How to sell an apartment yourself without the participation of a realtor - instructions

Purchases and sales without the help of real estate specialists can be caused by various reasons: from reasons of economy to reluctance to advertise the sale. Really, is it worth overpaying tens of thousands for something you can do on your own? The procedure for the homeowner to independently draw up an agreement on the alienation of real estate is practically no different from the same procedure, but with the participation of an intermediary company.

There are many nuances in this matter, but a careful and competent approach to each of them is the key to the successful sale of real estate and obtaining maximum benefits from the seller.

Schematically, the process of selling an apartment can be divided into stages (without a realtor or with him, it doesn’t matter):

• determining the cost of an apartment,
• searching for buyers,
• preparing real estate for sale,
• collecting a package of documents,
• meetings with potential buyers and demonstration of the apartment,
• receiving a deposit,
• execution of the transaction.

Moreover, stages 2-4 should occur in parallel.

Reasonable price

Orientation in the field of supply and demand for housing on the secondary market will help the owner in establishing the cost of his apartment. A detailed study of Internet real estate sites and corresponding sections in newspapers, an analysis of the cost of apartments in the same area and with similar parameters will point you in the right direction. Of course, this does not mean that all apartments with similar characteristics cost the same. However, the apartment owner will get a rough idea of ​​whether it makes sense to reduce the transaction amount, if necessary, or not.

Advertisements for sale

Actively advertising your apartment on leading real estate sites in the city is extremely important. If an apartment is one of the most popular among various categories of buyers, then numerous, relevant, fresh advertisements about it in various sections of the online purchase and sale service will attract a lot of interested parties to it. Most small real estate offices in large cities look for clients for their properties in this way. Photographs of the apartment from the most favorable angles increase the number of calls from buyers several times.

An alternative to advertising on the Internet is advertising an apartment in local newspapers in the section for selling apartments on the secondary market. Due to widespread access to the Internet, this type of advertising has recently become less and less popular. In addition, one of its disadvantages is that when submitting an application, the owner publishes a personal telephone number in the newspaper, while the editorial office retains the address and passport information.

Pre-sale preparation

The reality is that in a big city, the repairs and condition of the apartment do not have a decisive impact on its value. Buyers are ready in advance to redo the renovation to suit themselves. However, clean and “fresh” apartments sell faster, so if it is important to quickly sell your home, you need to prepare it. There is no point in doing a major overhaul, but general cleaning and replacing dilapidated wallpaper and textiles with inexpensive options are quite justified. It is necessary to restore order not only in the apartment, but also around it: remove trash from the landing, ventilate and wash it.

To sell an apartment, you need to prepare documents and perform a number of procedures:

• Apartment registration certificate issued by BTI. It contains a floor plan and inventory data. Its validity period is 5 years, so, if necessary, it is better to call an inspector in advance and update the document, since it takes 2-3 weeks to issue it. All unauthorized redevelopment must be formalized before the sale; without this, the transaction may be frozen.
• Notarized consent of the spouse, refusal of the co-owners if the apartment was in shared ownership.
• All prescribed items must be written out. This issue should be addressed in advance, since re-registration, especially for minors, can take months. A certificate from the house register is valid for 1 month.
• Documents confirming the absence of debt on utility bills.

Apartment demonstration

After publishing the advertisement, the seller must be prepared to accept applications for her visit, and after setting the date and time of the showing, to the presence of strangers who may be interested in the smallest details. On the other hand, people looking for an option with specific characteristics, as a rule, initially know what they need to pay attention to first of all, and are unlikely to find fault on any occasion if, upon inspection, these parameters of the housing satisfy them.

Bargaining when selling an apartment is inevitable. When discussing the price of an apartment, an immediate reduction in the amount on the part of the seller, as a concession, will not play into the hands.

The owner, who realistically evaluates all the advantages and disadvantages of his home and the possibility of selling it, has the opportunity to independently decide whether he should adjust the assigned price, or whether he should wait a moment.

