How to Sell Your House Fast: My Free 5-Step Formula for a Quick Sale at a Great Price

The average UK house sale takes 7 months from start to finish. (And that’s the average – meaning half of sales take even longer.)

Want to sell your house faster? There’s a catch…

To sell your house fast you'll have to trade money for speed. House-buying companies are the fastest way, but you'll lose around 20% of your home’s value. At auction, expect to lose 10-15%, but it’s not right for every home and sales aren't guaranteed. Estate agents take 7 months on average, but it's possible to halve that.

So which approach is right for you?

The wrong decision here can cost tens of thousands of pounds, or cause months in delays…

But I’ve spent 15 years helping thousands of homeowners strike the right balance and sell their house quickly.

• I’ve sold 500+ properties for clients who wanted to sell their house fast…
• I’ve bought (and quickly sold) over 130 properties of my own…
• And my advice articles (like this one) have been read over two-million times.

I’d love to help you out too!

I know this is a chunky article, but I’ve done my absolute best to make this worth your while. I want to save you from months of frustration, or from losing tens of thousands of pounds (or both).

If you’d prefer to listen to this article rather than read it, click here to watch/listen to a full read-through on Youtube.

How?

In this article I’ll share a simple 5-step process you can follow to find the best way to sell your house fast… and get the highest price possible with the time you’ve got.

• In the first step, we’ll work through the three questions you need to ask yourself, so you can make the right decision.
• In the next 4 steps, we’ll systematically review each of your options using your responses.
• So within the next 15 minutes, you’ll have a clear plan about what to do next to sell your house fast, and for a price you’re happy with.

I’ll also have a few ways to offer you support as you take the next steps.

Let’s jump in!

Step #1: The Three Questions For You

How to sell your property is a very personal decision. It’s not “one-size-fits-all”.

There are different ways to do it, and the right one for you will depend on your circumstances.

That’s why the first thing we need to do is get a clear idea of your priorities. These 3 questions will help us do that.

This is worth spending a couple of minutes on!

This is the same framework I’ve been through with hundreds of home sellers over the phone.

Question #1: How much?

When you start looking into these faster selling methods… things like:

• House-buying companies,
• Auctions,
• Modern auction,
• Etc…

You get a faster, more certain, more convenient sale. Which is all great. But the downside is that you compromise on price. Meaning you get less money.

So have a think about the lowest price you’d be happy to accept if it meant getting a faster, easier house sale.

• You might be willing to take £50k less for a fast, smooth ride.
• Or you might not be willing to budge a penny.

Have a think and get a figure in your mind. This will be helpful in the next stages.

Question #2: How Fast?

Next, how fast do you really need to sell your house?

We want to sell fast. I get that. No one would prefer their sale take 12 months rather than 2 months!

But selling your house fast comes with a massive price tag…

Like we touched on before, you lose 20% of your home’s value if you sell fast to a house-buying company.

(On a £300k property, that’s £60,000 you can expect to lose!)

So I know that you want to sell quickly. But is it worth that much to you?

Have a quick play with the slider below so you can see the number in black and white:

[SLIDER]

We’re talking about a huge loss. And remember, this is your money. You’ve worked hard all your life. It’s a lot to giveaway!

So with this hefty price tag in mind, how fast do you really need to sell? Have a think and set a realistic deadline in your mind.

Why is this so important?

Well, if we have more time to work with, we can use that time to get you way more money. ‍

Why are deadlines so important? If we have more time to work with, we can use that time to get you way more money.

Tip: Challenge your deadlines. Can you buy more time?

One tip. If you’re still left needing to sell your house very fast (i.e. less than 3 months), then really challenge your deadline.

This is an exercise I’ve been through with hundreds of clients over the phone.

Side-note:
If you already have 3+ months to work with, then feel free to skip these bullet points and jump to the next question.

There’s a reason for your urgency right now. Some underlying pressure or problem…

But is there another way you can solve that underlying problem without selling your house cheap?

