Showing potential buyers round ourselves

[lemonyellows]

First time sellers. We have a second viewing today. Potential buyers were keen to see again, estate agents didn't have any agents free, so asked if we could show them round. (Isn't this what we are paying them for!!)

What sort of questions can we expect? What to be as prepared as possible!!

I showed a couple of people around when we were selling. Typical questions were how old is the boiler/where is the boiler, why are you selling/are you moving far, have you found somewhere yet, how long have you lived here, what are the neighbours like, what direction any garden or outside space faces. Nothing you won’t be able to answer. My advice would be try to be natural, show them each room, point out what you’ve had done, and say you’re happy to let them wander around on their own and give you a shout if you have any questions. Good luck!

Sorry just clocked it’s a 2nd viewing, sounds promising. From experience, I never take everything in on a first one.

Don’t let people wander around unsupervised ! Not everyone is honest, or even careful.

I never liked being shown around by the owner, it is quite inhibiting. The best thing is to ask where they would like to start, and go with the flow. I would just stand in the door of each room they are in, smile a lot and only answer direct questions.

We always had a file of all the guarantees and service records put out, which DH would offer to show people if they were interested. ( He once spent half an hour explaining the various ways of opening the electric gates to the male half of the viewers, he was much more interested in that than the various bedrooms. They bought the house).

What sort of questions to expect?

Well, any really. It's your job to answer them as the seller!

I think you need to be prepared for anything really!

I've spent an hour a few times, wandering around rental properties on a 2nd viewing, testing things like the water flow at every sink, how the toilet flushes, checking out cupboard space and making it clear I'm going to take as much time as I need to see if your property works for me. Probably very annoying if you're the seller in this situation, but buyers/renters can't help that.

I wouldn't follow them around, just remove any valuables (phones, ipads, etc.) and let them look around on their own. Nothing worse than someone breathing down your neck when you're trying to size the place up in terms of where your furniture would go etc. They also probably want to see what the area/garden is like at a different t time of week/day in terms of noise/natural light.

As a PP said, they won't ask you anything you can't answer, you know more about your house than any estate agent does.

Put any valuables away and let them have a wander. Have a little chat with them after and tell them about the local area, neighbours, schools etc. Point out any features of the house/area that make it nice to live in that they might not necessarily pick up on themselves. If there are negatives that they pick up on, don't lie, just follow up with a positive comment about something else.

Good luck!

Also, they might ask why you're moving. If they don't and it's not because you hate the neighbours/area etc, be sure to let them know!

This is where renting and buying differ. If you don’t like sinks or cupboards in a home you’re buying you change them.

OP please don’t follow them from room to room. Agents just let people have a wonder. On a second viewing they probably want to poke around at that patch of damp they weren’t sure about, double check if the cupboard was fitted or not, compare the second bedroom to the bed size they have etc. It’s really off putting if someone is hovering.

You know the answers to any question better than your agent!

I showed my viewers round. They bought the place. They liked the fact I had lived there so long I knew the area, neighbours etc.

I’d like the opportunity to show people round my property that I’m selling soon.

I can then tell them all the great things that they’d never see on a viewing.

Ie the garden has sun all day, but in a heatwave there’s always a shady spot. And on windy days you can nearly always find somewhere that’s a sun trap. That it’s a really friendly village, and we have regular get togethers You can see horses and sheep from the upstairs windows. Etc, etc.

And best of all, I once found a truffle under an oak tree nearby.

Thanks. This is helpful.

I think DH is going to do it and I'll take the kids out so not to overcrowd.

Thankfully it's a sunny day which always shows the house in its best light

Definitely have one of you take the kids out and the the other do the viewing. I don’t mind being shown around by the vendor but once it was the whole family following us room to room and it was SO off putting. ^^

We did all our viewings as we felt we were the ones that knew the most about the house and area. We showed them downstairs and then the garden and garage and then upstairs and asked them if they wanted to have a look at anything else again. We talked about how long we had lived there, what the neighbours were like, why we were moving etc. we had a few questions about the boiler, garage roof and windows eg how old etc and one person asked about internet speeds in the area