Selling

Selling a city centre home

A different market from the rest of Manchester, and one we work in every day.

Selling a flat in the city centre is not like selling a house in the suburbs. Your buyer may be a first-time buyer, a downsizer, an investor or someone moving up from London, and each of them asks different questions. Your competition may be in the same building. And the sale depends as much on the lease and the building as on the flat itself.

None of that is new to us. Here is how we go about it.

The Buzz

How it works

Our selling process

  1. Week 1

    Valuation and advice

    We see the flat, look at recent sales in the building and around it, and give you a figure in writing with the reasoning behind it.

  2. Week 2

    Preparation

    Photography, floor plan and description, while we gather the leasehold information and order the management pack.

  3. Launch

    To our buyers first

    Registered buyers hear about it before it reaches the portals. Every viewing is accompanied, evenings and weekends included.

  4. Offer

    Checked, then agreed

    We confirm how each buyer is paying before we recommend an offer, then manage the sale through to completion.

Who buys here

Knowing your buyer

First-time buyers

The biggest single group in most city centre buildings. Often mortgage-ready and chain-free, which makes for a quicker sale when the paperwork is in order.

Investors

Buying for yield, sometimes with a tenant already in place. They look at service charges and rents before they look at the kitchen.

Movers and downsizers

People trading a house for a flat near the restaurants and the trains. They want space, light and a building that is well run.

From further afield

Buyers relocating from London or overseas. They often buy after a video tour and need an agent who answers at odd hours.

Presentation

Shown at its best

City centre flats live or die on light and outlook, and both are easy to photograph badly. We shoot at the time of day the windows do the most work, include the building's shared spaces where they help, and make sure the floor plan shows which way the rooms face.

For homes with a view worth seeing, we will suggest dusk photography or a short video. For everything else, clean, honest photographs that make people want to come and look.
A window onto the skyline, framed in a camera viewfinder

Things sellers often ask us

Can I sell with a tenant in place?
Yes, and in some buildings it is the better route. Investors will often pay a fair price for a flat with a reliable tenant and a rent already established. We will tell you which way we think gets you the higher figure.
What leasehold information will I need?
Your lease, recent service charge statements, ground rent details and anything you hold about building safety. We will order the management pack from the managing agent for you, and tell you what it is likely to cost.
How long will it take?
From an agreed offer, most city centre sales complete in three to four months. The slowest part is usually the management pack, which is why we order it before we launch.
There are other flats for sale in my building. Does that matter?
It can. We will tell you exactly what they are, what they are asking and how yours compares, and price yours so it is the one buyers want to see first.
No obligation

Shall we come and see it?

Tell us where your flat is and we will arrange a time that suits you.

A considered figure, an honest view of what to do first, and nothing follows it unless you want it to.

We will only use these details to arrange your valuation.