The 4 Top Ways to Sell Your Home FAST

When speed matters, you’re really choosing between price, certainty, and control. You can have two, but rarely all three. Here’s how the main alternatives for selling a house stack up, plus a few practical tweaks that could potentially help cut a few weeks off from a normal sale.

Price-to-sell on the open market

The fastest “normal” route is also perhaps the most common option people choose. List a touch below the best recently sold comparable properties (sold prices, not asking prices) and set a clear launch plan: block viewings over one weekend, best-and-final offers on Monday, buyer chosen Tuesday. 

Prioritise chain-free purchasers with proof of funds or a mortgage agreement in principle. Instruct your conveyancer before listing, complete the TA forms, line up FENSA/GasSafe/EIC/EPC paperwork, and prepare your answers to standard enquiries in advance. For leaseholds, order the management pack early –  the more you can do to prepare in advance, the more dead time you’ll cut out later on.

Auction (traditional or “modern”)

In a traditional auction, the exchange happens on the fall of the hammer, with a deposit paid and a fixed, short completion window. High certainty, fast completion. It often works best for unique homes, properties needing work, or when you want a hard deadline for every bidder.

With the modern method of auction, a reservation fee secures the buyer a longer timeline to exchange and complete. You gain a committed buyer more quickly than a private treaty, with wider marketing than a normal sale. Read the small print on fees and who pays them, so that you’re not hit with any surprises.

Reputable cash-buying companies

If you really want speed, then cash sales are still the fastest in most cases: offers can complete in 14-21 days. The trade-off is price – expect a discount to open-market value, often around 10-25%. 

Make sure that you use buyers that: (a) show proof of funds, (b) use RICS valuations, (c) charge no upfront fees, and (d) let you pick an independent solicitor. Avoid long exclusivity tie-ins and “option” contracts that allow them to try to flip your property before completion. 

Part-exchange or assisted move (new builds)

If you’re buying from a developer, ask about part-exchange. They buy your place (typically below market value) so you can complete on the new one without having to enter into a chain. It’s important to factor in this loss vs the market value price, and to decide whether the added convenience is genuinely worth it or not.

Assisted move schemes often don’t come with that financial hit. The property developer helps you to market your home aggressively via chosen agents, often covering some fees, with predefined timelines. They might aim to have it sold in as little as 4-8 weeks, without having to dip too far below market value.

There are plenty of options besides those listed above, but these are the most common routes people choose for speedy house sales. It’s important to sit down and figure out your priorities before picking one, so that you’re not stung later on by an ill informed decision.
Thanks to the team at Property Sale Watchdog for their help with putting this together.