You may be wondering how you can find a buyer to sell your land to, but without the help of an estate or land agent…
Selling land or property without an estate agent may seem scary, but it is not as complicated as it may appear. Owners of land or property have been selling privately for years, long before the estate or land agent profession existed.
If our ancestors can conquer the art of selling property without an estate or land agent, then so can you! Let us help you learn how to sell land without a an estate agent!
We will guide through the processes that you need to know about selling land without an agent— we’ll outline some of the steps that you can take. Our hope is that this short piece will provide the information to make better decisions, as well as have a better understanding of the land market and land buyers.
Do You Really Need an Estate Agent When Selling Vacant Land?
No, you do not. Although, it really depends on how much effort you want to put into your land sale.
The basic premise of selling vacant land without an estate agent is all of the work an agent would take on becomes your responsibility from marketing to negotiating with buyers, dealing with viewings, and communicating with an a solicitor or conveyancer.
Selling land without an estate agent saves the land owner money in terms of fees. But, the amount of time spent learning how to sell land effectively and undertaking learned, may not be worth the money saved on estate agent fees.
If you’re one of those property owners who dislikes time spent researching things that are not in your field of study or interest, then chances are you would want a real estate agent to help sell land for you.
The fees that you would have to pay to the estate or land agent would not matter because you most likely would not have been successful in selling the land to buyers for the right price.
Selling land without an estate agent would requires patience and great effort. If the thought of doing lots of research, doesn’t sound attractive then you’re better off at the hands of someone who can help you sell your land.
Steps to Selling Land Without an estate agent
Here are the steps that you can follow in selling vacant land without an estate or land agent:
1. Study Your Land
If you have been holding onto a piece of land for a long time, then chances are that you don’t need to study your land and you may be able to move quickly passed this step. If not, then this step is crucial for you to get that sale for your land.
Studying your land means knowing the various features that it possesses. It can be the fact that it is in the right location or that it has key features that other properties do not possess, such as electricity, water fencing, easy access etc. Whatever it is, the role of every owner in selling property is to discover the selling points of their vacant land. You can use this information in the rest of the steps to successfully sell your land yourself.
Always consider that selling a piece of land is very different compared to selling a home. Some principles may be relevant, but most will not.
2. Create a Profile for Your Target Land Buyers
This step answers a simple question about securing a sale for your land: “Who are the buyers that I want to sell my land to?”
It’s a basic market principle that you should focus on a certain type of land buyers rather than everyone in the market. The reason for this is that marketing techniques need to be focused on certain types of potential buyers. This focus is important because it would be wasteful for you to allocate a large budget for marketing just so you might attract buyers who aren’t even interested in the type of land you own.
To find the right buyer is to aim at a target with a scope. Sure, you can aim at a lot of targets, but having only a few arrows aimed at one nicely defined target, instead several targets is a better situation for finding a relevant land buyer.
Generate interest for your vacant lots or property by knowing your potential buyers and then building your strategy around them.
3. Prepare Your Land
Similar to how an estate agent tidies up, cleans and presents residential properties for an open house for home buyers, your land should be ready and presentable for when a land buyer wants to view the land.
You can save money by doing this step yourself. Otherwise, you would have to incur some cost to get some help, especially if you own undeveloped land or a piece of land with natural water in it. First impressions matter and land is no exception if you’re not selling to an online buyer.
To increase your chances of attracting buyers and securing that sale, take time to prepare your land. You can plant wildflowers around key areas, remove debris, or cut the grass. Try to make the land presentable to prospective buyers.
4. Settle On a Price
So your land is ready, and it’s looking well prepared and ready to sell. You might think that the property is now ready to market, but don’t list your vacant land just yet; first you need to arrive at an appropriate price.
Pricing land is not just based on calculations. There is a feel to determining the right price that typically requires a thorough understanding of the overall land market. As an individual doing a one-off land sale, you can price land in a variety of ways. The easiest way is to consult an experts such as an estate or land agent and have them give you an estimate on what would make a good deal for you and your land.
Another way is to look at the market value of the land directly. Land sales in the area can also be good indicators – but can be difficult to determine. You can also consult land owners nearby, as well. To get a higher price above market value for your land, you can elevate your marketing strategy to give it a better perceived value for potential buyers. Post on all major “for sale by owner” sites, as well as social media.
You can also sell the land under special or flexible payment terms. For example, you can offer financing, discounts for cash payments, or monthly payments. The price of a property is usually what buyers look at first, so be sure to have this settled and justifiable to secure that land sale.
5. Advertise Your Land
One of the best things about the internet is that it allows you to do transactions without ever leaving the comfort of your house.
Listing land online may seem complicated, but it’s really not. There are many benefits to selling land online. Most potential buyers will be online and, arguably, the best way to sell land today is to make an online listing for your property. Creating an online listing can enable you to reach so many more potential buyers than just adding a “For Sale” sign.
When you create your listing, don’t forget to include all information that buyers should and must know about your land. This includes the size, price, fees and any relevant costs e.g. drainage, plus any restrictions on the use of the land.
6. Market Your Land
Along with listing your land on the market, you should do further marketing to reach any potential buyers. Gone are the days where you have to post several notices close to your land. Now, marketing and selling property can be as simple as sharing posts online or advertising via an online portal.
To do this, you can go on Facebook or Gumtree and either pay for an ad or make posts yourself. If you created an advert online, you can start promoting that in your socials (twitter, instagram etc), too.
Old school marketing tactics still work, too. Don’t be afraid to go out and talk to people, including neighbors, friends, and colleagues at work. Leafleting and advertising in local shops and post offices could lead you to a faster sale.
Normally, it’s your estate or land agent that takes care of all this marketing for you. But, if you want to sell land without an estate or land agent, prioritizing marketing will help bring in offers faster.
7. Have Your Documents Ready
Whether it’s a purchase agreement or any other contract, make sure that everything is ready by the time your interested buyer is ready to sign. Discussing the situation with a conveyancer or solicitor will help ensure your documents are appropriate and in order. This may involve you collecting together information about your ownership, any finance on the land, and any information about restrictions or covenants that are applied to the land. Your documents should be complete, in order, and presentable. They should outline all relevant information that you and your buyer spoke about since your selling process started.
In the next section, we discuss the necessary paperwork for your property sale to go smoothly.
Final Thoughts
No matter who you are or what your background may be, you can definitely sell land without paying for an estate or land agent.
Don’t let your lack of knowledge about the industry put you off. Every person can study and learn new topics. With the right attitude, patience, and an open mind, your sale can be successful.
Then again, you can always get in touch with an estate agent and have everything done for you.
If you have more questions about selling inherited property or how to find cash buyers for your land, don’t hesitate to contact us! We would be happy to answer any questions if you want to give us a call today on 01482 961961, Text ‘SellMyLand’ to 07984388819, email Land@kandglettings.co.uk or complete the form below to get your price and start your sale.
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