selling your flat Lifestyle REadER’s flats


Once you’ve foundabuyer,you canstart to thinkabout


weeksbeforethe move Startamovingfolderwhere


Sixtoeight


youcankeepinoneplaceall importantpaperwork Findaremovalcompany


or ifyouareplanningtomove yourself,bookasuitablysized vanorlorry.Ifyouneedavery largevehicle itmaybesensible to lookfor ‘amanwithavan’ to helpyoumove,rather thando thedrivingyourself. Buyanypackingsupplies thatyouare likely toneed


move Informanyonewhoneedsto know, thatyouaremoving. Thismight include: Familyandfriends Gas,water, electricity,BT,


andcreditcardcompanies Thelocalcounciland electoral register


Twotofour weeks before the


the move itself. Here’s a handy checklist of things you will need to do in the run-up to moving day Insurancecompanies,


solicitorsandother professionaladvisers Employersandschools Doctors,dentists,opticians TheDVLAandbreakdown


service RoyalMail


before themove Packany itemsyouare


One week


dealingwithyourself. Carefullymarkallpacking


casessoyouknowwhat they containandwhichroomthey shouldgoin Arrangeforqualified


engineerstodisconnectand reconnectappliances Dothat tiprun–get ridof


anyunwanteditems, they willonly takeuproomin the removalvan


Skyandyourinternetservice provider Banks,buildingsocieties


before themove Cancel themilkandany


A fewdays


otherregulardeliveries Emptyanddefrost the


freezer Putallessentialdocuments, keys etcinaseparatefolder


andmarkitclearly‘Not for moving’.Putitinasafeplace andtakeresponsibility for theseitemsyourself Takepicturesandany other


fixturesandfittingsoff the walls Arrangeforaccesstoyour


newflatonmovingday Ifyouhaveayoungfamily


orpets, findsomeoneto look after themonmovingday– thiscanbeaverystressful experienceforchildrenand animals. Makethenecessary


arrangements atyourold andnewaddressessothe removalvancansafelypark withoutcausinganobstruction -don’t falloutwithyournew neighboursondayone!


Moving day Don’tpanic! Ifyouareusingaremoval


company,makethemaware ofanyvaluablesor other items thatmustbehandledwithcare Oncepackingiscomplete,


checkeverythinghasbeen taken; lookincupboards andstorageareastoensure nothingis leftbehind.


Aword about pets A word about pets


Youmay love your dogbut someoneviewing your propertymaynot –the samegoes forcats, birds, reptiles andsmall furryrodents.Your potential buyermay be frightened of or allergic to your petsoitpaystofind someonetolook after themwhen viewings arebookedorto shut themaway -temporarily of course.The other issue here is that although youmay be unawareofit, your homemaysmell of dogs or cats. Ask a close friend or neighbour –politely- to tell you if you need to freshen up your pet’s bed or favourite blanket. Put pet food bowls away forthe duration of theviewing –and it goes withoutsayingthatsmellycat litter trays are not a plus-point!


Find the right estate agent Whenyou’relooking foranestateagent to sell your flat, it pays to shop around.Property valuations arefreesoalwaysask at leastthree agents to comeandvalue your property.British peopleare obsessed with property prices so youare likelytohaveagood idea ofwhat your property is worth. Thesaleprice of otherflats in your blockisalsoagood indicator, so be realistic – youmay think your homeis far nicer than your neighbour’s flat but it is unlikely to be worththousands of pounds more. So do


Flat Living Issue 17


be suspicious of anyagentwhotells youhe can sell your flat for considerably more than youthought it wasworth.Unlessthe area has suddenlybecomehugelyfashionable or the next Olympics is beinghelddownthe road,he probably can’t.


Don’tforgetthatsole-agency is cheaperthan


multi-agency,sogiveyourchosenagent a chance to find you a buyer before considering using a range of agents but don’t be talked into alengthy contract.Ifthe serviceisn’twhat you hoped for you don’t want to be tied to a contract with oneagent.Alwaysnegotiate on fees as this aspect of thesales processisoften themost costly.Finally,alwaystakeupthe option of displaying a‘ForSale’ board(unless your leasewon’t allowit) as this really is an important marketing tool.


Appoint a solicitor If youhave a flat to sell, don’t automatically go to your highstreet conveyancingsolicitorfor advice.Heorshemayhaveplentyofleasehold experience,but ifnotyoucouldendupbeing poorlyadvised.TheAssociationofLeasehold EnfranchisementPractitioners (ALEP) has alist ofqualifiedsolicitorswhoareexperienced in this specialist area of conveyancing. Visit their websiteatwww.alep.org.ukformoreinformation andto finda legal adviser in your area.●


I boughtmyflat in South Hampstead lastSeptember after thedeparture of mytwosonstoUniversity.Iwantedto createmydreamproperty after living in alarge,familyhouse forthe past twenty years. The renovation was completed last autumn.Ihired architectSimon Miller, withwhomI had worked before and interior designerKelly Fannon to help makemydreama reality.


Theflat hadanillustrious ownerbefore


me;YogiMayerMBEwho hadfled from the Nazis fromhis native Berlin and was askedbythe Jewish RefugeeCommittee to work as an instructoratthe BradyBoys Club in theEastEnd, helpingtomentor boyswhohad beenrescued fromthe concentration camps. He lived in the flat formorethan50years untilhis deathat 99 in 2011.Asyou cansee fromthephotos, theflat wascompletelyun-modernised, riddledwithdampand in averypoor state. By workingwithSimon Miller,the flat


nowfeatures a large open plan kitchen/ sitting roomwith kitchen units designed by Schuller kitchens.Mybedroomnow includes a feature bathtub fromthe Vincenza RangebyClearwaterBaths,who supplied allmybathroomfittings.I’m delightedwithmynewly renovatedhome and I nowget to live in the flat I’ve always dreamed of.●


Ifyouloveyourflatandwant toshareyourphotoswith otherreaders,sendthemto theEditor ateditor@ flat-living.co.uk


17


FromgrIm togrand


SuzanneNoble hasrecently completedrenovations to her flat in north London.Here she shares her story with other Flat Living readers


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