When landlords first speak to us about selling, one of the biggest questions is understandably price.
Landlord Sales Agency doesn’t promise every seller the highest possible theoretical value for their property. Instead, we agree the amount they are happy to receive and use the equity above that figure to create a sale: finding the right buyer, solving problems with tenants, keeping transactions moving and covering many of the costs that would otherwise come out of the landlord’s pocket.
For someone who has spent years building equity, agreeing to accept less than the full vacant-possession value can understandably feel like a big decision.
But there is one thing that perhaps says more about whether landlords think it is worthwhile than anything we could say ourselves.
They come back. Time and time again.
Many of the landlords we work with are experienced property investors who have owned rental properties for years, benefited from substantial capital growth and are now choosing to release some or all of that equity on their own terms.
They know what their properties are worth. They also know what their time is worth, what an empty property costs and how quickly a seemingly straightforward sale can become anything but straightforward.
One Landlord. Seven Properties. Plenty Of Different Problems.
One Manchester landlord first came to us in 2021 when he was beginning to sell off part of a long-held portfolio.
His first property had a tenant who had already found somewhere else to live. Rather than wait until it was empty before starting the sales process, we contacted the tenants and by working with them instead of around them, we were able to market the property immediately. We found a cash buyer who was happy to secure the sale with a non-refundable deposit and coordinated completion around the tenant’s move.
The sale completed just two weeks after the tenant left and only 64 days after we first listed the property for sale.
Our sellers walk away with 85 – 90 % of the property’s vacant possession value.
On paper, accepting £115,000 against an estimated £130,000 open-market value looked like giving up £15,000 in equity. But properties don’t usually sell for their full asking price.
If a conventional sale achieved around 95% of asking price, that £130,000 becomes £123,500. Take off around £5,000 in agency and legal costs, plus £3,300–£4,950 in lost rent and an estimated £1,200–£1,800 in basic costs if the property stood empty for six to nine months, and the seller could actually have ended up with LESS than he received from us.
Even if he received 100% of the asking price, the amount left in the bank after all fees and costs are calculated would be in the region of £118,000–£120,000.
That’s not a lot more for a HUGE difference in time and risk.
We completed in 64 days, he received his agreed £115,000 and lost just two weeks’ rent. Giving up equity on paper didn’t necessarily mean giving up money in the bank.
The seller obviously thought the trade off was good value. Since that first property, we have now dealt with six more of his properties – and they certainly haven’t all been as straightforward as the first.
We’ve sold properties with tenants remaining in situ and properties where tenants were preparing to leave. We’ve worked around tenants who were difficult to contact or reluctant to provide access, found replacement buyers when sales fell through and negotiated solutions to survey problems rather than allowing them to derail transactions.
On one sale, a roof problem discovered during the process was resolved with an agreed £1,000 adjustment rather than everyone walking away and starting again.
Another property presented a much bigger challenge.
A tenant was facing eviction. A section 21 possession had already been granted but the tenant had been advised by the council to wait to be evicted in order to be considered for a council property. Instead of simply waiting for bailiffs to attend, our team contacted Rochdale Council and worked with its housing team and the tenant to find a better solution for everyone.
We helped the tenant pursue a suitable council property, secure it and paid £500 towards her new deposit and removal costs.
She got the keys, arranged a man and van and moved voluntarily avoiding temporary housing in the process.
The landlord was able to avoid the stressful and unpleasant task of having to evict the tenant in return for her perfect tenancy over 7 years and the sale proceeded to a schedule he wanted.
Meanwhile, the buyer’s solicitor uncovered missing building-control paperwork relating to roof works carried out following a fire next door years earlier.
We tracked down the original builder, liaised with Building Control and the surveyor, arranged inspections and worked through questions about ventilation and insulation until the necessary paperwork could be provided.
That’s the sort of work hidden behind the words “property sale”. The difference is, our clients can leave it all to us to sort out. Use a high street agent and that job’s all yours or your solicitor’s. They’re also the sorts of reasons why so many high street property sales collapse. Not on our watch.
And this isn’t an isolated example – repeat business make up a significant percentage of our sales.
Experienced Landlords Understand The Difference
By using some of the equity tied up in properties, we have room to create solutions without our sellers having to find cash to make them possible.
That might mean finding an investor happy to retain the tenant. It might mean helping the tenant buy their home themselves. It might mean negotiating a voluntary surrender, contributing towards a deposit, removals or another practical problem that is preventing somebody moving.
It also gives us the flexibility to find another buyer when something goes wrong, negotiate over survey findings and keep everyone talking when a conventional transaction might simply collapse.
The majority of landlords who come back to us aren’t distressed sellers. They haven’t run out of options. Most have owned property for decades.
They’ve made good returns, built substantial equity and simply reached the point where they want to access some of their wealth tied into their properties without the process of exiting to become another difficult job to deal with.
Some sell one property and retain the rest. Others gradually reduce their portfolios over several years. Some use the released equity elsewhere.
We Don’t Expect You To Take Our Word For It
Every company says its service is good. Repeat business is proof it’s the best.
A landlord who uses us once has seen the numbers. They’ve seen what they received, what we received and exactly what we did to get the property sold.
So when that same landlord comes back with a second, third or seventh property, we think that’s a considerably more useful endorsement than anything we could put in an advert.
It doesn’t mean accepting less than vacant-possession value will be right for every landlord or every property. It means there is another way to look at the decision.
Rather than asking “How much equity am I giving up?” ask “What is that equity buying me?”
If it buys a buyer, keeps the rent coming in for most of the sales process, helps a tenant move without a lengthy possession battle, solves problems as they arise and gets the equity you do want released into your bank account sooner, it may prove to be money very well used.
Find Out What Your Options Look Like
If you’re considering selling one property, part of a portfolio or exiting completely, talk to us before you talk to your tenant or start down the route of obtaining vacant possession.
Once you start down the possession-for-sale route, changing your mind can have serious consequences, including restrictions on re-letting, substantial fines and potentially a Rent Repayment Order.
There’s no obligation to proceed with our service and no false promises to win your business – just straight-talking, honest opinion based on recent sales of similar properties in the same areas as those you want to sell.
We’ll look at the property, the tenancy, what you want to achieve, then tell you what we believe we can do to help you leave the PRS on your terms.
If you’re happy with the amount you’ll receive, we’ll take care of the hard work from there – including working with your tenants, finding the right buyer and solving the problems that stand between you and completion.
No pressure to sell. Just the opportunity to see whether putting a little of your equity to work could make releasing the rest considerably easier.