How does selling a house work?

Sellers usually focus on the agent and the price, and lose the time later on paperwork. Almost every avoidable delay in a sale comes from a document nobody could find — a building regulations completion certificate, a guarantee for damp work, planning permission for an extension. Assembling that pack before you list is the highest-value thing a seller can do.

Safety

Step by step

1. Get three valuations.Agents value partly to win the instruction. Three figures show the range, and the highest is not automatically the best starting price.
2. Understand the agency agreement types.Sole agency, sole selling rights, and multi-agency have materially different terms — sole selling rights can mean commission is due even if you find the buyer yourself. Read the tie-in period and the notice period.
3. Check the fee basis and what it includes.Percentage or fixed, whether VAT is included, and what happens if the sale falls through. Online and traditional agents differ on when the fee becomes payable.
4. Instruct a conveyancer when you list.They can begin assembling title documents and the protocol forms while the property is marketed, which removes weeks from the process later.
5. Assemble the paperwork pack.Title deeds information, planning permissions, building regulations completion certificates, gas and electrical certificates, guarantees for damp or timber work, boiler service records, and any lease documents.
6. Get an EPC before marketing.It is required before a property can be marketed, and it takes a few days. Agents often arrange it, but check it exists and is current.
7. Complete the protocol forms carefully.The property information and fittings and contents forms are legal statements. Answer them accurately — misstatements can result in a claim after completion.
8. Handle offers on more than price.A cash buyer, a first-time buyer with no chain, or a buyer with a mortgage offer in hand may be worth more than a higher offer in a long chain.
9. Answer enquiries quickly.Each round of enquiries adds time. Fast, complete answers are the single biggest thing a seller controls.
10. Plan the move around exchange, not before.Nothing is binding until exchange in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Book removals and utilities only once the date is fixed.

Tips

• Assemble the certificates and guarantees pack before listing. It is the single most effective way to shorten a sale.
• Read the tie-in and notice periods in the agency agreement. A long tie-in with an underperforming agent is expensive and avoidable.
• Answer property information forms truthfully and keep a copy. Inaccurate answers can lead to a claim against you after completion.

Common mistakes

• Signing sole selling rights without understanding it — It can mean commission is payable even if you find the buyer yourself, and even in some cases after the agreement ends.
• Instructing a conveyancer only after accepting an offer — Weeks of document gathering that could have run in parallel with marketing now happen in series, with the buyer waiting.

If it doesn't work

Questions people ask