You have made the decision to move, perhaps you want an extra bedroom, or maybe the kids have moved out and you are downsizing to a smaller property. You have had the house valued, chosen an estate agent and it is about to go on the market. You may even have found the perfect place that you want to buy so need to sell quickly so you don’t lose your purchase. Is there anything you can do to help speed up the sale?
In short, Yes! There are numerous websites offering advice on how to prepare your house for viewings or if you should carry out any work on the property and your estate agent will be well placed to advise you on this. There are however, various think you can arrange to enable to the sale to proceed quickly as soon as you have a buyer.
Firstly, instruct your solicitors as soon as possible. You will need to visit them with ID documents (such as a driving license, passport and utility bill) to prove who you are and the earlier this is done the better. You will need to complete a property Information Form and a Fixtures and contents list that details what you are including with the sale and what you are taking with you. Whilst viewings are taking place and you are looking for a buyer is the perfect time to be working on these forms. You will need to collate any planning permissions, building regulations paperwork and guarantees for building work that has been carried out, FENSA certificates and warranties for any replacement windows and GASESAFE certificates and guarantees for replacement boilers. The sooner you have these together, the quicker your solicitor can send them over to any buyer. If your boiler hasn’t been serviced for a while you may wish to have it serviced at this stage. If it is a while since the last service a buyer is likely to ask for it to be done, and whilst you don’t have to, it may assist the sale if you have had it done.
If you have a mortgage, make sure that you have your account number and contact details for your lender handy – your solicitor will need these too.
Finally, if you own a leasehold property, you will need to gather ground rent and service charges statements and receipts. You will need a pack of information from the freeholder and it is worth contacting them at an early stage to find out how much this would be so that it can be ordered as soon as a buyer has been found to avoid delays at a later stage.
If you have a query or would like to book an appointment with our Residential Property team then please get in touch with our First Contact team on 01256 320555 or email mail@clarkeandson.co.uk
