Preparing to sell The devil’s in the details...

Moving house should be an exciting and positive experience as we look ahead to a new home and starting a new chapter in our lives. We rightly take great pains to ensure our homes and gardens are showcased to look their best, but often neglect the processes that are key in completing a sale successfully. In today’s risk-averse culture, the contract and supporting documents will be scrutinised just as closely as your roof structure or central heating system.

All too often, missing or incomplete paperwork leads to disappointment and delay. Experience suggests that long-forgotten covenants, planning conditions and other restrictions can derail a sale if not declared at the outset.

It is important to be mindful of any issues that might influence a buyer’s decision. Alerting your agent to any information you may have relating to the ownership of the property can avoid these delays further down the line. Authorising a solicitor early in the sale process can also avoid frustration and extra cost later in the process.

So what do you need to look out for?

1. Boundaries

Always check your fence and hedge lines against your title plan. Errors are not uncommon and can take months to iron out through Land Registry. Ownership disputes can lead to costly negotiations and severe delays, so it is best to have these confirmed before marketing begins.

2. Planning conditions and building regulations

Many of us fall foul of final inspections by building control, following failure to meet conditions that were imposed when works have been carried out. Retrospective approval, if available, can be time-consuming and these issues are best identified ahead of any sale.

3. Restrictive covenants

Prior notice of any restrictive covenants on the property is always appreciated by buyers. These are legally binding promises not to commit certain acts on the property; they might include running a business on the property or even restrict the parking of a caravan on the drive. These can cause delays if not disclosed at the outset.

4. Overage agreements

Overage agreements can trigger additional payments from the buyer to the previous owner(s) if the buyer secures planning consent for a development that increases the property’s value. Overage agreements, sometimes called development uplift clauses, can make mortgage funding harder to obtain and can deter buyers. Speak to your agent about finding a way to compartmentalise the property to allow for mortgage funding, or alternatively the beneficiary of the payment can, on occasion, be persuaded to remove the restriction for an agreed price.

5. Planning conditions, such as occupancy restrictions

Knowledge of any existing planning conditions can provide the scope to challenge and overturn certain restrictions. For example, properties with an agricultural tie limit the occupancy of the property to those employed, or last employed, in farming. These properties are often in attractive rural positions with wide appeal but this restriction limits the number of qualifying buyers and in turn the value of the property. Prior knowledge of this restriction allows sufficient time to challenge the tie before sale, or ensure the right buyers are targeted.

6. Third-party rights of way

Does a neighbour have the right to use your driveway? Positive neighbourly relationships are to be valued, but undiscovered or unrecognised accesses can strain relationships and can often cause buyers to reconsider their position or renegotiate their price. Clearly outlining this at the outset of the sale can limit these potential roadblocks.

7. Public rights of way including footpaths and bridleways

You may not feel that the occasional rambler in the paddock is an imposition but your future buyers might! These can be intrusive and if there is any impact on the property’s privacy it is best to be declared up front. Steps to improve privacy can then be undertaken well in advance of a sale.

8. Other easements and wayleaves

Are all the necessary agreements to bring services to and from your property in place and up to date? These can take months to agree and finalise so checking these are all in place for your drainage, water, power etc., can stop any unnecessary negotiations with a deadline for exchange or completion looming.

9. Shared areas of facilities

Septic tanks and water connections are commonly shared by neighbours, particularly in rural areas, and these rights need to be agreed in writing. However friendly the arrangement currently is, should things turn sour no one wants to have their water cut off by a frustrated neighbour.

10. Tenancies or licences

Most mortgage lenders will require vacant possession on completion of a sale. A lodger in the annexe, or even a few sheep grazing the paddock, should ideally leave the property before the sale is tied up.

Given time and sound advice, the above are rarely insurmountable but can cause delay or even a sale to fall through if not dealt with in good time.

It is often remarked that moving house is among life’s more stressful experiences, but it doesn’t need to be. Avoiding these common pitfalls when getting your home ready to sell can alleviate stress and have you comfortably settled in your new home before you know it.

William Green Senior Associate

01858 411282

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