First Steps to Sell a House

Smiley11

Just wondering if anybody has recent experience of and/or tips with regard to putting a house on the market? I think I'm pretty much ready to go but the only thing I know I need to do is find an estate agent.

I've seen a lot of negativity about them recently so am obviously keen to find one who actually has interest in selling my house & won't just stand outside the door waving people in as I've heard of from friends lately! There are several agents in Cork City who would be very well known but I don't want to choose someone based on that alone. I presume I should ring a few to gauge them personally? Also, is there a varying percentage of commission from agent to agent?

TIA

JoeySully

I think the important thing is to ensure you have a good contract with the EA before you start and set out your expectations from the onset.

AS a buyer its very off putting reading poorly worded and poorly punctuated ads online. GOOD quality pictures of all the house are essential. If they are charging you for taking photos then they must be of good quality and not just pictures of flower pots and shrubs in the garden! If they start taking pictures with a smartphone id be showing them the door. A wide angle lens and good quality camera is what they should be using.
An exact pointer on the map of where exactly the house is is also essential as I have never been able to follow the rambling directions that EA put into ads.
An accurate BER!! so many houses we went to view had the wrong BER on the ads.

Agree with them in writing how long it will take for them to return calls to potential buyers. We had so many EA that never called us back or never showed up at the viewings.

spaceHopper

check with your solicitor that every thing is in order, did you build an extension, do you have all the certs for it.....
Tidy the house and gardens, de clutter and then some...
Go see a few open viewings so that you can see what to expect, it will help with picking an EA.
Look at the property price register and see what houses like your sold for in the last few years.
Lastly you'd want to get moving the selling season is about to start again and you'll miss the boat, it's harder to sell a house come November.

Smiley11

Thanks guys for the valuable input. I think everything is pretty much straightforward, bar the BER...the house is a couple of hundred years old so I'll have to research that!

Yes, hopefully I'll have it on in the next couple of weeks as its been delayed unavoidably until now. Do EA's look for money up front to cover photos, etc? I've seen a few on Daft/MyHome recently & the photos were shocking! One EA seemed to think the flowers in the garden far more noteworthy than the house itself & I'm amazed at the amount of people who leave houses untidy when a photographer is due! I would have thought a seller would do as much as they could to make a house presentable but some just don't seem bothered.

JoeySully

If its an old house then I would ask around for recommendations, I dont think the mainstream estate agents will do a good enough job selling it to potential buyers.

Here is one of the best ads i have found although the quality of the house does help
http://www.property.ie/property-for-sale/The-Old-Barracks-Inchigeelagh-Macroom-Co-Cork/1077754/

Smiley11

Thats an impressive advert alright Joey! That house is an easy sell I'd imagine as its pretty impressive & the photos are definitely flattering, not that it would need much! My poor city pad isn't a patch on it but you're right, I'll have to do my research & see what they've got to offer. Theres one I have in mind who seems to specialise in older houses & I picked out another two who seem to be increasing in popularity & advertise well online so I'll give them a call tomorrow.