Why Choose Carlin to Sell Your home

There are many reasons why you should choose us to sell your home: we’re straight-talking, friendly, offer value for money, are trustworthy and we know our area extremely well. Then there’s the fact we have many years of experience, high profile marketing strategies and an ability to make your sale that little bit less stressful.

After all, our aim is not only to make your current sale a success; we also want you to be one of the many local people who wouldn’t dream of letting anyone else sell their home and we want you to be able to recommend us.

If you’re still not convinced, how about these reasons: 

Advice you can trust:

Our valuers know their business, and what’s more they know what sells in the North Antrim & East Londonderry regions and how to get the best deals for our clients. When we carry out a market appraisal on your home, we’ll advise you of the best price to ask to attract serious buyers. Our local market knowledge means we can reliably estimate what will sell, where and for what price. It also means we can advise you about what offers are reasonable to expect and accept. 

Value for money

When you choose Carlin you’re choosing a professional, friendly and thorough service. We invest a great deal in proactively marketing your property through our advertising in windows, newspapers and on various internet property portals. Our fees have been designed to offer real value for money.

A less stressful move

The process of moving has gained something of a reputation for being worrying and hectic. What with all the paperwork, viewings, chains and solicitors; it could be a recipe for stress. At Carlin we help to take care of all the details and keep a close eye on the legal stuff, leaving you free to plan your future in your new home.

Excellent service

There’s a reason why we chose Coleraine as the location for our office. It’s because we want to be central to our clients to offer a superior standard of customer service around the North Coast. From the moment you come to Carlin you’ll be kept informed about your options, your legal and financial responsibilities, any potential buyers and how the whole process is moving along. We’ll arrange all viewings, give feedback and shall stay in regular touch with you and all the parties linked to the sale.

Latest Technology

We have invested heavily in the latest computerised processes and technology to help us provide an even better service. These include our new computerised database, which matches potential buyers with suitable properties at the touch of a button and our new emailing service for all properties.

We’re using technology to make the most of our advertising too. As well as our own company website, we market all properties to a global audience through PropertyPal, Property News, Globrix and a host of other well known property portals.

Proud To Stand Alone

Carlin Property Sales & Lettings is a completely independent estate agency run by local people. We believe independent advice is crucial when buying or selling a home. We have forged a strong partnership with The Mortgage Shop which is the largest independent mortgage broker in Northern Ireland with over 20 branches provincewide. We can happily put you in contact with many other independent companies such as surveyors, removal companies and tradesmen who can help you with your move.

With you every step of the way

Once you’ve secured a buyer for your home, there’s still the legal work to do before the sale can reach the final phases. This part of the process needs to be handled carefully to make sure all the banks, building societies, solicitors and other parties involved are heading in the right direction at the same speed. Our team really comes into its own at this stage and will keep in regular touch with everyone involved to keep things moving. If something goes wrong, which sometimes happens, we’ll be there to advise you on what to do. And we are still around to help you until your sale or purchase is completed.

The Selling Process

Once you’ve made the decision to buy or sell a house there are a number of standard phases to go through before you complete. Here’s an idea of what you can expect if you’re selling or buying.

If you’re selling you’ll get:

• A free Market Appraisal.
• Advice on the local market.
• A recommendation from us about the asking price.
• Tips and recommendations for selling your home as promptly as possible.
• Details of all our services.
• A comprehensive selling and marketing service including 24/7 advertising and communication on our own website and other leading property portals.
• Professionally produced, attractive and detailed property particulars with colour photographs and floor plans (if required)
• A skilled negotiating team at your service seven days a week
• All your viewings arranged at a time to suit you or, if you prefer, an accompanied viewing service.
• Regular feedback on any viewings that have taken place
• A prominent For Sale board at your property
• Your property details sent by post, sms or email to interested home seekers.

Once an offer has been made for your property you’ll get:

• Advice on the financial situation and ‘ability to proceed’ of the prospective buyer
• The opportunity to take advantage of our independent financial advisor and solicitor.
• Regular phone calls advising you of how the sale is progressing
• Regular liaison between our negotiators, your solicitors, the purchasers’ solicitors and any banks and building societies involved to help smooth the process
• A full negotiating service to help deal with any unexpected queries or problems that may arise.

If you’re buying you’ll get:

• Your details and requirements entered onto our integrated computerised database
• Details of all suitable homes within your price range sent to you via email, post or over the telephone, whichever you prefer
• Viewings of all properties arranged on request
• Advice and guidance about the buying process including legal and mortgage matters.

What the seller can do to help to prepare for viewings:
 

Looking for a smooth and quick sale? First impressions count, so make sure your front door is neat or newly painted and that your garden is tidy. It’s important to create `kerb appeal’ as your viewers approach.

When you have a viewing arranged, plan a ‘guided tour’ of the property in advance which shows some of the most attractive features of your home first.

Keep something special in reserve for the end of the tour so they leave your home with a great, and lasting, impression.

Make sure everything is clean, tidy and any clutter is packed away. This is important to create a feeling of space.

Attractive potted plants or some vases of flowers can really make a difference and create a feeling of wellbeing. If flowers aren’t your thing then brew some tempting fresh coffee or bake some bread – good smells sell!

Clean the kitchen! Make sure the cooker is grease free, worktops are clear and that all the cupboard doors are clean and hanging straight. Empty the bins and try to avoid cooking any really strong-smelling food before the visit. If you do, open the windows well before the prospective buyer arrives.

Bathrooms should be sparkling clean to create the right impression. Try and arrange some fresh fluffy towels and some new bars of soap. And make sure the mirror, bath and toilet and sink are streak-free.

Take a minute to plump up the cushions in the lounge, straighten out the curtains and tidy away any unnecessary clutter.

If you’re lucky enough to have a real fire, then light it up for winter viewings to create a really cosy and welcoming space.

During the Viewing

If you are at home while people are viewing your property, you have an opportunity to find out what’s important to them. Listen for clues and, where possible, tell them about the features of your home and the neighbourhood that you think would appeal to them.
Once you have told them everything you think is useful, let them look round the property again on their own so that they can gather their own thoughts and impressions.

Assessing an Offer

There’s no hard and fast rule on what makes a good offer, but it is important to know these basic criteria:Are they first-time buyers and therefore able to move quickly? If they have a home to sell, is it already on the market? Have they already accepted an offer for their home? How quickly do they need to move? Do they intend to pay cash? If not, do they have an agreement in principle to a mortgage? Accepting an offer from someone who isn’t ready to move yet could lead to several complications and delays later. You may want your home to remain on the market until the buyer is in a stronger position. We will offer you advice on individual offers.