Historically, if you wanted to sell your home, only the traditional route of going through your local estate agent was available. Now, there is a whole world out there if you are looking to sell with online estate agents changing the property game. There are many reasons why you may choose to sell your house online and a great deal of flexibility, meaning that you can find a method which suits your budget, timeline and financial goals.
How can I sell my house online?
There are lots of different methods available for selling your house online. Check out the following list to find the option which best suits your personal circumstances:
Online estate agents
There are a range of different online estate agents to suit many different budgets. Typically, these online estate agents can offer different packages to suit your specific selling needs. Unlike high street estate agents, who tend to charge a percentage of the selling price as their commission (between 1% and 3% VAT), conventional online estate agents usually charge a flat fee. This fee could be anywhere from £100 to £1,000 so you can shop around to find the best option for your budget.
Depending on what package you choose, there are different services available. For example, some packages will offer professional photography services, floorplans and 3D videos of the property. You should also look at where the property listing will feature as some online estate agents will get your property featured on the bigger property listing websites.
Cash buying companies
There are online companies which can buy properties for cash. Although this can be great if you are looking for a quick sale or are looking to avoid repossession of their home, you may not always be able to get your required asking price. In fact, many cash buying companies tend to offer around 10% to 25% lower than the asking price.
A top tip before choosing to work with a cash buying company is to do your research first to confirm their legitimacy. Use Companies House as a resource to look through their filing history. If they have genuine cash buyers, there will be entries stating ‘registration of charge’ and ‘satisfaction of charge’. Steer clear of any companies which do not have these entries; it means that they are likely a brokerage rather than a genuine cash buyer – this means that you will not be able to get a fast sale.
Trustpilot will also offer information about their legitimacy with reviews from previous customers.
Cash buying companies usually offer an initial valuation for your home; however, take this valuation with a pinch of salt as it may change once the house has been surveyed.
Online auction
Online auctions allow you to work with the auction house or seller to set a reserve price. This will be the minimum price that you want to sell your home for. The agreed price will be confidential and not something that is seen by bidders; instead, bidders will receive a ‘headline’ price which is higher than the minimum.
One of the good things about online auctions is that it can be a quick way to sell your house. There is also a level of certainty as the dates for exchange and completion are fixed by both sides.
Depending on the auction house you choose, you may also be able to find one that does not offer additional fees in order to participate in the auction.
Fully managed online property service
When looking around at different options of how to sell your home online, look at the overall package. For example, some online property companies will manage the selling process from start to finish, and will state all of their costs up front.
Look at the type of features you are interested in and your budget. For example, would you like to include photos, floorplans and advertising for an additional price or would you prefer to handle those aspects yourself and save money?
What are the benefits of selling your home online?
There are a few key advantages to selling your home online:
- Broader pool of potential buyers – putting your house for sale online means that more people will see your listing. This means that your home is open to a whole new pool of buyers
- More cost-effective – selling your home online is typically cheaper than working with traditional estate agents as you are not subject to the estate agent fees.
- Faster sale – by selling your home online, you have more control of the sale meaning that you can adjust the listing and be flexible with property listing management in order to increase the speed at which you sell your property.
