Housing Association & RSL Guide
The below information is a guide for Housing Assocations and RSLs in the UK for using Privatehousetrade as a media of marketing properties for sale through shared ownership.
Standard Adverts
For a more detailed explanation you can visit How Classifieds Work. Once properties are uploaded onto our site and partner portals you will then handle the whole process in your usual manner and can gain enquiries through telephone or email whatever contact details you stipulate. We can also if you require input all of the properties that you choose to list by Classified Advert on the Privatehousetrade website to save you time. All we would ask is that with any property that we be notified when offers are received, accepted and a property is sold then taken off the market.
Fee structure
We do not make any charges to your client. The only charge is to the successful buyer a Buyer's premium, see Privatehousetrade Prices, if they choose to utilise the 'Make an Offer' feature through Privatehousetrade.co.uk to cover our costs. Then you can charge your usual % commission your client.
Marketing
When registering a property for a Classified Advert, the property will go live within 24 hours of you activating the advert unless you stipulate otherwise and provide a future date for the advert to go live. This period allows Privatehousetrade to check the advert prior to activation. You and/or the vendor’s solicitor will possess particulars of the property that can be made available to prospective Buyers. We encourage you to market the property as you see fit in addition to the marketing provided through Privatehousetrade on the Privatehousetrade website, and offline advertising methods. We would recommend that you place (at your own/your clients expense or we can for a fee) at least 2 advertisements in local newspapers, giving details of the property and incorporating the Privatehousetrade logo.
Viewings
You will carry out arrangements for viewings on the property in the usual way. These viewings can be arranged via Privatehousetrade.co.uk through the User Messaging System.
Auction Guide
With the suspension of Home Information Packs (HIPs), properties have reverted back to requiring a typical legal pack normally needed to be prepared for an Auction. EPCs are now a necessary requirement for any property sold and one must be commissioned at the time the property goes to market. To clarify Privatehousetrade is not an online estate agent in the UK it is simply a publisher of adverts for property for sale.
Here are the 10 simple steps needed to achieve a successful online Auction result:
1) Take instructions on suitable property and agree your own fees with client.
2) Register FREE with Privatehousetrade.
3) Download our standard Auction Agency Agreement.
4) Return signed Auction Agency Agreement, signed Undertaking Form for Selling at Auction, Reserve Price Agreement to us with agreed Guide Price, and Auction start date (30 days from activating the Auction advert).
5) Upload Property Details onto Privatehousetrade and begin marketing period.
6) Check that Seller's/vendor's solicitor prepares an Auction legal pack within first 2 weeks.
7) Check that Seller/vendor pre-signs their copy of the Undertaking Form For Selling at Auction.
8) Advertise in local press, carry out viewings, etc. in usual way.
9) Assist and encourage potential bidders to register.
10) Ensure Reserve Price Agreement is returned to us 2 days before Auction.
There are numerous benefits to offering a property for online Auction however the main reason is for a fast sale which can often exceed expectations should a few interested parties be bidding on the property.
Guaranteed Completion
The benefit of an Auction over a private treaty sale is that it is almost a guaranteed completion because all the legal work and financial arrangements are sorted out before the Auction takes place (online Auctions are no different). A Privatehousetrade Seller pre-signs their copy of the contract (as opposed to the auctioneer) and all bidders must pre-register by pre-signing their contract and paying their solicitor a pre-contract Commitment Deposit, enabling an exchange of contracts to take place with the successful bidder at the end of the Auction.
Please follow; How Auctions Work for a more detailed explanation of the process.
Any property can be suitable
Any property can be sold at Auction, some properties sell better than others at Auction however with changing times more and more properties are suitable for Auction.
The old view would be that unusual properties are better suited to Auction such as;
- Properties in need of renovation.
- Repossessed properties.
- Tenanted flats or houses.
- Building land.
- Residential, commercial and industrial investments.
In reality with the emergence of online Auctions any standard well-presented family property can be appropriate, especially if there are exceptional circumstances such as disputes, court orders or are looking to sell quickly.
An Auction is a better method to achieve the maximum sale price in situations where there is huge interest in a property that would otherwise have gone to a Formal Tender or Closed Bids.
Should you wish to discuss any property you consider may be suitable please contact us at: info@Privatehousetrade.co.uk.
Fee structure
Here is the best news - there is no Entry Fee. The only charge you will pay is a standard reduced Seller’s premium for Housing Associations & RSLs in the UK when the property is sold (this information is available upon instruction), the Buyer will pay a Buyer's premium as is standard at Auction, (see Privatehousetrade Prices) to cover our costs. We do not make any charges to your client and you can charge your usual % commission to the vendor.
