Estate Agents perform a vital role in the selling process – but you will pay handsomely in return. How much depends on the kind of home you are selling and the service that you require.

The HomeOwners Alliance recommends finding an agent charging fees of 1% + VAT on the agreed sale price for sole agency contract, although some agents may be willing to compromise on more expensive properties. MoneySavingExpert warns that fees for high street agents could  be as high as 3%.

What this means in real terms only becomes clear with some context. The average cost of a British home was £233,000 in summer 2019, so the difference between fees of 1% and 1.5%, when you include VAT, is £1,398. That’s already steep but, if you’re paying 3%, the difference is extreme: £8,388 versus £2,796. That’s £5,592 – enough to pay for new carpets.

Flying solo

Beware of selling the house yourself if you have already contracted an agent. You will likely be locked in for an initial four- to 12-week period, and even after, that you may be committed to paying fees if you sell to a buyer they first introduced to you.

Assuming this doesn’t apply to you, selling your house yourself can be a serious money saver, but there are downsides. Contracting an agent is like hiring staff. They are there to field enquiries and book viewings, which they may accompany, depending on your preference and the package you have agreed. They also know the local market and usually have potential buyers on their books already looking for a property like yours. This can help speed the sale which, in a volatile market, can be more important than making a saving.

With a high street presence, they will make your house ‘browsable’ – especially if they display it in their window – and crucially they also have access to Rightmove, putting your home in front of thousands of online eyes. You can’t do that yourself, as Rightmove, Zoopla and other property portals don’t deal with private sellers; they sell their services to agents on a subscription basis.

Agents frequently pair up with local conveyancers and solicitors to which they will offer an introduction. Although they will get a kickback for the business this generates, you will often get a discount, too, and the fact that the two are used to working together will go a long way to smoothing out potential bumps in your sale.

The hybrid option

While it’s possible to do many of these jobs yourself, there are some tasks for which you should always employ outside help.

Houses are special. They are not like cars that you can easily assign to a buyer by sending off a V5, and purchasers will have questions that require legally verified answers. Their own solicitor will probably be unhappy dealing with you unless you are similarly qualified, which can either slow or scupper your sale. The more work they have to do because you are unable to provide relevant proofs and documents yourself, the higher your buyer’s costs - and they may ask you to offset these by lowering your price. This reduction could cost you more than you are saving.

The half-way house

The hybrid option – an online estate agent – might therefore be the best solution for anyone who wants to cut the cost of selling. Like online banks, Internet-only agents don’t have local branches, so you will still need to do a lot of the legwork yourself, in return for which you will pay substantially lower fees. The three listed below each start at £99 and will list your property on Rightmove and Zoopla.

99home lists your property with a maximum of 29 photos and will forward enquiries by text and email. You will have your own account manager and 99homes will organise conveyancing for you (although the cost won’t be included). It is an additional £59 for a ‘for sale’ board, and £149 if you want 99home to draw up a 2D floorplan. You will need to provide your own EPC, but 99home can help you organise this.

Online Estate Agents works on a subscription model, where the £99 is charged monthly. It includes a ‘for sale’ board, 3D floorplans are £50 extra, and it is £75 for your EPC. You will be assigned a sales manager who will book viewings, make sure enquiries are genuine and help negotiate the best sale price.

If you sell with Doorsteps, it will set up a dedicated online portal for your property through which you can monitor enquiries. Your account manager will deal with potential buyers and negotiate the sale price, but you host viewings yourself. It can organise your EPC (£72) and has in-house conveyancing at an additional cost.

If you are thinking about moving home you may find some of these links useful: