You take the decision to sell your property. How do you make the sales process run smoothly?
There is a lot to look at when selling a home. The red tape has already dared to get in, the house has not always stood the test of time intact and the emotional departure from the house can make the sale procedure difficult. After all, a lot of factors play a significant role outside the price.
Place the offered property in the right category
Meet the expectations of potential buyers by placing your home in the right category. The basic characteristics of the different types of houses (terraced house, semi-detached buildings, detached house, duplex apartment, penthouse, loft,) are obvious. However, there are still differences within these general categories. A spacious rural detached house, a villa, is distinguished by the number of bedrooms or bathrooms, a terraced house with the surface of the garden and an apartment based on whether or not have a parking space and / or terrace.
Emotional value? Objective price!
To determine the price of your home, there are a number of basic criteria such as the year of construction, the location, the architectural style and any other properties that are for sale in the area. Also the state of the house, the EPC value1, the possible renovation costs and the expansion possibilities are important.
Your memories of the house are invaluable … however, these are still missing from the future owner and should therefore not play a role in the price determination.
An independent expert can offer assistance in determining an objective value.
Do not fix on a specific sale date
Setting a deadline on the sale of a property is fine, but do not stare blindly on a date. The entire process does take some time. It is important to determine the most favorable sales moment for you. Ideally, this is a time when you can free up the necessary time for visits from potential buyers and / or open house days where buyers can come and take a look.
Energy performance and other certificates
Request the necessary certificates from the competent authorities before you offer your property for sale. Certain misunderstandings are possible in the border regions. If you do not complete the written formalities in time, they can significantly delay the sales process. Effective sales can only take place as soon as all necessary documents are available.
Advertising
If you sell your house, you obviously want as many people as possible to know that your house is for sale. A sign on the facade or an advertisement gives a first visibility to the sale. However, consider the possible channels thoroughly in function of time, effort and money. Match the choice of channels to the profile of your target group of potential buyers. Via an advertisement in the local advertising magazine you reach a different audience than through an advertisement on a real estate site. If you decide to make a certain budget available for advertising, do not spend this amount completely in the first sales week, because good visibility is desirable throughout the entire sales process.
Objective analysis
Subject your property to an extensive and objective analysis. What are the big advantages of your home? Where are the possible defects? What extension options does the building offer and which parts of the house are really in need of renewal? In other words, try to view your home through the eyes of a prospective buyer. Do not soften lesser points, such as a crack or loose tiles. This could turn against you afterwards. So play from the start open card and build a relationship of trust with the prospective buyer.
A cozy atmosphere
Make the house inviting for the potential buyers and create a cozy atmosphere during the viewing moments. Candidate buyers are interested in the spaces, not in your furniture or private life. Remove those heavy curtains, remove the large antique cupboard from your bedroom, create light and space and emphasize the strengths of your home. With these small adjustments, visitors are guaranteed a completely different feeling when entering the rooms.
Is a room really in bad condition, consider to renovate that space yourself? Limited embellishment interventions, ‘home staging’, can positively influence the marketability of a house.
Your house = a home!
The secret of an attractive house with a homely atmosphere is in the small things. A musty smell immediately gives an unpleasant feeling to potential buyers. Therefore, ventilate every room regularly. In addition, let the heating switch to a low setting during cold periods in the cold: in a unheated house a buyer will not see a cozy home. Do not forget to occasionally rinse the windows and dust the furniture, in short, continue to take care of the house as you did before. And what applies to the house also applies to the (for) garden. The range of tasks varies per season: in winter you provide a snow-free path, in the autumn you can clean the leaves and in the spring and summer you mow the grass.
Weigh each bid
Have you received a bid? Congrats! Before you throw yourself in the sales negotiations, several questions are important: is it a realistic offer? Have the prospective buyers checked their financial standing with the bank? Whereas in the past, an average of 1 in 10 sales declined due to insufficient financial capacity at the candidate buyer, this number is already fluctuating between 20% and 25% today.
The above reflections can help you determine whether you agree with the bid if you want to continue negotiating the sales price. If necessary, let yourself be assisted by an objective third party: in a sales process very strict rules apply to accepting or rejecting a bid. For example, a written offer is binding, provided that certain conditions have been met. Always include the necessary clauses such as suspense conditions in the compromise and / or bid. This is to avoid a delay in sales if the financial capacity of the potential buyers proves to be insufficient.
Buyer found! What now?
You have reached an agreement with a prospective buyer, what are the next steps now? In addition to requesting the necessary certificates on time, it is important to inform you properly about the necessary administrative obligations after sales. The private sales agreement, compromise, is a binding agreement in which you, as seller, state that you sell the property to the buyer at a certain price. Pay sufficient attention to this document and have it prepared by an expert: it is extremely important that it is correct, clear and complete! Usually an advance payment is made when the sales agreement is signed.
In order to legally seal the sale, the notary draws up a notarial deed on the basis of this compromise. This should be done by the band within four months of signing the compromise. The notary calls the parties together to have this deed executed (read aloud and sign), registers the deed at the registration office and arranges the transfer of the deed at the mortgage office. Through this transfer, the deed becomes enforceable against third parties, which means that any creditors of you as a seller can no longer claim the sold property.