We only require you to download our Auction Agency Agreement and obtain a signed copy from your clients agreeing to enter into a binding contract to sell their property.
Agency Agreement
Once the property has been identified as suitable to Auction, you will need to obtain your clients formal instructions by getting them to sign our standard Auction Agency Agreement, Undertaking Form for Selling at Auction, Reserve Price Agreement which are downloadable from our site and send this back to Privatehousetrade via email: info@Privatehousetrade.co.uk, fax: 0161 431 3819, or post to House Trader Limited, Office 107 Great Northern House, 275 Deansgate, Manchester, M3 4EL. You may have your own standard agreement, but you must use our agreement as well.
Marketing
When registering a property to sell at Auction, an Auction date will be agreed and will finish at a specific time and date (Auctions end at 8.00 pm 7 days after the Auction commences) – allowing a 30 day period for marketing as standard prior to Auction.
You and/or the vendor's solicitor will possess particulars of the property that can be made available to prospective Buyers. We encourage you to market the property as you see fit in addition to the marketing provided through Privatehousetrade along with the option of 'For Sale' boards stating the property is for Auction, and on the Privatehousetrade website. We would recommend that you place (at your own/your client's expense or we can for a fee) at least 2 advertisements in local newspapers, giving details of the Auction and incorporating the Privatehousetrade logo.
Typically, the main Auction houses issue up to 25,000 catalogues per sale. This inevitably gives the properties fantastic exposure to a wide audience. However, this exposure isn’t in the most successful form of media. With an ever increasing number of hits also and extensive 'mailing list' of interested applicants and with our own advertising in trade related magazines and papers, we believe Privatehousetrade can exceed this publicity.
Viewings
You will carry out arrangements for viewings on the property in the usual way. These viewings can be arranged via Privatehousetrade.co.uk through the User Messaging System.
Guide Price
At the time of activating the property for Auction, you will need to agree a Guide Price with the vendor so that this can be advertised at an early stage on the website. We suggest a figure some 10% - 15% below the expected final sale figure.
Pre-registration and Commitment Deposit
You will probably have dealings with most of the potential bidders, in the usual way through viewings, enquiries, etc. It is obviously in everyone's interest to have as many potential bidders as possible, and you may be called upon to help them to register as a bidder, see How Auctions Work and Buyer's Guide.
All prospective bidders must register in advance of the Auction as a bidder by paying a Commitment Deposit to their solicitors/conveyancers and pre-signing the Undertaking Form for Purchasing at Auction. The solicitor/convayancer registered must be individual to each property and must be the solicitor/convayancer of the vendor. The deposit will be in pounds sterling in the form of a cheque or banker's draft made payable on an approved financial institution that the solicitor holds or deposits in their client account. Once registered they will then be able to bid either manually or automatically (where Privatehousetrade bids on their behalf) up to their maximum bid specified.
This pre-contract Commitment Deposit is to be made to the sum of 10% of the maximum price the prospective bidder is prepared to pay (in pounds sterling in the form of a cheque or banker's draft made payable on an approved financial institution that the solicitor holds or deposits in their client account) or £2,000 (whichever is the greater). The prospective bidder will only pay the Buyer's premium (see Privatehousetrade Prices) if they are the winning bidder and are legally bound to purchase the property. The exact amount of this fee must be incorporated within the sales details of the property advertised on this site.
This pre-contract Commitment Deposit will become the contractual deposit upon exchange of contracts. All unsuccessful bidders will be refunded their Commitment Fees (Pre-contract Deposit and Buyer's premium) by their solicitor.
Pre-signed contract by the vendor
As we have a group of committed bidders, so we need a committed vendor and appointed selling agent. We therefore require the vendor's solicitor/conveyancer to send to Privatehousetrade the downloadable Undertaking Form for Selling at Auction, Reserve Price Agreement to us confirming that they have a signed contract and/or authority to exchange with the highest bidder at or above the Reserve Price within 24 hours of the end of the Auction.
Reserve Price
A Reserve Price will need to be agreed with the vendor and will be set through Privatehousetrade.co.uk when activating the property for Auction prior to the marketing period commencing and a signed copy of the Reserve Price Agreement will need to be returned.
It will be the responsibility of the Seller to complete with consent of and on behalf of the vendor and fax or post back this standard Reserve Price Agreement, which can be downloaded from the Seller's Guide pages. Please ensure this is completed at least 48 hours prior to the Auction.
Sales prior to the Auction
As in any Auction situation, you may receive bids prior to the Auction taking place. The vendor's solicitor/conveyancer appointed to the sale should have already prepared a complete legal pack and sale contract, enabling an immediate exchange to take place, should the offer be acceptable, this could be through a Buy It Now if you have selected this option which we Highly Recommend!
