User Guides

User Guide to Selling your Property

Selling your home yourself should be a straightforward process. If you’ve set a fair price, presented your home well, and done a good job on viewings, then offers should be coming your way fairly quickly. Once you’ve accepted an offer, you can either handle the conveyancing yourself, or instruct a solicitor to take care of the legal side of the sale for you.

None of that requires the services of an estate agent. Instead from only £30.00 we give you the opportunity to sell your home yourself and save thousands of pounds in estate agent commission charges.

To help you on your way, we’ve provided some answers to questions we’re frequently asked.

1. What’s my home worth, and how do I value it?

2. What if I'm already signed up to an estate agent? Can I use Homefinder-Online as well?

3. What do I get for my money? Or, what does Homefinder-Online do for me?

4. What do I have to do to list my property for sale?

5. What about the photos? How do I handle them?

6. Can I change my details once they’re online?

7. How do I handle viewings? And what about security?

8. What to do when they make an offer?

1. What’s my home worth, and how do I value it?
The simple answer is that it’s worth what someone is willing to pay for it, and that you are willing to accept. How you determine that valuation depends on many things. How keen are you to sell? Have you already found somewhere else to buy, or are you simply selling up?
Estate agent valuations can vary wildly on the same property so should only ever be used as a guide. Their own interest in selling your home, and therefore pocketing the commission, will invariably influence the price they suggest.
Ultimately, and regardless of how you intend selling your home, the price you advertise your property for will be decided by one person – you. To guide you, make use of local property papers, together with sites such as Hometrack and the Land Registry that provide detailed information on current property prices nationwide.
However you decide the asking price, make sure that it is realistic. If your home is on the market for ten thousand more than a similar property around the corner, it’s unlikely yours will be the first to sell.
The goal is to sell your property. If you’ve done your homework and presented your home for sale properly, then the end result should be an offer price that both you and your potential buyer are happy with.

2. What if I'm already signed up to an estate agent? Can I use Homefinder-Online as well?

The simple answer is YES you can.
Homefinder-Online is not an estate agent. We’re providing a service to help you sell your home yourself.
Any agreements regarding sole or multiple agency you may have in place with an estate agent are therefore not affected by you listing your home for sale privately on our site. Sole or multiple agent agreements refer to exactly that, agents. As we’re not an estate agent, and neither are you, they don’t affect us.
The only situation where this may not be the case is if you’ve signed a sole selling rights agreement with your agent, which is completely different to ‘sole agency’. This basically means that you’ve signed over the right to sell your home to that particular agent, and that particular agent only. If you wish to list on Homefinder-Online and are in that position, we’d suggest re-negotiating the terms of your agreement with the estate agent concerned. If they are unwilling to alter the agreement, it might be worth asking them why.
If you do choose to use an estate agent as well as listing on our site, we’d recommend letting them know. This avoids any potential conflicts over commission at a later date, together with helping focus their minds on finding you a buyer.

3. What do I get for my money? Or, what does Homefinder-Online do for me?

We believe that we provide you with an excellent alternative to selling your home through an estate agent, and all from just £30.00 inclusive of VAT. Essentially what we are trying to provide you with are all the tools of the trade that an estate agent might use, but without the estate agent!
We provide a ‘For Sale’ sign as an optional extra at £40 inclusive of VAT. We will erect it outside your home, or send it by express post depending on where you are in the country.
Your property will appear on the leading property portals propertyfinder and fish4homes, together with all their affiliated websites. This dramatically increases your property's exposure to potential buyers, and is included as standard with your listing fee.
Your property details will be sent to all registered buyers across all partner websites if it matches their requirements.

4. What do I have to do to list my property for sale?

Once you’ve registered with us, all you need to do is enter your own description and provide your own photos. It's as simple as that.
As soon as we’ve received payment your listing will be live on our site and able to be viewed by potential buyers.
You can pay online using most major credit cards via our direct link to our payment partner PayPal. All transactions are processed via a secure payment processor. We do not store any of your credit card details in our database.
Alternatively you are welcome to pay by cheque. Send your cheque made payable to Homefinder-Online to Vicarage Farm Barns, Vicarage Road, Waresely, Beds. SG19 3DA. Once your payment has cleared we will set up your password and ID and send confirmation by email that you may now place your advert.
And with our simple pricing structure you have nothing more to pay - no add-ons, extras, upgrades or renewal fees to worry about leaving you free to concentrate on selling your home!

5. What about the photos? How do I handle them?

As part of your property listing we provide you with the facility to display up to four photos. Together with the description you enter this will be more than enough to generate interest from potential buyers.
Take a range of photos to offer your potential buyers a good snap shot of what your property is like, and try to ensure good, even lighting is available. Often all it takes is one good photo and the location of your property to have buyers calling or emailing.

The photos should be in .jpg, or .gif format, which is the format most digital cameras will automatically save images in, and ideally be below 150k in size.
After uploading your main photograph when completing your advertisement simply send three further photographs to photos@homefinder-online.co.uk , making sure to quote your full name, and most importantly your property ID or full address and we will add them to your listing.

If using our premier service please send all photographs with your description of your property by email to info@homefinder-online.co.uk and we will do the rest.
If you don’t have a digital camera use our premier service and send photographs taken with a conventional camera, and mail them to us at Homefinder-Online, Vicarage farm Barns, Vicarage Road, Waresley, Beds, SG19 3DA. We will take care of scanning and editing them for you at no additional cost. Please ensure that you write your full name, contact details and property ID on the back of each photo you send us.

