selling house and HIP

[bite-me]

I'm getting into the greasy depths of selling and trading with estate agents
now some specific questions

1>I've found a house for sale 4 doors down, by the same guys I want to use, is this good or bad?

2>Our 2 houses are pretty similar except for the below

£199,950 Freehold

A three bedroom family home set. The accommodation comprises three bedrooms, lounge, kitchen, dining area, bathroom, gardens, gas radiator heating and driveway parking. No onward chain.

Three Bedroom House MINE IS TWO BEDROOM
Lounge
Kitchen & Dining Area
Gardens MINE IS HALF AS WIDE AGAIN
Driveway parking MINE HAS PARKING SIMILAR BUT IS END TERRACE, WITH GARAGE, ALSO LARGE SHED AREA AT BACK
So with there house being 199k. is mine, more, less or same?

I want at least to have some idea of price before I approach the agent.

Of course I could be cheeky and put mine up for £199k ?

as I want a quick sale, with no onward chain as well

also anyone got there head around HIP's?

is it better to get the EST AGE to do it or indypendant

[sday12]

bite-me said:

I'm getting into the greasy depths of selling and trading with estate agents
now some specific questions

1>I've found a house for sale 4 doors down, by the same guys I want to use, is this good or bad?

2>Our 2 houses are pretty similar except for the below

£199,950 Freehold

A three bedroom family home set. The accommodation comprises three bedrooms, lounge, kitchen, dining area, bathroom, gardens, gas radiator heating and driveway parking. No onward chain.

Three Bedroom House MINE IS TWO BEDROOM
Lounge
Kitchen & Dining Area
Gardens MINE IS HALF AS WIDE AGAIN
Driveway parking MINE HAS PARKING SIMILAR BUT IS END TERRACE, WITH GARAGE, ALSO LARGE SHED AREA AT BACK
So with there house being 199k. is mine, more, less or same?

I want at least to have some idea of price before I approach the agent.

Of course I could be cheeky and put mine up for £199k ?

as I want a quick sale, with no onward chain as well

also anyone got there head around HIP's?

is it better to get the EST AGE to do it or indypendant

Without seeing them, it would be difficult say, but no IMHO.

3 beds around here command at least £50k more

[m3jappa]

Depends on size of third bedroom too.

Some houses we have looked at which were supposdly 3 beds were more like 2 beds with a room for a midget and as such no more expensive than a sensible sized 2 bed.

[Merlot]

Whilst your plus points are important factors (garden size, garage) they don't quite make up for the lack of your third bedroom! Hard to 'guess' prices in an unknown area, but if his is on the market at £199k I'd say it would be sensible to pitch yours around £174-179k.

However, there are many other factors to consider.

Is yours better condition?
How long has his been on the market?
How quickly do you want to sell? (I know you said quick sale, but do you want an offer in 1, 5, 14 or 30 days?)

[scenario8]

On top of the sensible postings above about getting your own place valued, you might want to look into the financial side of things too (assuming a mortgage is involved) befor you get too heavily involved.

Regarding the HIP; no, you don't have to use one recommended by the agent, and you may find the one provided this way may cost more than one independently sourced. The upside of using the agent is that it will probably be produced quicker than an independent which may prove useful if you're looking to sell quickly in order to show interest in a property which is already on the market. You may find the agent is more flexible on fee if you choose to use their solicitors and or hip provider. You may find a little more accountability in the production of the hip, too. My experience is that many independent hips take a lot longer to be finalised than the vendor assumed they would, and often are of low quality (without getting into too much of a debate about the merits of the packs, you may find that a poorly produced pack can be more of a [ain in the arse when your buyer's solicitor starts looking into the information it provides). You might also find the agent more likely to line up a few potential buyers prior to being officially permitted to market than he might if he doesn't honestly know when and from where he may finally get evidence of a hip.

Note all the "may" and "probably" in that answer, though. Is the agent an independent himself or part of a larger chain?

[whirligig]

We've just sold our flat and had the HIP done by the estate agent - they tend to have "pet" ones that will do it quickly and agree with the EA as to the value it goes on the market at.

Important to note that is only valid for 90 days (ours sold on day 89!) then has to be updated at further cost (in Scotland this is - may be different in England).

[wiffmaster]

In England, I'm pretty sure there's nothing to do with house value in the HIP. Also, it's valid until the house is sold. You can even take it off the market for up to 12 months and reuse the same HIP.

Edited by wiffmaster on Tuesday 17th November 18:33

[scenario8]

90 days? What are you referring to?

ETA just noticed you are referring to Scottish legislation which is very different to those applying to England (and Wales and NI).

Edited by scenario8 on Tuesday 17th November 18:36

[whirligig]

I am referring to the Scottish Home Report which came in in Dec 2008. It is basically a survey and mortgage valuation report. It is valid in the first instance for 90 days. Think it came about as prior to this if you put in an offer on a house you had to have a survey done or put an offer in "subject to survey".