Deciding which method of selling

[TheSilveryPussycat]

Am about to put house on market. It needs modernising and l would like a quick sale. Should I use standard method of selling, or Modern Method of Auction?

How bad is the property? Would only a developer buy it or could it go to someone lookin for a bit of a project?

Go to market first. Price realistically.

Dont do modern method of auction... it's a scam.. only benefits the agent as they get paid as long as they get an offer accepted... I am surprised agents are still allowed to use the method. I wouldnt even look at a house being sold that way.
A proper property auction yes fine
But I would go open market at a realistic price first

Property is reasonably sound but downstairs the kitchen is small, as it is an old miners house and the old larger kitchen was knocked through to the living room, and kitchen is half the size it would have been. So could possibly be a project but more likely to appeal to developer. Its in a run down ex mining town, and properties of this type in this location have lost value. Lots of property round here are advertised as MMoS. Not sure how its a scam - could you elaborate? A big advantage to me would be speed and non-negotiation.

Modern Method of Auction means the buyers have to pay a reservation fee - usually a percentage of the sale price - to the estate agents. If they pull out they lose that fee. Furthermore that reservation fee is not a deposit, it's making the buyers pay the EA's commission upfront.

The EA gets their fee and you may not sell. Arguably there is no incentive for EA to actually get the house sold.

For the kind of property you're talking about, I cannot see a developer preferring to buy by this method as opposed to at traditional auction. When the deposit is paid at traditional auction then contracts have effectively exchanged and there are 28 days in which to complete. With MMoA once the reservation fee is paid there are 28 days to exchange and a further 28 days to complete.

For someone interested in buying the house to live in, will they really have this reservation fee up front in addition to the deposit and money to renovate? I doubt it.

It mainly benefits greedy EAs who are really exploiting the seller's desperation not to spend any money.

Ok I get that I think. BTW house is valued at 60-65K, so actual monies for reservation and deposit involved would not be huge. Might that make a difference?

Think if you were a buyer - would you want to pay the money to only then risk that things will come up in the survey or the bank will value it lower than the agreed price? All that would happen is you’d need to pull out and lose the reservation fee paid.

So a lot of people won’t look at such properties as they don’t want to risk losing money.

Having a small kitchen isn’t that much of a problem and I can see a developer buying the property as there probably just isn’t money to be made given the values.

If agents don’t want to list it normally or have high fees, just go with an online agent. You’ll pay a few hundred but they’ll sort out your pictures, floorplans, book appointments and won’t put if buyers with their reservation fees.

The value might not be much but in all honesty the kind of buyer interested in your house to live in is unlikely to have lots of money so a non-refundable reservation fee will very likely put them off. Think of it as added to the purchase price if it helps. I'd just try to sell it conventionally and possibly via an online agent, but not Purple Bricks who get your money whether you sell or not in many cases.

As someone actively looking on the market to buy and not minding something that needs TLC so I can add my own stamp to a place.

I've found around 5 listings now on rightmove where I really like the look of a place, only to scroll down and see that it's by modern method of auction.

For me it's an instant off put and I move onto something else. When you read that the EA wants a 4% deposit or £6k depending on which is more, on acceptance of offer/end of auction which doesn't even come off the sale price plus auctioneer's fees, buyers packs at £250 a pop in some case. Just no!

Not only have you got the find your traditional mortgage deposit, you need the cash for the other costs on top which in some cases is more than your mortgage deposit.

If the 5 houses I'd seen would have been a traditional listing, I'd have ended up buying one of them no doubt.

Thanks all. I shall be following your advice.