In a property market where prices continue to decline, savvy property owners are choosing to cut out the estate agent and go the SIY (Sell It Yourself) route. When a property owner sells privately, they eliminate the estate agent's commission and can make substantial savings. Property owners can use this cost saving to offer a more attractive price to buyers, and still net more in the overall deal.
Estate agents charge an average commission of 1.5 per cent plus VAT. So on a house valued at s550,000, the estate agent would charge almost s10,000 in fees. When compared to the fee of under s200 charged by SIY websites, the saving is substantial.
Sellityourself.ie is one such website dedicated to SIY property sales. The company provides property sellers with a complete selling package – everything from an online property listing, ‘for sale’ signboard, pointer board and a newspaper advertising service. The one-time s195 fee ensures your property is listed until sold.
You can show your house to potential buyers and handle the price negotiations, before handing the sale over to the solicitor for closing.
In last month’s issue we looked at property viewings. The decision to go the SIY route will often hinge on the property owner’s perception of property viewings.
Many feel daunted by the prospect of showing a stranger around their house but, as we outlined last month, the process of conducting viewings is much more straightforward than many people think. In truth, the owner is best placed to show their home to potential buyers as they can provide full details on every aspect of the property, the neighbourhood, and facilities in the area. This information is extremely important to anyone buying a home. Sellityourself.ie offers their clients a property viewing step-by-step guide as well as a guide to pricing your property which provides property owners with essential information on these two important areas.
Once you have decided your property price, prepared your property and are confident about handling the viewings, it’s time to promote your property and spread the word. Estate agents will promote your property by erecting a ‘for sale’ signboard, listing your property on the internet, placing your property details in their office and advertising it in the local press at an extra cost. When selling property on your own, you can go above and beyond the promotional efforts of the estate agent.
Sellityourself.ie replicates the promotional services of the traditional estate agent. The site offers property owners a complete property selling package – everything from an online property listing, ‘for sale’ signboard, pointer board and a newspaper advertising service. Anybody considering selling on their own would be wise to sign up with this service – because the ‘for sale’ sign, pointer board and discounts for newspaper advertising alone are worth more than the registration fee of s195.
PROMOTING YOUR PROPERTY
According to Anne-Marie Doyle, founder of Sellityourself.ie, the ‘for sale’ signboard can account for between 20 and 30 per cent of property enquiries. “Erecting a For Sale signboard is essential. The chances are that the person purchasing your property will be from your locality so the signboard is free advertising – it gets word out that your property is available,” says Doyle. “A pointer board is also essential for attracting interest if your property is not located on a main traffic route. Both are provided free of charge to sellers who register with our website.”
In the current property climate, advertising your property in newspapers to ensure your property reaches the widest possible audience is becoming increasingly popular. This can prove costly if doing it alone, especially if advertising in the national press. However, Sellityourself.ie has negotiated special offers with all national and local newspapers throughout Ireland, and they will prepare and submit your ad. You can advertise in the main national Sunday property supplements for as little as s100 – a good investment if it helps move your home.
While these are the obvious promotional tools, SIYers are being a little more creative in their efforts to sell. “Two years ago, you required little in the way of promotional effort,” says Doyle. “Today, it’s a different story. We have found that many property owners are taking advantage of our newspaper advertising offers. Others are more creative and are printing their own property brochures and flyers from the website, posting them on places like community notice boards. Some are taking advantage of free editorial coverage from editors of property magazines and supplements who may be looking for a unique property or a unique story.”
While these promotional extras aren’t always necessary, they may give your property the edge that results in an all-important offer.
AGREEING A PRICE
Once your property has caught the attention of the buying market, you may receive several offers on your property. How do you deal with these offers? Do you have to negotiate a price? Many estate agents will have you believe that negotiating a price is a skilled art and that it’s best leave it to them – nonsense! David, a property owner from Phibsborough, recently sold a four-bedroom property without using an agent. “Price negotiations simply involved letting the interested buyers know what the latest bid on the property was. I was under no pressure to decide on an offer. However, when I did receive an offer close enough to my asking price, I didn’t sit on it.”
Doyle would advise keeping clear records of the name of the buyer, the amount of the offer and the date the offer was placed. While you don’t have to accept or reject an offer immediately, it is advisable to keep would-be buyers informed of what is happening and always bear the current economic climate in mind. “I sold slightly below the asking price, but was happy to do so, as I had built a small margin for this when setting it (the price),” says Doyle.
“With property prices going the way they are, I wasn’t going to push for that extra thousand or two and risk the buyer walking away.”
Once the price has been agreed, Doyle recommends that you send a letter to the buyer outlining your name and address, the name and address of your buyer, the agreed price, details of your property and what is included in the sale, and an approximate time frame in which you both expect the contracts to be signed and details of your solicitor. This is formally known as a ‘sales advice note’. You should also request the details of the buyer’s solicitor.
If you have requested a booking deposit, you should ask that it will be paid directly to your solicitor.
CLOSING THE SALE
The final step involved in selling your home is referred to as closing the sale.
Closing the sale involves the transfer of the ownership of the property (title) from you to the buyer and the signing of all final legal documents. This process is also known as conveyancing.
Closing the sale is actually the easiest part of the whole SIY process as your solicitor handles all legal aspects of the property sale, regardless of whether you sell your property SIY or with an estate agent.
There is a common misconception that estate agents are actually necessary to sell a house or land and that they have some involvement in the legal side of the property sale. This is not so. Your solicitor handles all legal aspects of the property sale, the estate agent plays no part.
Once you have found a buyer for your property you will instruct your solicitor to close the sale in exactly the same manner as you would if an estate agent had found a buyer for you. Simply give your solicitor a copy of the letter which outlines the details of the sale (the sales advice note). The solicitor will also need the details of the buyer’s solicitor as all correspondence now will be between the two solicitors.
The solicitor you choose for conveyancing will conduct a range of tasks on your behalf. The general tasks include drawing up and assessing contracts, conducting local searches, dealing with the Land Registry, managing stamp duty charges, managing the collection and transfer of funds and providing legal advice and recommendations. Your solicitor will ensure that all legal documents are in order to prevent any problems arising in the future.
Once the sale is complete, the buyer is handed the keys of your property and takes ownership.
