How to find out how much a house sold for

If you’re planning to buy or sell a property, finding out how much similar houses have sold for in the area can be a great help. This guide explains how to use sold house price information to create the best buying or selling strategy, and where to find accurate information about how much a house sold for.

How to find out how much a house sold for

It’s now quite easy to find out how much a house sold for. A simple internet search can provide a huge amount of information. Any official sold figures will come from HM Land Registry, so if you’re looking for information about one specific property the Land Registry website is a great place to start. If you’re looking for a general overview of sold prices in a wider area, you might find websites such as Rightmove or Zoopla useful.

Several websites that contain sold house price data also offer an instant ‘valuation’ service. This ‘valuation’ will be based on previous sold prices in the area and property market trends. It’s wise to treat these figures with a level of caution. They are based on very limited information and cannot take into account the condition of the property.

How can finding out how much a house sold for help when selling a property?

If you are considering putting your house on the market, researching how much similar properties in the area have recently sold for could help with pricing your own property. It will give you a broad indication of whether your future plans are likely to be achievable.

Knowing how much similar properties have sold for in your area will also help when you meet with estate agents. It’s important to price your property correctly from the start. Properties that are initially overpriced become very difficult to sell, even after price reductions. If an estate agent values your property significantly higher than similar properties have recently sold for, alarm bells should perhaps be ringing.

It is important to ask at least three estate agents to come and value your property. Any agent you choose should have experience of selling similar properties in the local area. This will help you to get a realistic idea of the value of your property.

You should also ask them to justify their valuation, giving examples of other local properties they have sold.

How can finding out how much a house sold for help when buying a property?

If you are planning to buy a property, sold house price information can be a great help.  Some sellers are a little overambitious when it comes to the price they think their property will achieve. Estate agents are also motivated to push the valuation higher as most will work on commission.

Being armed with sold house price information can help you to justify a ‘below asking price’ offer you make on a property. It will also give you confidence to assess what you believe to be a fair price for a property.

If your property search covers a wide geographical area, sold house price information can also be used to shortlist areas where properties may be within your budget.

How do sold house prices in my area affect the value of my property?

Each road or area will have a ceiling price – the highest price people will be willing to pay for a property, regardless of how well presented it is. This price will be based on how much other properties in the area have sold for. Sold house price information is now easily available. This means most prospective buyers will have a good idea of what they believe your property is worth before even stepping over the threshold. 

There are several variants that will lead to your property being valued above or below average. These include:

• Condition of property – A well-presented property that’s ready to move straight into will obviously be worth more than a property in need of renovation. Structural issues often won’t be identified until a property survey is carried out. If structural problems are identified as part of the survey process it will have an impact on your property value.
• Leasehold vs. freehold – If your property is leasehold it is likely to be valued lower. This is especially true if most of the properties in your area are freehold. If your property is freehold in an area of mainly leasehold properties, your home will be worth more than others.  The number of years left on a lease will also affect the value of your property. The shorter the lease, the lower the value of your property.

There are also several external factors that will affect the value of your property:

• Transport – Improved transport links will have a positive impact on local property prices. This is increasingly true if you are within commutable distance of a major city.  
• Education – How your local schools are performing can also have an impact.  An ‘outstanding’ OFSTED inspection report can quickly generate increased demand for family homes. This will result in higher property prices.
• Number of properties for sale – If there are lots of properties available locally, property prices may fall. This is because homeowners will need to compete to attract the attention of potential buyers. Similarly, if there are few properties available locally, property prices are likely to rise as would-be buyers try to outbid each other.

How much will my house sell for?

The short answer is no-one knows until you find a buyer.

Estate agents and property experts can give you an idea of what they think your property might sell for, based on recent sold house prices and demand for properties in the local area, but a property is ultimately only worth what someone is willing to pay for it.

Find out more about:

• What is modern method of auction?
• What is gazundering?
• Should I get a property survey when I buy a house?
• What is a structural survey?
• When was my house built?
• What is a memorandum of sale?
• What are title deeds?
• What is a property bridging loan?
• Can I sell my house with an ongoing neighbour dispute?
• My house is not selling – what can I do?