I’ll give you three quick examples to help get your brain firing.

• ‍Mortgage arrears.
  I’ve spoken with so many homeowners in financial difficulties. Arrears are building up, so you look to sell fast…
  
  But in the process, you’d be selling cheap and giving away all your equity you’ve worked so hard to build up! Not good!
  
  However, if you communicate with your lender, they’ll often be much more patient than you expect. So you probably have a lot more time than you think. And you can use that time to get more money.
  
  (Just so you know, in the first three months of 2025, around 102,000 mortgages were in arrears. Only around 2,000 were repossessed. About 2%. So don’t rush to sell your house fast and cheap, just because you’re in arrears. Speak to your lender instead.)

• ‍Relocating for work/schools.
  Moving for work or school catchment areas usually comes with real, hard deadlines. The kind you can’t extend with a bit of negotiation like the last example.
  But can you find more time another way?
  ‍
  For example, is it an option to rent somewhere in the place you’re moving to, and let the sale carry on in the background?
  ‍
  I know this means more expense. Rent is expensive. And if you have to borrow, then loans/mortgages are expensive. But I can almost guarantee they’ll be a fraction of the cost of selling your house fast and cheap.

• Managing a distant, vacant property.
  I’ve worked with loads of homeowners managing a property they’ve inherited a hundred miles away. Or investment properties the other side of the country that have become vacant.
  ‍
  The sale process takes a long time, and the constant back-and-forth travelling can be a huge burden. So people consider selling their house fast as a solution.
  But again, the price tag is just so high. Tens of thousands of pounds!
  ‍
  Could you hire a cleaner to check in on the property once or twice a week and run the hoover round? Or a gardener every fortnight to keep the lawn trimmed?
  They’d keep it tidy, and keep an eye on things (to give you peace of mind).
  ‍
  Again, I know this is extra expense. But £500 in cleaners and gardeners might relieve the pressure on you, and buy you the time you need to sell for £50,000 more than a house-buying company might give you.
  ‍
  Suddenly, this extra expense becomes the best investment you ever made!

Final thoughts about “How Fast”:

Really challenge your deadlines. Really think about alternatives.

From my experience working through this with hundreds of homeowners, there’s almost always another way. Can you find away to buy more time?

If you can find a way to buy more time, and it means you sell your home for its full value… then it might be the best money you ever spend.

If you can find a way to buy more time, and it means you sell your home for its full value… then it might be the best money you ever spend.

Question #3: How willing?

The first two questions focus on speed and price. Very factual, very logical.

But there’s a lot of emotion involved in house sales too.

Unfortunately, in the UK selling your house is consistently ranked as one of the most stressful life events we go through.

People say that selling a house is:

• More stressful than getting a divorce.
• More stressful than childbirth.
• More than a third admit they cried during the process.
• Over three quarters say their last move was more stressful than the pandemic.

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On paper, you have an estate agent on your side to see you through it…

But agents are consistently ranked among the least trusted professions in the UK.

And so the question here is…

Outside of the price you need and how fast you need to sell…

How willing are you to go through the process?

If you have the willingness, and there are no deadlines, then just sell through the estate agents! It’ll be a bumpy ride, and it might take a long time… but you’ll get way more money. So that’s almost always the right option for you.

But if you have deadlines, or you really just don’t want to go through the faff of dealing with estate agents, then a quicker option might make sense.

Just make a mental note of this:

• ‍High willingness:
  I’m ready for anything; the average estate agent sale doesn’t phase me.
• ‍Medium willingness:
  I really don’t want to do this… but I can go through it if I have to.
• ‍Low willingness:
  I just really really want to avoid a long, drawn-out, frustrating sale.

Your Answers

So now, we know:

• ‍How much you really need to get from the sale.
• ‍How fast you really need your house sale to happen.
• ‍How willing you are to go through the normal process.

This is pretty much all the info we need to determine the best way for you to sell.

Now let’s jump in and start laying out a road map.

We’ll work through each selling method one-by-one and determine which is going to be right for you.

We’ll start with the fastest option, and work back from there.

Step #2: Consider House-Buying Companies (The Fastest Way To Sell)

We’re here because you want to sell your house fast.

So far, we’ve carefully established:

• Your real deadlines,
• Your bottom price,
• And how important convenience is to you.

The natural next step is to consider the fastest of the fast-sale options… house-buying companies. (Also known as “Cash house buyers”, “we buy any house companies”, etc.)

Here’s a quick overview:

The quickest way to sell your house is by selling directly to a house-buying company. On average, they’re around 10x faster than using an estate agent. It only takes 1-2 days to get a cash offer from them. If you accept it, most can buy your home within 2-3 weeks. However, you will lose around 20% of your home’s value.

So it’s super fast. But super expensive. Which means this is an extremely niche service.

How popular are House-Buying Companies?

There are no official figures but, having worked in and around this industry for over 10 years, I estimate only around 1,000 properties per year are sold this way… That’s only around 0.2% of all house sales – or 1 in 500!

When to use a House-Buying Company

So when might a cash house buyer be right for you?

1.  Price.
   If you’re able and willing to give up 20% of your home’s value, this can work.
2. ‍Speed/Convenience.
   If you either really need to sell your house within the next few weeks, OR you just can’t face going through a lengthy, drawn-out sales process… then you might look at the 20% loss and decide it’s worth it to you.

In the rare situation that both of the above are true, a house-buying company might be the answer you’re looking for.

To see if they’re the right option for you, hit the red button below to take a free quiz I’ve designed for you. If they are right, I can connect you with a genuine company I’ve personally vetted and trust. In most cases, they can make you a free cash offer within 1-2 working days:

However, for most people… this is not the best option.

When to avoid a House-Buying Company

First of all, most people aren’t able/willing to lose 20% of their home’s value. So a house-buying company is not going to be an option. You will lose a fortune.

The other thing…

You probably don’t NEED to sell your house in the next 2 weeks. You have some time to work with. So we can use that time to get you a way higher price.

And so for most people, I would just cross a house-buying company off the list. You likely don’t need them, and you can do better.

Want some extra reassurance around this?

Over the last year or so I’ve had long, in-depth conversations (30-60 mins) with hundreds of home sellers who were thinking about house-buying companies.

After carefully working through their circumstances in detail, a house-buying company was only the right fit for a handful of readers. For the other 97%, we found a better option for them.

To see if it might be right for you, take the free quiz I designed for you.

Or keep reading to explore your options further. There are other ways to sell your house fast!

“But I found a company who pays 90%”…

You'll definitely find companies who say they'll pay 90% or more of your home's value...

Unfortunately, those are either:

• Not real offers. And they'll drop later
• Or – more often – they’re companies who just try and find a buyer for you. They’ll promise a long list of investors, but they’ll just list your home on Rightmove. These companies promise the earth, but you're worse off than just selling with a good local estate agent.

If there was a genuine company who'd pay 90% and could reliably deliver a fast sale, I'd recommend them. But there just isn’t.

I’ve written more about this here. Take a read if it’s relevant to you.

Otherwise… let’s keep moving!

So what’s the next fastest way you can sell?

Well, that would be auction.

Step #3: Consider Selling Fast By Auction

Auction is the next fastest way to sell your house.

There are some positives for auctions when compared with estate agents… but major downsides too.

Property Auctions are faster and offer more certainty and convenience. They’re a good fit for problem properties too. The main downside is price, as you expect to get 10-15% less at auction. The average sale takes 3-4 months too (only around 2x faster than estate agents). And there’s a 30% chance the property won’t sell.

So you’ll get a higher price compared with using a house-buying company… but you’re still losing a huge chunk of your home’s value.

This is one of the main reasons auctions are still so niche.

