. This is after negotiation with a prospective buyer, the price that you receive an offer to purchase. Again beware, the Estate Agent will often talk up this price to one they they “hope to find a buyer for”, it is by no means certain. For a fast sale you are very unlikely to achieve this price.
The third figure is the RICS valuation, this is the most important figure as it is what the buyer’s mortgage will be based on. The RICS valuation is accepted as the open market value of your property at the current time. If you sell for the RICS valuation in the current market it can be considered a fair deal for both buyer and seller.
Now back to our headline, how to sell your house fast. You need to understand where the market is heading, are prices static, increasing, or decreasing. At the time of drafting this post prices seem to be stabilizing, or possibly falling slightly. On this basis you need to price your property to sell by offering a discount to the current RICS valuation. Pricing your property in this way will make you stand out from the crowd. You will also need to market your property through as many channels as possible, do not rely on one Estate Agent, try multiple agents, you can also try to find a private property buyer through an online search.
