Saints / Advice on selling
Questions about selling.
1. Should I sell now, or wait?
I start with what you need the move to achieve. More space, a better location or being closer to family can have lasting value. Those objectives guide the advice.
If your timing is flexible, I examine competing homes, buyer activity and the proportion of similar listings marked sold subject to contract (STC) in your likely asking-price band. Where buyers have substantial choice and few sales are being agreed, I may recommend waiting, adjusting the price or approaching buyers selectively before a wider launch.
If you are upsizing, consider the gap between what you sell and what you buy. If a £1 million home and a £2 million home both fell by 10%, that gap would narrow from £1 million to £900,000—a £100,000 reduction before moving costs, tax and finance.
The two markets may behave differently. I assess both before recommending when and how to proceed.
2. I need to sell before I can buy. Where should I start?
Establish what you are likely to have available after your sale and what the onward purchase will cost.
I assess your home’s likely selling range, the competition at that price and current buyer activity. Alongside that, understanding the area you want to buy in helps establish what your budget could secure and how much choice you would have.
This is particularly important when moving out of Ealing. You may be selling into a quieter market and buying somewhere more competitive, or the reverse. That affects both the negotiating position and the timing of each transaction.
Once we have established that the move is viable and agreed a strategy, I generally recommend marketing your home before trying to secure a purchase. An agreed sale gives the onward seller a clearer picture of your buyer, chain and likely timing.
3. My home has been on the market for months. What needs to change?
I would review the campaign before recommending a change of agent.
That means assessing the asking price against competing homes, activity in the relevant price band and how clearly the listing communicates what your home offers. Enquiries, viewings and buyer feedback help establish where the approach may need to change.
The attention given to the sale matters too. I deliberately limit my instructions so I can handle enquiries and viewings personally, follow up with buyers and review the response each week.
Before taking on your sale, I explain what I would change and why.
4. What should I do before putting my home on the market?
I advise on preparation before you commit to spending money. The priorities are usually visible maintenance, presentation and making the accommodation easy to appreciate: address repairs, such as leaking taps or damaged roof tiles, and put away belongings that obscure the space.
Prepare the financial side too. Ask your lender or mortgage adviser to confirm the outstanding balance, any early repayment charges and whether you could transfer your existing mortgage deal to another home.
Use actual estimates to build a moving budget, including agency and legal fees, mortgage or broker costs, surveys, removals and any tax due on the purchase.
Knowing these figures early helps establish what you need from the sale and whether the proposed move works.
5. How do I decide which offer to accept?
I assess how each offer fits the move you need to make.
Alongside the price, I check the buyer’s funding, reasons for moving, proposed timescale and full chain. If they have a property to sell, I establish how far that sale has progressed and what still needs to happen.
The length of the chain matters, but so does the position of each person within it. I consider where delays could arise and what they would mean for your plans.
I explain the strengths, uncertainties and trade-offs of each offer, then give you my recommendation. You decide which offer to accept.
Discuss your move.
Talk through your circumstances, the market and what would need to be in place for the move to work.