There are a number of reasons why you might decide to take your home off the market, whether they are purely personal or related to the way your sale has been handled by a specific estate agent. You may even have had a change of heart about moving to a new property.
Whilst there can often be unforeseen circ*mstances that mean you need to rethink a house sale, taking a property off the market can be a costly move so it shouldn’t be something you do on a whim, especially if you already have a buyer lined up and are partway through the transaction.
Ideally, you would be aware of any tie-in restrictions when you signed the contract with an estate agent. This could be in the form of a forfeiture fee, covering any advertising costs the agent has incurred, or liability for paying the total fee regardless of sale if you need to take your house off the market sooner than expected.
When you have paid an upfront fixed fee rather than a commission-based fee once the sale is complete you are unlikely to receive a refund. However, even agents working on a commission-based or “no sale, no fee” basis may expect payment of all or part of the commission they would have received if your contract with them includes a “ready, willing and able purchaser” clause and they have a buyer lined up. You should also be aware that you may be expected to pay a “finder’s fee” if a buyer who was introduced to your property via the estate agent decides to buy it at a later date.
Unlike fixed fee services, with traditional high street agents, fees can be a considerable amount of your overall moving budget, so it is important to make sure you are happy with the contract before you sign on the dotted line!
So, when it comes to a rethink of your property sale, when is it okay to ask an estate agent to take a property off the market?
At the request of a serious buyer
You may find that favourable buyers, such as those paying in cash or with no chain, make an offer which is subject to the property being taken off the market and no more viewings taking place. They will want to avoid gazumping and secure the property at the price they have offered, but if you really want to keep the property listed until the sale has gone through, try and reach a compromise whereby the listing is changed to “sold subject to contract” or you agree to remove the listing for a set period subject to the sale progressing within an agreed timeframe.
The relationship with your estate agent has broken down
As Kenny Rogers once said, “you’ve got to know when to hold’em and know when to fold ’em”.
Obviously, you need to be realistic about your property’s value and the time it takes to actually sell a property, especially if your home wouldn’t appeal to a huge range of buyers.
However, if your house isn’t selling as quickly as you would expect (particularly in comparison to similar properties locally); you have discussed all of the options with your agent; feel that they either aren’t making enough effort to sell your property, don’t have the expertise to do so or they are not marketing it in the way you would like; it may be time to walk away.
Before you do throw in the towel, make sure you have reviewedyour agreement with the agent so that you are aware of any of the potential financialpenalties mentioned above. Unless you are signing a multi-agent contract,estate agents will generally ask for exclusivity for a set period of around6-12 weeks, so listing with another agent before this set time period has endedcould also incur a financial penalty, or the original agent may expect acommission once the property sells.
If you still want to sell your property but wish to use adifferent agent, do some research into alternative local high street and onlineagents to see who best fits your needs and has had success in sellingproperties near to or at asking price in your local area.
Whilst any concerns you have about a particular agent should always be raised with the agent directly in the first instance, should you need to escalate these concerns you can talk to The Property Ombudsman or Propertymark.
You have had an unexpected change to your personal circ*mstances
There will be times when you need to make a U-turn on a housesale for completely personal reasons which are outside of your control. Whetherit be ill health, a bereavement, a new job falling through or a change to yourfinancial situation, things can change significantly between you deciding tosell and the house being listed.
If this is the case, it is always worth speaking with your estate agent as soon as possible about the situation. Many agents will consider waiving any associated penalty fees on a case by case basis, particularly if you are more likely to re-list with them in future and there is a hefty amount of commission in the pipeline.
The impact of the local and national property market
Obviously, the time it takes to sell a property can varyhugely based on the location and property type. However, unless you live in aparticularly remote area or your property will only appeal to a niche market, thegeneral rule of thumb is that the longer your home has been on the market, theless appealing it will seem to potential buyers and the more likely you are toreceive low offers. In fact, studies have shown that the longer a propertystays on the market, the less likely it is to receive full asking price. If youhaven’t received any serious interest or offers within two-three months, it maybe time to revaluate, particularly if there are external factors at play withinthe local and national property market.
We have seen this most recently following the onset of thecovid-19 pandemic, when the number of property transactions fell significantly.Once lockdown was lifted in May 2020 and stamp duty incentives were introducedin July, the number of houses coming onto the market and the number of propertytransactions soared, as did house prices.
Generally,Spring and Autumn are the peak season for property transactions in the UK, butyour agent will be aware of how the local market is faring and any upcomingdevelopments within the property sector as a whole such as changes tolegislation, regulations or tax implications which may mean you should holdfire on selling in the short term to get the best return.
By removing your property listing you can also take theopportunity to make any changes needed to the way it is marketed or thecondition of the property if you are struggling to achieve interest near askingprice.
However, if you are removing the property listing in aneffort to reset your days on the market, push your property to the top ofRightmove and Zoopla’s newest listings or increase the asking price, this couldbackfire when shrewd buyers do a little research (or simply a quick Google ofthe address) and come across your previous listing(s).
