There are a lot of different elements when it comes to selling a houBottom of Formse, and if it’s your first time, or your first time in a while, it can be easy to make mistakes. Unfortunately, when selling property, mistakes often come with a sizable price tag, a delay in the sale, or everything falling through altogether. We’ve put together this guide to help anyone avoid the missteps that come with selling a house. We’ll cover the most common mistakes made when selling a property and share advice on how you can avoid making them yourself.

Underestimating the costs involved

Selling a home can be costly, and there are numerous expenses to consider before listing your property.
Firstly, you’ll have to bear in mind the fees and commission charges of your chosen estate agent (whether considering an online or high street estate agent). The average fee charged by traditional estate agents in the UK is currently 1.42% of the final selling price. Online estate agents tend to charge a flat fee regardless of the value of your home, and most are between £300 and £1,500.
On top of this, there are any repair costs, moving costs, solicitor fees, any mortgage exit/porting fees, as well as the costs of buying a new property. Having an accurate estimation of how much it will cost to sell your home helps ensure the process goes smoothly and doesn’t leave you short of money once you’ve sold.
If you’re wondering how some of these costs add up, take a look at the table below, which shows the costs of using a traditional estate agency compared to selling to us at House Buyer Bureau.

£120,000 example	Cash sale	Traditional estate agency
Asking price example	£120,000	£120,000
Average agreed purchase price	£95,000	£110,000
Final agreed price after survey	£95,000	£108,000
Estate agent fees	£0.00	£1,534
Estimated cosmetic repairs to prepare your house for sale	£0.00	£1,500
Solicitor fees	£0.00	£1,642*
Estimated bills (during the average 5-month sale process)	£0.00	£1,200
Estimated mortgage payments (during the sale process)	£0.00	£6,250**
Net price achieved	£95,000	£95,874

*based on average UK solicitor fees for selling a house

**£1,250 per month based on the average of 5 months to sell

Entering the housing market without conducting any prior research

Going blindly into an unstable or slow housing market could cause you to make the mistake of putting your property on the market at a particularly bad time. Before putting your home on the market, take a look at other properties in your area and how well they’re faring.
You can use sites like Home to see how much similar homes to yours are selling for in your area. While it’s useful to also look at the asking prices (on property portals like Rightmove and Zoopla), the actual sold prices will be more telling. You can use those portals, however, to keep an eye on how long each property has been on the market for, as this will tell you how “warm” (active) the market is.

Setting the wrong asking price

Doing the research above will help you in deciding what a good asking price is, but you should also get valuations from local property experts, such as estate agents. It’s best to get 2-3 independent valuations of your property, so you don’t base your asking price on an errant figure.
Some estate agents will place a high valuation on your property in a bid to win your business. If you set an unrealistic asking price, this may delay the sale of your property. Homes that are priced too high and then reduced take considerably longer to sell than properties priced accurately from day one on the market.
An overpriced house is also much more likely to lead to a down valuation. This happens when the buyer’s mortgage surveyor values a property at less than the offer amount accepted by the seller. When this happens, the buyer may not secure the full loan amount that they need to proceed with the purchase, resulting in a failed sale.
Average house prices are very accessible nowadays, so if your initial asking price is unrealistic, your potential buyers will likely be aware of this and be put off by your property.
Top Tip: Don’t rely solely on an estate agent’s valuation. Do your own research into how much properties similar to yours have sold for locally, and ask us for a free valuation of your home today!

Choosing the wrong method to sell your home

When it comes to selling your home, many people only choose the most ‘traditional’ route – selling through an estate agent. However, this isn’t the only option, and there are pros and cons to each. We recommend taking a look at each route and finding the best choice for you.
The different approaches, as well as their pros and cons, include:

It can be tempting to try to go it alone to avoid expensive estate agency fees, but it’s worth remembering that selling your property will then be mostly down to you, leaving you with a lot of work to do. That’s why it’s worth carefully considering the above pros and cons and getting a no-obligation cash offer from a property buyer such as ourselves, as this is the only way to be armed with all of the information you need to decide how to sell your home.

Check out our guide to selling property without estate agents here.

Problems with your estate agent

Estate agent fees are, on average, 1.42% of the sale price, but in some cases they can be as high as 3.6%. On a house that sells for the current average of £270,000, that amounts to £3,834 on average, or £9,720 at the top end. Despite this eye-watering commission level, you’re not guaranteed a first-class service.
Poor communication, restrictive “sole agency” agreements and generally poor service (for example, sending potential buyers inaccurate property details and not being available for viewings) are common problems that sellers encounter with estate agents. What’s more, if you decide not to sell or you find your own buyer, you may still owe the agent their fee (depending on the terms of your contract).
Don’t stick with an estate agent that’s underperforming and doesn’t seem to be getting anywhere with shifting your property. If your estate agent isn’t working for you, move on. Don’t bide your time and lose out as a result, especially as the longer your property is on the market, the less it is likely to sell for, as buyers pay attention to ‘time on market’.
Top Tip: If you have problems with your estate agent, you can contact the government-approved complaints scheme that they belong to. Every agent must belong to The Property Ombudsman, Ombudsman Services or The Property Redress Scheme. You can also switch estate agents or sell your property without an estate agent.

