Sell Your Home In Spring For A Summer Move

Spring is a wonderful time to sell your home, not least because property portals confirm that the majority of buyers begin their search for their new home at this time of year.

If you’re thinking of selling your home this spring, you’re bound to have tons of questions. Luckily we’re here to help!

Spring is a wonderful time to sell a home – the buds are blooming, gardens are coming to life, and a touch of sunshine makes every home look more inviting. Traditionally, buyers begin their home search in the spring, and property portals confirm that this trend continues today.

If you’re considering selling your home or it’s currently on the market, you might have questions about how to ensure a successful sale. Here are some of the most frequently asked questions we receive from our clients during the spring:

“My house has been on the market since wintertime – now my garden is flowering, should I get new photographs taken?”

Winter garden photos can look a little, well, sad. Bare trees and shrubs, bare earth, and leaf-covered, muddy lawns can be a bit off-putting to buyers. So, when your garden starts coming back to life, it’s a good idea to get some fresh and colourful images taken to showcase it to buyers. At Currans Unique, we offer new foliage photography free of charge to our clients to ensure their online images are always current and as attractive as possible. Why not ask your agent if they can do the same?

“If I get an offer now, when should I expect to have moved by?”

Nationwide, the current time from accepting an offer to handing over the keys is around 12 weeks, but this can vary greatly depending on your buyer’s position, financing needed, any complications with your sale, and more. If you have a straightforward sale with no chain and your buyer doesn’t need a mortgage, you could be moved by the summer, or in about 10 weeks. Any complications or chain delays can more than double this time, so ask an expert about your specific situation. We’re always happy to offer our advice on timescales and what to expect. Just give us a call, we’ll be more than happy to chat.

“I don’t know how I’m going to keep my house tidy during the Easter holidays! Should I take a break from the market?”

We feel your pain! Selling a house with children off school is never easy. But there are some things you can do to help make your viewings successful and stress-free:

• Encourage (/bribe) your children to tidy up and keep tidy. Daily inspections with reward stickers for younger children and cash for older teens usually do the trick.
• Keep the children out of the house as much as possible, so your home stays tidier!
• Opt for takeaways or eating out if you have an imminent viewing booked, to save you cleaning the kitchen!
• Resist the urge to do ‘messy’ playtime with the kids if you have viewings arranged – no finger painting, Play-Doh, or baking!
• Make sure you’re out of the house for viewings to avoid stress. Being under pressure to have perfectly behaved children is unlikely to result in an enjoyable viewing for you or your buyers.
• If you have a full house and prefer not to handle viewings at all during the school holidays, let your agent know. They’ll understand if you want to take a break from the market until the kids go back to school.

“I’m thinking about moving home – is now a good time?”

A great question! We’re sure you’ve heard it’s a ‘seller’s market’ right now, and it has been pretty much since the start of the pandemic. But things are starting to change. More homes coming to market means more competition for buyers, creating downward pressure on house prices.

We expect prices to remain strong for at least this year, and probably into next year, but we think the days of huge scarcity are behind us. What does this mean for you if you’re thinking of selling? Well, if we’re right and property prices have peaked, you can feel confident you’d be selling your home at the top of the market. Whatever your situation, selling now when you know it’s a strong market will give you a more predictable sale price than waiting until next year and facing an unknown property market.

“What are most buyers looking for right now?”

Some homes are inevitably in more demand than others. Many buyers are looking for specific features like work-from-home space and the potential to extend. Bungalows seem to be very popular right now, as well as homes with land. Whatever your home has to offer, we’d love to chat with you and see if we have buyers registered who are looking for a home just like yours. Get in touch to get the ball rolling.

“I thought this was supposed to be a seller’s market, but my home hasn’t had much interest. What can I do?”

It’s hugely disappointing when you’re excited to put your home on the market, and no one seems interested. Especially if neighbouring properties are selling fast around you. The three key drivers of any successful property sale are:

Presentation: how well has your home been presented to the market? (Consider the modernity of rooms like kitchens and bathrooms).

Price: is your price competitive or could it perhaps be a little overly optimistic? And finally;

Promotion: how well has you home been marketed? The images, written descriptions, and brochure are more important than most people assume. Simply improving your marketing materials can have a dramatic impact on how much interest your home receives.

We’ve taken on unsold homes, styled them, and changed the photography, selling them straight away without changing the price at all! If you’re unsure if your marketing is showcasing your home, you can count on us, to be frank and tell you honestly. Send us a link to your home and we’ll let you know how you can improve your marketing to attract the right buyer.

“Our garden is looking lovely, but it’s still a bit muddy. Can we ask viewers to take off their shoes before they view our home?”

Yes! We always take off our shoes before entering a home, and we expect viewers to do the same. Carpets with muddy footprints aren’t attractive to buyers, so we’ll support you to make sure yours stay clean!

Get In Touch

If you have any questions about any of the points raised in this article. Or you’d like a friendly, no-strings chat about your house sale, we’d love to hear from you. Get in touch and let’s get you moving.