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To jump ahead and see if auction’s right for you in the next 1-2 minutes, take this free quiz we designed for you. If auction seems like the best way to sell your house fast, I can connect you directly with my #1 leading auction house in your area.

Alternatively, keep reading to learn more.

When to sell via property auction

As we’ve covered, there are a lot of downsides with auction. When is it right for you? In general, I only recommend it if:

1. ‍Property.
   Your property has some major defect. Something that makes it un-mortgageable. AND…
2. ‍Price.
   You’re happy to lose 10-15%—or more—to sell your property. AND…
3. ‍Speed/Convenience.
   You need to sell your house fast, or you’re really fed up and can’t face selling through the estate agents.

As you can imagine, not many people fall into all 3 buckets, and that’s why auctions are so niche.

When I’m personally helping a homeowner decide if auction’s their best option, property issues are the biggest thing I’m looking for.

So what types of issues qualify?

Why auction is good for Problem Properties

These are the types of issues I’m looking out for when trying to determine if auction makes sense for a property:

• Subsidence.
• Defective non-standard construction.
• Complex legal issues (like serious lease issues, rights of way, etc).
• Fire safety issues (like cladding).
• And more. (Click here to see a longer list of properties suitable for auction)

What do all these things have in common?

In general, they can make your property un-mortgageable. And that’s when I think auction can become the right option.

Why?

Auctions have lots of cash buyers. I.e. professional developers looking to pick something up cheap, fix the problem, and make a profit.

They’re unlikely to be put off by a property’s issue, and are actually likely to see it as an opportunity. This is why auctions can be so well-suited to selling problem properties as-is.

What if your home is just in poor condition?

If your home is in poor condition but it’s still mortgageable, you can sell quickly and get way more money on the open market! Keep reading the next sections (or click here to jump ahead) for more info.

Q: Is auction the only option if my property has a serious issue?

If you have a major property problem but you want as much cash from your sale as possible, then fixing the problem yourself and then selling through the estate agents might make sense for you.

It can be a lengthy process, but ultimately you’re likely to end up with way more money once it’s all done.

Speaking of cash, let’s just address that next. Why do you typically lose so much when selling fast via auction?

Why you lose 10-15% selling at auction

When you sell at auction, on average, you expect to lose around 10-15% of your property’s value.

Yes, you can get lucky and sell for more. But you can lose way more than expected too.

Here’s a slider again. Select your property value so you can see that 10-15% loss in black and white.

[SLIDER]

It’s a lot of money.

You lose so much for two reasons:

1. ‍Fewer buyers.
   ‍First, most people can’t buy at auction – or they just don’t want to.
2. ‍‍Buyers who pay low prices.
   Secondly, the buyers who are going to the hassle of buying through auction are pretty much doing so because they want a bargain.
   ‍So they’re the people who pay the lowest prices.
   ‍(Remember, if these buyers were happy to pay full price for a property, they could just scroll through Rightmove and pick something. And they’d have 30x more choice!)

This is just how auctions work. Remember this if you’re getting valuations from auction houses.‍

Here’s how it works:

• ‍Sign-up.
  They promise the earth so they can get you to sign up.
• ‍Reduce Price.
  Then a few weeks into the process—after barely any interest—they’re on the phone telling you to reduce the price.
• ‍Hard to turn back.
  By that point, you’re in the auction and it’s hard to go back.

Sadly, I’ve seen a lot of auction houses adopt these tactics; particularly many of the modern auction houses. So be really careful when you get auction valuations.

If you’d prefer to speak with an auction house we’ve personally vetted and trust, click here and I can connect you for free.

If you think auction’s right for you…

So auction’s not right for most people. (In fact, only about 3.2% of properties are sold by auction).

But

• Your property is un-mortgageable…
• And you’re ok with a lower price…
• And you want/need to sell your house fast…

…then auction might be right for you. So just click below to connect directly with my #1 Leading Auction House in your area.

If not, let’s keep moving through our 5-stepprocess. We’re trying to get you a fast house sale that meets your price needs—and is as convenient as possible.

