Selling a home or investment property is rarely ever straightforward. The process can take up a lot of your time, and add to your stress levels. If not done well, it can also end up costing you more money than it should.
Vendors' advocates help people successfully sell their properties, offering an expert eye and the knowledge to guide you through the process.
Here's what’s involved in selling a property, and how vendor advocacy can make it so much easier.
The vendor process
Here’s just some of what’s involved in selling a property.
The real estate practicalities
Choosing a suitable real estate agent – this may require conducting interviews, enquiring about commissions, and maybe even attending some open days and auctions to see how the agents operate. When analysing and comparing sales proposals, the best is not always the cheapest.
Negotiating fees – this can vary between agents, so it’s important to have a full understanding of the costs involved.
Choosing a sales method – should you sell by private treaty, auction or expressions of interest, for example?
The legalities
Preparing contract of sale – a complex legal process usually requiring a professional conveyancer.
Understanding your obligations as seller and helping to navigate contract requirements unique to your situation prior to marketing.
Property presentation
Staging your property – does your home need essential or cosmetic repairs? Property styling? A garden makeover?
Ensuring any spend made on improving the home will offer the maximum return on investment.
And that’s before you even get to the stage of negotiations with buyers, the sales agreement and the settlement process!
How a vendor's advocate can save you time and money
Selling a property can be particularly challenging if it's located a long way from where you live or interstate – where there might be different processes and rules in play.
If you have not sold in many years, have never sold a property before or you are simply time-poor, you may find it hard to select the right agent, negotiate on fees and deal with lawyers, paperwork, marketing and the rest of it. It could also be that you find the whole process overwhelming, and you just don’t feel up to the task right now.
Imagine if someone came along and managed everything for you, without handing you a big bill to pay at the end of it? That is exactly what happens with a quality professional vendor advocacy service.
Vendor advocates do not replace real estate agents or conveyancers, but act as a kind of go-between or buffer. A good vendor's advocate will always operate with your best interests at heart, helping you get maximum return on your sale.
Vendor advocacy services include:
Scouting out the best agent for your sale.
Negotiating on commissions, marketing and sales methods, open days and more.
Helping you prepare your property for sale so that it looks its best.
Helping you choose the best conveyancer and/or solicitor for your needs.
Managing all required paperwork, including contract of sale.
Communicating with you throughout the process so you know what’s happening.
Negotiating with buyers.
Seeing the process through to completion so you get a nice smooth settlement.
Of course, just as it’s important to have the right agent on the job, you also want to ensure you get the right advocate. This means you might need to spend a little bit of time determining whether an advocate is right for you.
This includes checking their credentials, experience, testimonials, and fee structures, and ensuring they are genuinely independent and not aligned with any particular real estate agency.
As your independent vendor advocate, Scout Corp acts as one point of call to manage all aspects of the property sale process to save you time, stress and money. Contact us today to find out how.
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