6. Can I change my details once they’re online?

Yes you can.
Once entered online you are able to edit any of the details you've entered.

7. How do I handle viewings? And what about security?

After viewing your listing online or calling us for details, you become the buyers' main point of contact. What’s more you control how they contact you as the only details that we provide are those that you specified when entering your details online.

By dealing directly with the owner, buyers can avoid wasted trips to view properties that sound promising, but become a definite no as soon as they walk through the front door.

Therefore by the time a potential buyer comes to your home for a viewing they’re already likely to be interested in buying it. They will have gained some first hand knowledge of what the property and the surrounding neighbourhood are like from the one person who really knows – the owner.

Websites such as www.bbc.co.uk/homes and www.channel4.com/homes, together with numerous magazines and television programmes provide a vast source of information on how best to present your home for viewings. A few simple things to remember however are; clean, de-clutter and where possible de-personalise your home. Neutral colours, good lighting and a home that smells nice will all go a long way to creating the right impression on your potential buyers!

When arranging viewings we always suggest that you ask for the name, address and contact details of any potential buyers beforehand, and never let someone simply walk in off the street to see your property.
This serves two main purposes.

• It enables you to follow up any viewings with a quick phone call or email to see what they thought of your property.

• As a security precaution it is advisable to know the contact details of people wishing to view your home.

Before the viewing itself, try to think of some phrases to use during it that say something more than the obvious about the property. For example, what are your favourite things about it? If you’re lucky enough to have a fantastic garden, make a point of saying so. And remember first impressions count, so try to ensure that your potential buyers first view of your property is a positive one!
By creating a good first impression and emphasising your properties strong points during the viewing you’ll be creating a positive, lasting impression on your potential buyers that will lead to either a second viewing or an offer.

8. What to do when they make an offer?

Having done the viewings, answered any further queries, and possibly shown them around a second time, you’ll hopefully receive an offer. Now what? That obviously depends on whether the offer is acceptable or not, which may not necessarily be purely down to price.

It’s important to take other considerations into account such as whether they are in a chain, and if so what stage is their own property sale at? Do they already have an agreement in principle on a mortgage? When are they planning on moving?

If it is purely a price issue then you will need to establish whether they are willing to negotiate, or if that is their one and only offer.
If they are willing to negotiate, then they’re obviously interested in buying your property.

It then becomes a case of finding an acceptable price for both of you. It’s important to be patient at this stage to ensure that you get the best deal. Consider offering some of the fixtures and fittings in your home such as your kitchen appliances as an added incentive to reaching an agreed price.
Ultimately the price you accept, and how you reach that price, is down to you.
Having priced your property accurately and conducted viewings successfully you should receive several offers, leaving you in the happy position of being able to choose the one that is best for you!

The choice is then yours as to whether to handle the legal side of the sale yourself, or hand it over to a solicitor.

Although it is possible to do your own conveyancing, most people instruct a solicitor at this stage.

Numerous online conveyancing services are available. Alternatively most local solicitors firms are able to handle this for you. The Law Society website provides advice on how to choose a solicitor, together with a search facility to help you find one local to you.

Once the sale is in the hands of your solicitor, your work is largely done. No estate agent involved, no estate agent needed!

User Guide to Buying a property

Finding a property to buy should be relatively straightforward. After all, you know what you want and roughly where you want it. Having done some research you should also know how much you can afford to spend once you’ve found it. Easy, right? Then why is it that some of us spend months searching for our next property purchase, whilst others buy the first thing they see?

By using Homefinder-Online you’ll be able to gather first hand information on what a property is really like from the one person who really knows - the owner. A little research on your part, together with their input should mean that most properties you end up viewing are ones that you really want to see.

There are numerous resources available in print, online and on television to provide you with all the information you may require to help you with the buying process. Sites such as www.bbc.co.uk/homes and www.channel4.com/homes provide a wealth of information on how to go about buying your home, to name just a couple of our favourites.

To save you some time, we’ve provided a sample list of things for you to consider. If you think we've missed something, please contact us and let us know!

• Don’t be afraid to ask questions about the neighbourhood, schools and other amenities that may help you make your mind up when deciding whether to view or buy the property or not. These things are as important as the state of the kitchen or bathroom.

• The wallpaper may not be to your taste, but you can change it! This may sound obvious, but a lot of viewings go wrong due to buyers not seeing beyond the décor of a property. Most things you don’t like, you can change. With a little work, such as updating a kitchen or bathroom, you may also be able to increase the value of the property.

• If you’re looking at buying in an area that you’re unfamiliar with, try getting hold of a copy of the local paper, or visit sites such as UpMyStreet. They will help to give you an idea of what the neighbourhood you’re buying into is really like.

• Make notes about each property you view, as you’re viewing it. What’s included in the sale price? How long has it been on the market? Does any major work need to be done to the property? These types of details, written down at the time, will make your decision making process much more straightforward.

• Should you wish to make an offer remember that you’re dealing directly with the owner. The dreaded exchange of phone calls with an estate agent won’t be happening. The owner will no doubt have a price in their mind that they are willing to accept for the property, which hopefully will be the same as you offer. If not, then you will need to negotiate an acceptable compromise on price if possible.

• Once you’ve had an offer accepted, ask the seller to provide you with written confirmation of the property address and price agreed on. Whilst it is possible to do your own conveyancing, most people instruct a solicitor at this stage to handle the purchase. Numerous online services are available or alternatively most local solicitors firms are able to handle this for you. The Law Society website provides advice on how to choose a solicitor, together with a search facility to help you find one local to you.