Step #3: Consider Estate Agents (And one quicker alternative)

Ok, if you’ve reached this far then it’s likely you don’t want to give up 10-20% of your home’s value…

So it’s important to get a good price for your home.

If you want to sell for a good price, then you’ll need to sell on the open market.

“If you don’t want to give up 10-20% of your home’s value, you’ll need to sell on the open market”

This usually means selling through an estate agent…

But stick with me. Because there’s another quick-sale option that can be:

·        Around 2x faster than an estate agent...

·        It’s way less stressful…

·        And it’ll net you way more money than using auction or house-buying companies.

We’ll cover it in Step #5.

But first of all, this is what we’re up against when we sell through estate agents.

Problems with selling fast through estate agents

First, according to Rightmove, the average estate agent sale takes seven months, from start to finish.

• And that’s the average – meaning half of sales take even longer.
• So it’s not like you know it’s just going to take 7 months and you can plan for it…
• It might take double that

[Bell chart from VAM]

And secondly, as we discussed earlier, it’s not like it’s a pleasant wait either…

Selling your home is consistently ranked as one of the most stressful life events we go through in the UK.

And it’s not putting things in boxes and loading them in a van that’s stressful…

It’s all the stress and uncertainty that comes before that. Including dealing with estate agents.

Agents are ranked among the least trusted professions in the UK. And getting worse over time!

That’s an actual stat. Here’s an index that’s been running for over 40 years:

Caption: Source: The Veracity Index, which has been running since 1983.

Untrustworthy Estate Agents: Dishonest vs Ineffective

I think the misconception here is that people think “estate agents can’t be trusted” just means “they’re dishonest”. But that’s only part of it.
From speaking with hundreds of disgruntled home sellers, I think the bigger problem is this: It’s not trusting estate agents to do a good job. Or care about what happens.

And so, if you do want to sell your house quickly but you want a good price too, you have two options.

1. ‍Option 1: Sell through the estate agents…
   …but manage your expectations.
   It’ll probably take more time than you want. And it’ll probably be a bumpy ride. BUT you’ll end up with a good price, and you’ll pay fairly little in fees.
   If that’s ok for you, this is the way to go.
2. ‍Option 2: Consider the alternative option below.
   If trying to sell through the estate agents doesn’t feel like a good option, move on to Step #5 below.

Step #5: Consider an Accelerated Sale

Ok, so if you’ve reached this far:

• You want to sell your house fast…
• ‍And for a good price…
• ‍And with minimal hassle and stress.

But in the previous steps, we’ve established that:

• House-buying company prices are too low.
• Auction prices are too low (and most properties aren’t suitable).
• Estate agents are too slow (and tend to cause a ton of stress).

So where do you turn?

Well…

We now have a service we offer to a very small number of home sellers.

It’s not right for everyone. But if you’ve reached this section, there’s a good chance it might be right for you.

So what is it?

Our Accelerated Property Selling Service

We call this our Accelerated Property Selling Service.

In a nutshell, we will sell your house for you.

My team and I will follow the same 12-step process I developed to sell over 100 of my own houses:

• ‍2x faster than the national average…
• While achieving the highest price possible. And…
• We’ll take care of the whole process for you. (So you don’t have to deal with the inevitable stress, headaches, and heavy-lifting.)

For years, I only used this process to sell my own properties…

But when we started Home Selling Expert back in 2021, we began speaking with so many homeowners in exactly your position:

• Where you want to sell your house fast…
• But you don’t have faith in the estate agents…
• And you don’t want to lose 10-20% selling at auction or to a house-buying company either
‍

And so we decided to start offering this as a service to some of our readers. And we’ve had amazing feedback on it since then from the people who’ve used it.

If you’ve reached this far into the article, then you’re obviously serious about selling your house quickly. And so this may work really well for you too.

Enter your email address below and I’ll send you more information in the next 60 seconds on how you can apply.

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