Our step by step guide
to selling your property

Step 1 Accurate Valuation

This step is perhaps one of the most important in the process. There are many Agents who actively over value a home just to get it to the market and then spend the next three months trying to beat you down on price. Always ask questions about the value and demand comparable evidence.

Our expert valuers carry out thousands of valuations every month, giving us intimate and unparalleled knowledge of property values in your area. We will give you real evidence of how we have reached our valuation. Demand it of everyone.

For these reasons we consistently achieve the asking price across all our clients' properties.

Call your local office or submit your request on line.

 

Step 2 Choosing an agent

When choosing an agent, be sure to listen to what they are going to do for you before you need to ask. If you need to ask they cannot be confident that they will deliver. It is not all about putting a board up in a garden and handing out details and arranging viewings. There are lots of proactive things an Agent can do to get your home sold. These are critical to obtaining the maximum price for your property. Demand service. Remember with Ashley Adams you also get your property marketed through our Burchell Edwards branch offices and website. This adds a considerable amount of additional value and exposure.

 

Step 3 Preparing Marketing Information

We will prepare a comprehensive marketing plan which will include our high quality laminated sales particulars that show off your property to it’s full potential.

 

Step 4 Instruct a Conveyancer

It is advisable to instruct your conveyancer at the same time as choosing your agent.

This will definitely help to avoid delays and allow time to obtain necessary documentation that will be involved in transferring ownership of your property to the new buyer (known as conveyancing). Some of these documents may already be included in the HIP. We only recommend our own in house conveyancing practice because we know how important the conveyancing process is and we recognise that clients have not been getting the service they require from outside organisations.

 

Step 5 Maximum Exposure

When you instruct Ashley Adams to sell your property you will automatically benefit from our unrivalled, marketing service. Many Estate Agents take the word "AGENT" literally. They wait for a buyer and bring the parties together in a sale. Not at Ashley Adams. Estate Agency is about proactive and effective marketing. Be sure to understand from your Agent what are the most effective methods of marketing a property through to a successful completion. You could be surprised by the answers. If they say advertising it in the paper don’t instruct them!

Remember with Ashley Adams you also get your property marketed through our Burchell Edwards branch offices and website. This adds a considerable amount of additional value and exposure.

 

Step 6 Viewings

It is important that you have a proactive Agent if you are to maximise viewing opportunities. The majority of viewings are carried out in the evening and weekends. Make sure that your Agent is working for you when it matters. Make sure that they are available during these times when viewers want to see your home. It is all well and good to arrange viewings but without swift and honest feedback it will be harder to sell your home. Demand that you get early feedback on viewings and a plan for future viewings is discussed.

We are open longer hours and passionately believe in generating a stampede of viewings. We will give you swift and honest feedback. Anyone who does not is doing you a disservice.

Step 7 Receiving an offer

As soon as an offer is received we will notify you both verbally and in writing.  Demand that your Agent talks through the position of the purchaser and the offer they have made.   

Step 8 Agreeing to Sell

Once you have accepted an offer it is important that the following details are agreed:

Details of any extras included or excluded from the purchase

Date for buyer's/lender's survey on your property

Date for exchange of contracts

Date for completion

We will advise you and negotiate on your behalf throughout this process, keeping you informed every step of the way. It is important that all paperwork requested by your Conveyancer is returned as a matter of urgency. It is usually at this stage of the process that delay is caused rather towards the end.

Step 9 Drafting contract and supporting paperwork

Once an offer has been agreed, your Conveyancer will send out a draft contract and the HIP for your property to the purchaser's Conveyancer who will then carry out preliminary enquiries.

Your Conveyancer will seek outstanding supporting paperwork (where applicable) such as title deeds, copy of lease, fixtures and fittings list, seller's questionnaire, planning consent, guarantees, copy of building regulations and share of freehold certificate. It is extremely important that all documentation requested is provided as quickly as possible to avoid delays.

 

 

Step 10 Service charge accounts and building insurance

Service charge accounts do not generally apply to freehold properties. Where you have a leasehold property you should forward copies of your service charge accounts over the last three years, estimates for the forthcoming year and building insurance certificates to your Conveyancer the moment you instruct us to market your property. These also need to be added to your HIP. You could also ask your Conveyancer to collect these documents from the Managing Agent.

 

Step 11 Exchange of Contracts

Exchange of contracts occurs when all preliminary enquiries from the draft contract and local search queries have been answered and agreed.

Most buyers require mortgages. Once the mortgage offer has been confirmed, the purchaser is ready to exchange contracts with the seller. The contract is signed by buyer and seller and the deposit (usually 10% of the purchase price) is either telegraphically transferred or paid in the form of a banker's draft by the buyer's Conveyancer. The completion date is set at this stage.

 

Step 12 Completion

This is generally set a few days to a few weeks after exchange of contracts, depending on the personal requirements of the buyer and seller but can, and often is these days, on the same day as exchange of contracts.

The remaining monies are transferred from the buyer's Conveyancer to your Conveyancers account and the transaction has completed.

Congratulations on selling your property!