Not presenting your home in the best light

Not taking care of maintenance issues

Most, if not all, homes require at least some form of repair or maintenance at the time of putting the property on the market – and it’s worth remembering that buyers will be turned off by any problems you leave for them to fix. As the potential buyer will almost certainly have a survey carried out, these repairs will undoubtedly be found, and it could cause the buyer to make you a lower offer.

If you’re going to be selling a house that needs repairs, save yourself the time and money in the long-run by ensuring all necessary repairs and maintenance are taken care of first. This doesn’t mean a complete renovation! It’s just a question of removing any major barriers.

Failing to prepare your property for photography and viewings

These days, most homebuyers begin their search online, and so having photographs that showcase your home in its best light is important to catch their attention immediately. It’s also generally helpful to ‘stage’ your home for viewings – this means positioning everything in a flattering layout, getting rid of any clutter and ensuring all surfaces are clean and tidy.

The staging element of your property is even more important if your house will be vacant at the time of viewing, as you want the potential buyers to see it as a home for themselves, not just an empty shell.

Ignoring kerb appeal 

Related to preparing your property, but deserving its own special shoutout, is kerb appeal. If you’re selling through an agent and putting your home on the open market, then kerb appeal needs to be addressed. It’s possible that potential buyers could be passing by your home regularly while it’s on the market, and you want to catch their eye. You don’t need to make big changes, just simply spruce it up a little with some fresh paint, getting rid of weeds, cleaning the pavements, keeping any grass neat and tidy and placing some flowers or greenery around the entrance.

Lack of advertisement and marketing of your home

If you’re putting your property on the market using a high street or online agent, then it’s important to double-check that your property is being marketed as widely and as well as possible. Make sure your property is listed online, certainly at least on Zoopla and Rightmove, as well as your chosen estate agent’s website and any other local property websites. The listing should include top-quality imagery, and, increasingly, listings are coming with a virtual tour of the home. This may come at a cost, but your estate agent might be able to help you with this.
You should have visible For Sale signage outside of your home and encourage your friends, family and colleagues to let anyone who may be interested know that your home is on the market.

Staying emotionally attached to the property

This is one of the most commonly made mistakes, and it’s only natural to have made a home out of your property over the years. It probably holds a lot of memories, and you may have put a lot of effort into making it your own. Once you decide to sell, however, you have to learn to let go of this and become objective about your reasons for selling. Try to look at your home the way potential buyers will, to ensure you’re covering all bases for viewings.
If buyers think you’re emotionally invested in the property, it could put them off making an offer for fear of you backing out at the last moment. You should also avoid letting your emotions rule negotiations – instead, view your property as a commodity that will soon be owned by someone else.

Delays on the buyer’s side

While this isn’t a mistake, it’s something to be aware of when selling your home.
One of the most common causes of delay on the buyer’s side is the time it takes to get the necessary mortgage approved. Until the buyer’s finances are in place, the exchange of contracts can’t happen, which delays the completion of the sale. By selling to a cash buyer, you can avoid this delay altogether.
The buyer’s decision to buy your home might be contingent on them completing various renovation work, so they may stall the sale until the necessary planning permission has been obtained. Or, if they are selling a property to buy yours, their buyer may be causing delays.
Whatever the reason, buyer delays can be problematic for sellers, especially if they have committed to buying another property and can only do so when their current home sells.
Top tip: If you see signs that the buyer may delay completion, speak to your solicitor or conveyancer for advice as soon as possible. Sell to a cash house buyer to eliminate the risk of delays due to property chain problems and financing issues. 

A quick, easy and guaranteed sale with House Buyer Bureau

Alternatively, skip the need for viewings altogether by opting for a quick cash sale to House Buyer Bureau.
Luckily, when you sell to House Buyer Bureau, you don’t need to worry about any of the above. We buy your property regardless of how it looks, its condition or its location. We can even do it in a timescale that suits you, or in as little as seven days.
We remove all the hassle of maintenance, repairs, viewings, marketing and advertising, expensive estate agent fees and property market uncertainty. We can offer you a fair and competitive price for your property, and we won’t lower this once the formal offer has been made.

We are a genuine cash buyer with the funds readily available to buy your home. If you want a fast and easy way to sell your home without the worry of making mistakes, get in touch with us today, or simply enter your postcode on our homepage to receive an instant cash offer for your property.