Setting the right price for your West End property will effect how quickly you sell your property. If you price your flat or apartment too low, it may sell quickly but for less than you could have received.

On the other hand, if your list price is too high, your home could sit on the market for months. Coming up with just the right price for your home is no easy task. That'is why you should use the services of a professional West End estate agent like LDG, who will help you set the proper list price by determining the following factors.

Pricing Factors

When you are trying to decide on a price for your home, it helps to put yourself in the buyer's shoes. Buyers often decide which houses they want to view based on a price list of houses for sale in your area.

• Price Too High: So if you set your price too high (with the intention of accepting less), it may be overlooked just because it seems too expensive compared to others in your area.
  
  
• Price Too Low: But if your list price is too low, you'll sell your house quickly but short-change yourself. Had your home been on the market longer, it might of attracted a buyer willing to pay more.

Comparable Property Sales

While you can't put a price on the memories and the sentimental value of your property, you can price the house itself in comparison to everything else on the market. Since most buyers comparison shop when looking for a home, your best guide to setting your list price is a record of what homes like yours in your area have been selling for in the past few months.

As your estate agent, we can provide you with those sale figures and analyse them for a suggested property sale price. But the final pricing decision is still yours.

Offering Incentives

Sellers typically adopt one of two selling strategies, the rock bottom or the drop-down approach

• Rock bottom sellers don't like to hang around, so they price their home at the rock bottom price they would take.
  
  
• Drop-down sellers set their asking price several thousand pounds above the price they would actually take in hopes of getting lucky, but they are willing to come down in price.

The pricing strategy you use will probably depend on how much time you have to test out the market. If you want to use the drop-down approach, you should sit down with your estate agent and work out a schedule of how long you're willing to wait before lowering your price.

You should plan out a regular schedule of price reductions until you find a level that attracts buyers.

Time on the Market

The longer your home is on the market the more time becomes your enemy and the buyers' ally. If your home's been on the market for months and has had few viewings, then your home is probably over priced.

You can either continue to wait and hope that a buyer comes along or you can reduce your asking price. Of course, the longer you wait the more suspicious buyers become about why your house has been on the market so long.

If you can't afford to wait, talk with your estate agent about scheduling gradual price reductions that will attract buyers.

Evaluating a purchase offer

When you receive an offer from a prospective buyer, you may respond in one of three ways:

• Accept subject to contract
  
• You can unconditionally accept the offer as it is and remove your property from all sources of marketing, instructing your solicitor to issue a contract. Once the buyer is informed of your acceptance, they instruct their solicitor to act and the property is considered sold subject to contract.
  
• You can reject their offer outright, which may put an end to the negotiations.

Make a Counter Offer

You can make a counter-offer making certain conditions or alternative terms on the price, completion date or repairs. The buyer can either accept your counter-offer or make a further offer to which you can again respond. This can go on until both parties agree on the terms of the sale.

Remember, anytime you make a counter-offer to the buyer's proposal, the buyer is free to walk away from the original offer. So any change you make in a counter-offer should be carefully considered.

In the give and take of negotiations, you and the buyer will need to agree on who pays for items such as:

• Survey;
  
• Repairs required by the lender;
  
• Sometimes helping cash strapped, first-time buyer pay for one or more of these transaction expenses can clinch the sale.
  

Estimating Your Net Proceeds

Once your agent has helped you figure out the market value of your home, you are ready to calculate how much cash you'll actually receive when your home is sold. You'll need this information, if you are buying another home.

From the estimated sales price, subtract:

• Redemption figure on your present loan(s);
  
• Estate Agent's commission;
  
• Any mortgage prepayment penalty;
  
• Solicitor's fees, if any; and
  
• Unpaid tax or other liability;
  
• Survey fees;
  
• Title insurance premium;
  
• Inspections and repairs costs