You must inform Privatehousetrade immediately if an offer is accepted outside of the site prior to Auction, so that the appropriate notices can be issued on-site, once contracts have been exchanged.
To avoid any confusion, no offers outside of the remit of the site within 24 hours of the Auction time and date will be permitted. Once the Auction has commenced no offers will be permitted on the property outside of the remit of Privatehousetrade.co.uk until such time whereby the Auction has finished and post sales concluded, and the property will either have been sold or no offers may have met the reserve price. In this instance we do have sales post Auction.
Sales post Auction
Should the bidding fail to reach the reserve, sales can often take place up to 6 weeks after the Auction. You would therefore be well advised to agree your sole agency agreement to cover this period. We do also enable you to invite the top 5 bidders to make improved bids after the Auction has finished if the reserve is not met, you have the opportunity to accept below the reserve price if an offer is acceptable.
The Auction
The Auction will take place as described in How Auctions Work. All Auctions will last for a period of 7 Days ending at 8pm 7 days from the start date of the Auction. There will then ensue a period of 'Sudden Death' bidding ending 10 minutes after the last bid is received.
As both parties will have pre-signed the Undertaking Form for Selling at Auction/Undertaking Form for Purchasing at Auction, the Auction Contract can be signed, then the exchange can take place within 24 hours of the Auction ending.
Trade/Part-Exchange
For a more detailed explanation of the process you can visit How Trades Work. With regards to Trade/Part-Exchange property sale types you will pay a reduced Seller's Premium (for Housing Associations & RSLs, this information is available upon instruction) upon agreement of the Trade and the other party (if an agent will do the same) or if a private Seller pay the full Trade fee.
Fee structure
Here is the best news - there is no Entry Fee. The only charge you will pay is a standard Seller’s Premium for Estate Agents when a Trade is agreed on the property (this information is available upon instruction), the Trader will pay a Seller's Premium, see Privatehousetrade Prices (to cover our costs). We do not make any charges to your client and you charge your usual % commission.
Marketing
When registering a property for Trade/Part-Exchange, the property will go live within 24 hours of you activating the advert unless you stipulate otherwise and provide a future date for the advert to go live. This period allows Privatehousetrade to check the advert prior to activation.
You and/or the vendor's solicitor will possess particulars of the property that can be made available to prospective Buyers. We encourage you to market the property as you see fit in addition to the marketing provided through Privatehousetrade along with the option of 'For Sale' boards stating the property is for Trade/Part-Exchange, and on the Privatehousetrade.co.uk website. We would recommend that you place (at your own/your clients expense or we can for a fee) at least 2 advertisements in local newspapers, giving details of the Trade/Part-Exchange and incorporating the Privatehousetrade logo.
Viewings
You will carry out arrangements for viewings on the property in the usual way. These viewings can be arranged via Privatehousetrade.co.uk through the User Messaging System.
Pre-registration and Commitment Deposit
You will probably have dealings with most of the potential Traders, in the usual way through viewings, enquiries, etc. It is obviously in everyone's interest to have as many potential Traders as possible, and you may be called upon to help them to register as a bidder, see How Trades Work.
All prospective Traders including your client (or yourself on behalf of your client) must register as a Trader by paying a Commitment Deposit to their solicitor/conveyancer. The solicitor/conveyancer registered must be individual to each property and must be the solicitor/convayancer of the vendor. The deposit will be 10% of the maximum price the Trader is prepared to pay (in pounds sterling in the form of a cheque or banker's draft made payable on an approved financial institution that the solicitor holds or deposits in their client account) or £2,000 (whichever is the greater). Once registered they will then be able to offer Trade parameters through the Privatehousetrade.co.uk website when activating the Trade advert.
The prospective trader will only pay the Trader's (Buyer's/Seller's) Premium, see Privatehousetrade Prices if a Trade is successfully agreed. The exact amount of this fee must be incorporated within the sales details of the property advertised on this site.
This pre-contract Commitment Deposit will become the contractual deposit upon exchange of contracts. All unsuccessful Traders will be refunded their Commitment Fees (pre-contract Commitment Deposit and Trader's premium) by their solicitor.
Please read the Privatehousetrade Terms and Conditions for the relevant type of sale as all users will be bound by these terms. For more information please visit the Frequently Asked Questions/How It Works sections on our website.
Our admin team are on hand to listen to any questions or resolve and problems you may be experiencing with homes for sale in the UK. Your feedback is always appreciated so if you have any comments on how you feel our service may be improved or any question in general that aren’t answered in the FAQs then please don’t hesitate to email info@Privatehousetrade.co.uk or contact us on 0161 431 3819.