Private sale versus estate agent

[Sweetchildofmine1]

Hi, we will be selling a bungalow following the death of a family member. We have been approached by about 6 individuals to say they are interested in the property.

Thinking of arranging a weekend of viewings with these individuals and also advertise beforehand on local Facebook site. Then request sealed bids (plus the position they are currently in).

Has anyone done this previously, if so what was different in the process in selling privately, was it more stressful? Or would it be more beneficial to use Estate Agents?

If you have six people interested without any marketing of the property that suggests that there would be a lot of interest if it went on the market. So probably a good idea to get a couple of agents in to do a valuation. Often the people who express interest like this have a very unrealistic view of value & think that they are going to get a bargain.

A good agent will earn their fees by marketing the property and doing some pre-checks on potential buyers to weed out the time-wasters. Then they will keep on top of the conveyancers to push the sale to completion. It is not rocket science but can be surprisingly time consuming. Of course there are a lot of rubbish agents out there.

Has probate been granted? Do you have a good conveyancing solicitor in mind? How much of the hassle do you want to take on?

Definitely get a few agents round to value it
But if you have 6 ppl interested then you are not going to have a problem selling it
Have any of the 6 suggested a price?
Do you have a rougb idea what you think its worth?
If you have a decent conveyancing solicitor then i dont think you need an agent

The bungalow was a new build (under a year old). They were in very high demand and TBH it was pot luck if you got one or not. They were set priced so you couldn't offer more then the asking price to secure it. I don't know if this is standard with new builds?

When the probate surveyor came round they added an additional 10k to what it was purchased at.

The probate solicitor has said it should be completed in about 6 - 8 weeks but has said we can start the process of selling the house before then if we like.

I would like an easy life with the paperwork side as much as possible. However the neighbours have been kind to us so we are keen to have a bit of control in who purchases it. Although I guess you don't normally get party animals purchasing bungalows 🙂

If you get estate agents round to do valuations and then decide to sell privately do you get charged?

No one has suggested a price yet, although I did make a point of saying to someone who knocked on door enquiring that other people were interested.

I guess people are hoping it will be similar to what it was originally bought as, nothing really has been done to it so it still looks like a new build

Not your standard probate dilapidated pile then
I think you will be fine selling without agents

I would definitely get an estate agent round to value it. Maybe also broach the subject of fees if you didn't require marketing. Probate value and market value can differ.
The estate agents really came into their own pushing the incompetent other Solicitors, and the niave buyers. It was the sales progression that was as vital to our sale completing as the initial rightmove advert.

Probate is 6-8 weeks ? It took nearly 10 months for DP's Dad - a straightforward estate, it came through in December so no that long ago.

I'd ask around locally to check the 6-8 weeks is a realistic estimate - again Estate agents will have a feel for this too

Hi if it were to take another 8 weeks it would be 7 months in total. Which I thought seemed quick. The solicitor said we would know if it has been agreed in about 3 weeks and then about another 3 weeks for it to be granted. So I think they thought we could get things started after the agreement.

Be aware that if your valuation exceeds what you actually sell for, you may still be liable for the original inheritance tax valuation, it’s quite a performance getting it changed.

you might be able to negotiate a selling fee with an EA if you present them with a buyer, just using them to chase the purchase if you think that’s necessary. I have done this, I’ve also sold a house without involving an agent, just getting a solicitor to issue the enquiries form and handle the finance. It was fine, definitely worth saving the fee., though I was living in the house, and we were selling it to someone in the village.

My concern would be an estate agent will do checks to confirm position of buyer. You would be just going on their word.

Thanks for the replies everyone. Thinking more about it I can be a bit of a soft touch, so knowing what I am like if we went for a private sale I would 1) Go with the person that sold me the best story rather than best position / price and 2) Feel guilty about saying no to others.

I guess with an estate agent you don't really suffer from that.

I would go with an agent if I were you. They do earn their fee in terms of checking financials, liaising with both sides, chasing solicitors and keeping everything on track. I think buyers are much more likely to mess you around if it’s a private sale (knocking money off after survey, etc).