Picking the right buyer for your home
When you receive an offer for your home how do you know which buyer to proceed with?
You maybe feeling nervous and be a little bit worried about what offer to accept and which purchaser to proceed with. Here's our guide on each type of purchaser type to help you make a decision.
There are generally three main types of buyer:
- First time buyers and those in rented
- Those funding the purchase of your home with cash from the sale of their home
- Those buying outright using cash, often investors
First time buyers
First time buyers, whether renting or living with their parents, are an attractive proposition for home sellers as they are chain-free. The process of selling your home should therefore be quicker. Once an offer has been received your estate agent will check the prospective buyer’s situation, identity and also that they are financially able to proceed with the purchase by checking they have an agreement in principle and also the deposit amount required to proceed with the purchase. If your buyer is in rented accommodation or living with family, then they should be able to move quite quickly and have the benefit of being chain free.
Your agent will check on their situation, plans and expectations for when they want to complete. This is an important check to carry out as they could have a fixed term tenancy which can’t be extended and even if it can be extended, it may be for a minimum three or six month period, which could make your buyer reluctant to complete quickly and delay your move.
Buyers who have a property to sell
Anyone who needs to sell their property before they can buy your home is in a chain. It may only be a chain of one, i.e. their buyer, or it could be a chain of ten. Usually the longer the chain, the greater the risk of delays or worse, your sale falling through.Your estate agent will need to check through the chain and confirm everyones position prior to accepting any offers. It's really important to speak to each estate agent involved as it's important for you to know where each property is in the conveyancing process before making a decision.
The selling position of those within the chain is also key. A chain of six, where each party has solicitors well advanced with searches and contracts, surveys carried out, half of them already in receipt of their mortgage offers (but with plenty of time until they expire) can be a much lower risk than a chain of three where no-one has had a survey carried out and each party has incurred little financial cost.
Cash buyers
Cash buyers are often the most attractive proposition, although you may find you end up accepting a lower offer in exchange for the greater security and flexibility you’ll get. It’s important your estate agent gets proof of the funding from a professional acting for your buyer, such as their accountant, solicitor or bank, before accepting any offer.
I hope you found this useful and we wish you the best of luck with your sale.
But if you have any questions or need any further advise please don't hesitate to get in touch.
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