From the point of view of real estate specialists, you should not “cling on” to the very first client who wants to close a deal with a given apartment at a given price. Such a fact of interest may mean an excessively low price of housing in comparison with similar offers.

When an agreement is reached

After the parties have reached an initial agreement on the transaction, the next step should be the signing of a preliminary contract and an agreement on the payment of a deposit by the buyer. Without complying with these formalities, the risk arises for both the seller and the buyer. The owner of the apartment, convinced that the transaction will certainly take place, by removing advertisements for sale, puts himself at risk of wasting time if the unscrupulous buyer, despite the agreement, continues to consider other options. There may also be danger for the buyer if the apartment owner receives a more advantageous offer from a third party.

The law assumes the legal responsibility of the parties, both when making a deposit and when signing an advance payment agreement for an apartment. When signing an agreement with the buyer and accepting the deposit, the seller must be extremely careful in studying the text of the document, since unintentional termination of contractual obligations will entail financial losses on his part, for example, the return of double the amount of the advance payment.

An obligatory point at this stage is the agreement on the date when the owner and his family members undertake to vacate the apartment, both legally (by issuing an extract from this living space) and actually (to transport personal belongings and interior items from the apartment).

Necessary documentation for preparing the transaction

Preparing a full package of documents for a transaction, as well as carefully checking it for compliance with legal norms and established deadlines, is a labor-intensive procedure and requires a lot of time. Currently, the law recognizes 22 types of documents indicating the right of owners to residential premises, with which it is possible to enter into a transaction. A certificate of registration of ownership is not necessary when selling an apartment, but its absence may cause hesitation among buyers. It is worth stocking up on a copy of the law or suggesting that buyers seek any legal advice. On the buyer's part, if he or she is married, a notarized consent of the spouse will be required to purchase the home.

Mutual settlements with the buyer and registration of ownership

The most popular and safe payment option for both parties when concluding a purchase and sale agreement is to rent a deposit box in a bank chosen by the parties. The apartment seller needs to exercise increased caution in relation to the financial organization in order to protect himself and his property. To avoid illegal actions on the part of the homebuyer and his authorized representatives, monetary transactions should be carried out, if possible, in a place that satisfies both parties, and all issues related to the transfer of money should be settled at the stage of concluding the advance agreement.

The procedure is as follows. The seller, buyer and bank employee deposit the money, after checking it, into a deposit box, the key to which is kept in the bank. Seizure occurs after the contract has been registered with the Federal Registration Service, that is, after a month.

After agreeing on the nuances of the financial security of the transaction between the parties, the purchase and sale agreement is subject to registration, by agreement of the parties, either in notarial form or in the department of justice.

Vacancy of the apartment

After registering an agreement on the sale of a residential property, the former owner and members of his family must contact the passport office and register the deregistration of this living space, as well as transport personal belongings and household items from the apartment. The actual execution of the order to vacate the apartment is confirmed by an act of acceptance and transfer, usually simultaneously with the transfer of keys and receipts for repayment of utility debts. The act is characterized by a simple written form of execution, it is a mandatory annex to the purchase and sale agreement for housing and implies the practical fulfillment of the obligations of the parties.

Do you need to sell the apartment yourself?

The modern market for the purchase and sale of apartments has a fairly low percentage of offers that are on pure sale. Approximately 80% of apartment sales transactions involve the selection of an alternative option for simultaneous purchase. If this is your case, and you plan to immediately look for a new housing option, then keep in mind that when buying an apartment through an agency, you will have to pay a larger commission than if you immediately arranged the exchange through a realtor. Independent sale becomes economically justified if the owner plans to purchase an apartment in a new building, directly from the developer, or will look for the same apartment for free sale.

Selling a home yourself, although it involves saving money due to the absence of commissions to a real estate agency, will require a much greater investment of time. You will have to plan your vacation in advance or agree on time off at work. Naturally, the amount saved on a realtor should exceed what the owner could earn for the time spent.