What is the Process for Selling a House?

Many people who wish to sell their home are not usually aware of the exact way in order to sell it. There is a common process in place that should be followed to help get a house on the market and hopefully to sell it. At present the housing market is relatively static and many would described it as being a buyers market. On this basis it is not the best time to sell a house right now, but it is still worthwile knowing what the process is. After deciding to sell a house the first step is to get the house professionally valued.

Estate agents offer this service and they will not usually charge for this; it is worthwile having numerous different agents value the house. Once the seller is happy with the value quoted by an estate agent the seller must then pick which agent to go with. This estate agent will essentially manage the sale of the house and is responsible for finding a buyer. Before selecting the estate agent it is advisable to carry out some background checks and market research. The agent will charge a commission based on the sale price of the house. Once the estate agent has been selected they will then advertise the property as being for sale.

It will be advertised within their local area and also on the Internet; this will hopefully generate demand in the property. The agent will then arrange to show potential buyers around the house; some buyers may choose to return several times if they are interested in the property. How many people view the property will be dependent upon the market and how many people are interested. If a party wishes to buy the house they will then submit a bid to the estate agent. The estate agent will then manage this and will speak with the seller to establish whether the bid is acceptable. If it is, a contract will be put in place and the house is almost sold. If the bid is not acceptable the estate agent will go back to the buyer and attempt to get them to increase their bid. Once an offer has been accepted the contracts have to be signed and a deposit paid. It is worth remembering that there are still many factors that can go wrong that will impact whether the sale of a property is successful.