8 ways to increase your chances of selling your St Albans home 27 Jan 2023

Despite the current economic uncertainties and warnings of a slowing housing market, 2023 has got off to a great start in St Albans and there are still plenty of buyers looking for their next home.

Properties are selling well, and at Heartwood Homes, we’ve already sold a number of St Albans properties at the asking price this year.

And there’s encouraging news from across the country too, with reports of a bigger than usual New Year bounce in the January House Price Index and the number of prospective buyers contacting agents up 4% compared to the same period in 2019.

A buyer’s market

But, there’s no doubt that it’s going to be more of a buyer’s market this year.

In a slowing market, sellers are going to have to work a bit harder to find a buyer. Whereas in recent years many properties have been snapped up with little effort from the seller, this year it’s going to a take a bit more to help your property stand out from the competition.

To help, here are our 8 top tips to getting your property sale off to a great start this year:

1. Put your home on the market early in the year.

If you can make sure your property’s sold by spring, then you’ll be able to secure a good price and be ready to find your next home when more properties come to market later in the year.

2. Be realistic on pricing.

Discuss the best way of presenting your price with your agent. Should you go with ‘offers in excess of’, for example. It’s also important to consider the property portal price banding and where your property will sit within the search.

3. Always have a launch plan.

Don’t just put your property on the market and hope for the best. Talk this through with your agent. A good agent should be able to advise on the best strategy for you and work in partnership with you to present your property in the best possible light from the outset.

4. Make an informed decision on who shows your property.

There are pros and cons to whether it’s best for you or your agent to show the property. So make sure your chat this through with your agent to decide the right approach for you.

5. Make sure your home is in the best possible condition.

Look at your home through the eyes of a buyer and identify anything that could put them off. If you think the rooms could benefit from a fresh lick of paint, or the garden could do with a tidy, then it’s worth doing. First impressions will count for a lot this year.

6. Make sure your photography does your home justice.

Poorly taken photos can be one of the biggest reasons that a property doesn’t generate interest.

7. Consider having a marketing board outside your home.

You’d be surprised by how many people call after a seeing one outside a home they like the look of.

8. Choose an agent you trust to represent you and negotiate well on your behalf.

Negotiating is a skill, and when done well it can achieve a price of up to 10% more on your sale price. This will be even more important as the market slows.

How we can help

If you’d like to chat about your plans with us, we’d be very happy to talk you through the current market and help you understand the value of your home.

We’re a family-run, St Albans estate agency and we strongly believe in creating long-term relationships with our clients and helping them achieve their goals in a way that’s best for them. We’ll never steer you towards a particular decision, just because it may be beneficial for us.

In our view, it’s transparency and teamwork that achieves the best outcomes for our clients.

Get in touch

For some friendly, impartial advice, call us on 01727 638333 or email jon@heartwood-homes.co.uk.

To read what our past clients have said about us, take a look at our Google reviews.