If you are thinking of moving in 2025, unless you are first time buyers, relocating from abroad or renting, then you’re likely to be selling your current home too. This is a life changing decision and often a very exciting one.
It is tempting to throw all your energy into finding your next home, but taking the time to get your home ready for sale is vital in order to attract the very best buyers and ensure you are in a strong position to buy your next home.
All buyers are not equal and with industry predictions that 2025 will be a buyer’s market, there will be tough competition from other sellers. The ultimate buyer is a chain free cash buyer who comes with no baggage in the form of a long and lengthy chain (29% of house sales fell through in 2024*) and also one that doesn’t have to jump through the extra hoop of a mortgage valuation survey and waiting for a subsequent offer.
As professional buying agents who have viewed many hundreds of properties over the last eleven years, we thought we’d share what we think are quick wins that will optimise your chances of a quick sale and attract the best buyers.
First impressions
Sticky front door, complicated alarm system or a neglected porch with peeling paint and dead flowers in the pots? Obvious as it may seem, we’ve seen it all – and more often than might think. Estate agents battling with a front door, apologising as they shift through fifteen keys whilst the alarm blares despite punching in the code, gives an awful first impression because of the assault on the senses. Once through the door, what buyers want is an oasis of calm. A clutter free and tranquil entrance hall is all important and sets the tone for the rest of the viewing. Tripping over a line of old smelly shoes, squeezing past an overstuffed coat rack and laying eyes on a hall table laden with unopened post is a sure fire way to get the viewing off to a bad start. Small changes can often make the biggest difference.
Home and hearth
What we see is vital when viewing a home, but appealing to our other senses is just as important to how we ‘feel’ about a house during a viewing.
For example, if you have it, put on the underfloor heating for winter viewings. Most viewers will take off their shoes as they come in and a warmth under foot is always commented on positively by clients.
In autumn and winter, light the fire if you have one. We saw two beautiful houses back-to-back recently, the one that had the fire roaring away had the edge for our client, because they thought it more ‘homely and welcoming’.
Walking into an unheated home, especially on a miserable day, opening doors to cold, unused rooms, doesn’t feel great. So even if you are away for the weekend that the viewings are taking place, consider heating the whole home, even if you don’t normally, you want to give your viewers a warm hug and help them visualise their lives there.
Lighten up
None of our clients have ever requested that we find them a dark and gloomy home. Even if your house doesn’t have as much natural light as it could, ensure all curtains and blinds are fully open and use table lamps wherever possible to create a warm glow. Also ensure that your windows are clean – it’s amazing how much more light comes through if there isn’t a layer of grime blocking out those all important rays.
Smells
Coffee is good, as is a candle of course. The smell of a home hits you as soon as you walk in, good or bad. If you have animals, be brave enough to ask an honest friend if your house smells OK. We walk into many a home which has an underlying whiff of dogs (and we say this as dog lovers ourselves) largely because if you live in a house you become desensitized to the smell. Dirty dog beds, dog blankets on sofas and smelly litter trays, especially in kitchens, instantly make the house feel unclean, even if it isn’t.
Finish the job
Of course, if you are moving in a real rush or you genuinely have run out of money, it is always better just to finish the job.
We’ve viewed houses with bathrooms with no sink units, half decorated rooms, half cleared out rooms, garages and outbuildings so full of broken and unused furniture you can’t open the door properly. These little details get picked up and they all give a negative impression of an unloved and shabby house. So get out the paint brushes, call the handyman and tidy up all those loose ends.
Gardens matter
Leaf free, pots planted with live plants, paths swept and rusty old play equipment hidden away are simple fixes to get your garden looking in top shape. Most of our clients will be moving to the countryside to get more outside space so the garden will be as big a consideration as the house.
While nobody is expecting a Chelsea Flower Show level garden, there are small investments that you can make that can completely transform an unloved outside space. We always recommend using a variety of interesting pots which can be planted seasonally and are easy to maintain and can really lift a space. In fact, last year we had a client that fell so in love with the pot display in the garden, they insisted on buying them all with the house.
Plan ahead as well. If you’re launching your house in the spring, as many sellers do, get planting the previous Autumn to make sure the spring bulbs are ready for viewings come March and April.
If you are lacking time and have the budget, it may also be worth getting a one off blitz from a professional garden maintenance company to cut back overgrown shrubs and hedges and make sure those borders are weed free. It’s amazing how cutting back encroaching trees and shrubs can make your garden seem bigger and lighter.
The survey
You aren’t going to buy a house that has had a bad survey so why would your buyer? Of all the reasons for house sales falling through, this is the most common. In fact 27% of all fall throughs last year were because buyers pulled out following a bad survey*. Why wait for the survey to reveal all, only for you to you lose a buyer who can’t or won’t pay for all the things that need to be done?
Nobody expects a property – particularly an older one – to be in perfect shape. After all, homes are for living in and wear and tear happens. Also, very few people can also afford to replace their boiler or update their electrics every couple of years. However, there are some key survey findings that come up time and time again that put buyers off.
Dodgy drainage and unemptied septic tanks are a big ‘no no’ for buyers. They expect these to be in good working order and emptied. Leaky roofs are another issue that buyers will not pay for on top of the cost of the house. If your house needs work done to the roof, either get it done before you come to market or be honest with potential buyers and get roofing repair quotes so they can factor this in when they make an offer. Finally, damp is a big issue for most buyers. An ineffective damp proof course will be picked up in no time by a surveyor, so either get it sorted out or present potential buyers with a quote to get it fixed.
In a buyer’s market they are going to be in a strong negotiating position so if there’s a way to renegotiate because of a less than good survey, they’re going to find it.
Scope to improve
Most buyers like the idea of improving, making their own stamp and adding value to a property. Perhaps you’ve toyed with the idea of extending or replacing an old conservatory but haven’t got round to it. If you’ve had plans drawn up in the past – whether or not you’ve gained planning permission – leave the plans out for potential buyers to see when they look round. This will provide them with inspiration and vision for how their future house could look.
*Data from ‘Quick Move Now’ as featured in The Negotiator 3rd January 2025
